Last week, I had the opportunity to attend a women’s networking breakfast sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers, Llp. The guest speaker, Karen Miller, is a Senior Vice President at Sigma-Aldrich. She spoke to the group of professionals about how to take charge of your career, how to develop and use skills outside your primary area of expertise, and how to network effectively to maximize your opportunities.
While there were many interesting nuggets of information during the discussion, one thing that Karen said stayed with me all weekend. She shared that there will be times in each of our careers where our pace is faster than our organization’s pace. When that happens, what do you do? When you are in a work environment where the pace is not aligned with your pace, it’s time to evaluate your situation. I’ve found several questions helpful in evaluating a situation.
5 Critical Questions to Evaluate Pace
- Is this the organization you want to be part of?
- Is the pace of the organization something you can live with, or will you feel undervalued if you stay?
- If you want to stay, what steps can you take to ensure that you remain challenged even though the organization pace of change is slow?
- What benefits are there to remain with a company that may not allow you to utilize your skills and grow?
- Are the rewards of leaving the company worth the risk?
I have been in this position at a prior company, so the question hit home for me. Personally, when I finally realized I had asked myself all those questions, I knew the right answer for me was to find an organization that embraced change and innovation. It’s not always that easy though. What has been your experience? Would you change jobs, careers even, if it meant moving to a more progressive, fast-paced organization?
Share in the comments. I’d love to hear from you.
4 Comments
Wow, that’s a great question Trish. One of the things I’ve learned over the years is that I need to get out of my “Jay is the center of the universe” mindset. My enthusiasm, energy…my pace is intended to support the organization’s growth, not be a source of criticism against my employer. I now try to be as strategic as possible – meaning I focus on making progress from year to year, not necessarily making a breakthrough each day.
@Jay- I’m glad you commented. Having seen a glimpse of your pace at work, I’d say you’re a real mover! Your enthusiasm for your work, for all the employees at All Children’s and the patients and families is evident. One thing I noticed is that you change and flex your pace and approach depending on the audience and where you are in the hospital. When I saw you talk with a child, you were using more calming tones yet were so friendly and put them at ease. When I saw you with employees, you were higher energy. Having leaders who are adaptable is KEY in my book. You’re a great example of that!
Nice, I think I have trouble noticing the change of pace; knowing when to get out once the pace is changing in a bad direction.
@Chris (newresource)- That’s an interesting point. Sometimes it’s not even the organizational pace but the change in a department’s pace when new leaders are promoted or come on board. Even more important to make sure that hiring and promotion decisions support the business results desired.