Strengths.
I’ve spent considerable time now honing my most valuable skills, and they have expanded as I have grown into being a leader. At the core of everything that I have been able to achieve is an innate sense of organization, planning, and strategy. I have a robust system and ability to look at complex problems and break them down into smaller, more digestible elements. This puzzle-solving joy shows itself in many tasks, including data interpretation, team building and hiring, and project prioritization.
Partnered directly with this skill is my ability to adapt and change course rapidly while still providing structure. This was well tested in my time at Optimizely - we had 4 mergers in the time I was there, and during the four years I worked there, I had 9 management changes. Because there was always so much change happening above me, I quickly learned how to establish stability for my team members so they could focus on their work and complete it effectively. I did this by establishing a clear and direct definition of what their work entailed, explained and educated the team on the value of those tasks, and was very open to feedback. This created a strong bond of trust that kept the team functioning even in the most chaotic of times.
I’m a firm believer that if something isn’t working, a new solution should be found, but that unless it is extremely clear that it is a detractor, all ideas must be given the proper amount of time to succeed - after all, some statistics start out looking rough only to transform into the best option.
I’m a talented time manager and a big piece of this is communication. I ensure that I communicate regularly with everyone I’m working with - team members, other departments, and most importantly, customers. I balance out over-communication by ensuring that I have a crystal clear understanding of the purpose and impact of every communication.
The single most important skill to make all of these things work together is my proudest skill - listening. I am an avid listener, and take lots of notes with markup for following up on questions, ideas, and other thoughts. Listening ensures that customers are heard and cared for, teams understand why they are doing the work they’re doing, and builds that important trust.
I work quickly and efficiently. I am self-motivating and approach work with a creative mindset. We spend most of our lives at work, so creating a net-positive environment is important. Not everything has a bright side, but there’s always a tomorrow. I bring my authentic self to work every single day.
I care about helping people - it’s what got me into this line of work. I’m very people-first, and it pays dividends.
Weaknesses.
Because I am an eager and passionate learner, I require a job that keeps me busy. This has proven a challenge at nearly every job I have ever held - because I work efficiently, delegate appropriately, and communicate strategically, my work gets done rapidly. Many jobs have boasted that they will have no problem giving me enough to do and have found themselves to have underestimated the speed and enthusiasm with which I work. A colleague described me best as “compulsively responsible” and because I will perform all my duties to completion, once I run out of tasks, it is easy for me to become stalled or bored with less to do. I have worked in the last few years to become highly resourceful so that I can seek out other projects or tasks that I can assist with, but I am well aware that I am a “wartime president” and work best in a chaotic, fast paced environment. When I worked in troubleshooting jobs, I was often known as a hub for coordinating solutions as I keep a cool head under pressure and am able to be decisive and accountable for what happens. This need is buffered at times by my strict work / life balance, but I am at my happiest when my to-do list is long so that I can make my first task “prioritize other tasks” and get to work scaling my projects.
In Summary.
I am a driver. I push things forward and make sure they get done in proper timing. Because I move quickly, I work best with detailed planners who will think of the obstacles that may come into play. With this combination, projects can move forward at an effective speed that has still been well planned and researched.
In large part, I am driven because I am passionate about the work I do. I carry tactful honestly and sincerity with me at all times. I am not a salesperson unless I think that the customer could truly be helped by the product, but the passion I have for finding a way to help them and my transparency in doing so helps me to forge strong customer relationships with a foundation of trust and understanding - far sturdier than a simple pitch.
In summary of both my strengths and weaknesses and how they work together, I would be best placed on a team that is looking for someone driven and active, who will take excellent and thorough notes, communicate within and beyond the team at hand, and can help balance the workload between all members. My goal is to have a position where I can help customers directly or indirectly in finding solutions that make their lives preferably not just easier, but more enjoyable. I hope to have the ability to place tools in others’ hands, help them understand their priorities, and find a solution that works for all parties. I look forward to learning more about the opportunities you may provide me.