Describe your current position and what led to your job.

I have worked at JPMorganChase for almost 17 years – starting as an intern while getting my master’s degree from the University of Delaware.  In my tenure at JPMC, I have worked in technology teams across many of our lines of business.  My roles have included virtually all technology functions – including user documentation through development and architecture and, more recently, in organizational strategy and design.

I am currently the Global Technology Resource Manager for the JPMorganChase Information Technology organization.  In this role, I am responsible for driving the resource & location strategy for over 25,000 technologists globally.  This role includes working with our key vendor partners as well as developing programs to enhance the productivity of our technology employee population.  One of the technology employee programs I lead is a new partnership to develop a pipeline of future technologists in partnership with the University of Delaware.

What has been the most rewarding/challenging moment in your career? 

One of the most challenging moments in my career was moving from a development team member to a manager; or, as we sometimes call it, transitioning from an “individual contributor” to a “lead”.  Essentially, this transition involves moving from a role in which you have daily accomplishments and “wins”, to a function that involves longer term successes.  The challenge in this transition is to not lose focus on your goals, even though they seem far out on the horizon.  The reward comes though when you reach that point and can see the broad impact you have made to the firm.

What is the best career advice you have received? 

Quite simply “Sleep on It”.  Oftentimes, the most challenging part of our day comes not from the work itself but from the interactions with people.  At times when there is conflict, it is often easiest to immediately engage in the “battle”.  However, it is sometimes harder, but wiser to step back, reflect and devise a more thoughtful approach to resolve the issue.

What would you recommend to someone interested in working in your field? 

Go for it!  When I was in school, I quite honestly never envisioned myself as a technologist.  However, almost 17 years later, I have had an enriching career in which every day is a learning experience and almost every day is fun too!  Technology – and technology in a global financial services firm – is ever-changing with a breadth and depth of opportunities.

What skills are necessary or what prepared you the most for your career?

It is hard to pin down skills to just a small discrete list.  Rather, I would say that having well-rounded experiences and skills are what can make you most successful.  Specifically, you need to simultaneously gain the hard skills required to perform the technical or mechanical aspects of the role, but also combine that with the soft/people skills that are necessary to build a network and team environment to accomplish your goals.  In addition, it’s important to embrace change and challenge yourself to always make sure you are learning and growing – even if that sometimes means changing roles or taking risks to try something new.

What professional associations have aided in your professional development? 

At JPMorganChase, we have a wide array of internal professional networking groups that I have taken part in over the years.  Some have included technology colleagues and others have been focused on developing a women’s network.  Both types have been very rewarding and have contributed to my career by enabling me to not only build a network of professional colleagues, but also a network of trusted individuals that I can call upon for advice and guidance.

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