How do you ensure the company’s mission resonates across all levels of the organization?

It begins with our core values of doing work with quality and integrity and pairing that with clear and consistent communication across the board. I expect our entire team to embody this through their words and actions, whether it’s working internally or with our partners and clients. We involve employees at all levels to participate in shaping our mission to give everyone a sense of shared purpose and responsibility.

Our team always operates with transparency and accountability. By openly sharing our strategic plans and goals with all employees, we have created an environment where everyone is acknowledged and valued and are welcome to voice their ideas.

What are the key qualities you believe a leader should possess in today’s fast-changing business environment?

It’s my nature to think far down the road, it’s just what makes me tick.  The ability to adapt, and to do it in a smart and informed way, is my guiding principle.   I am big on understanding the context of everything and my decisions are informed by the bigger picture that I build with data and operational insights, current business and global affairs and keeping in-touch with a strong network of my peers and colleagues. 

A leader should embrace the opportunity to learn every single aspect of the business and I am proud of the fact that I can be hands-on with every one of our team members when needed.   I can have real, genuine conversations with them that allow me to understand how they do their jobs, and the challenges they face, and that helps me support them better. 

Leaders should always be on the look-out for talent and be willing to nurture and develop people for the good of the business as well as the individual’s personal benefit.  I am proud that our organization looks to promote from within and that means identifying and growing an individual into a role that they may not have seen themselves in but they, ultimately, are a great fit. That also means that sometimes people leave the organization for bigger and better things, and when that happens, I am nothing but proud and happy for them because we all gave our best during our time together. 

Finally, something that I think gets overlooked a lot by leaders is emotional intelligence.  You can map-out the best strategy ever, create a solid operational plan on paper, but without the ability to understand how to motivate and support your people nothing will ever get done successfully.  Everyone is juggling a lot on their plates, professionally and personally, and it impacts how we do our work.  Having a workplace that is grounded in respect and empathy allows everyone to trust one another and not be afraid to ask for help when needed. 

What drives you as a leader on a daily basis?

I start every day asking myself “what could I do better?” and I apply that to the numerous challenges that are in-front of me.  So sometimes that looks like spending more time with our clients, other times it may involve deep-diving into code with our developers to keep the latest release on-track, and other days it could be helping solve a complex logistical problem.  The point is this job keeps me on my toes and it’s never the same day twice and I love that.