Moving from Senior Manager to Director — A Journey into a New Dimension of Leadership
The Digital Strategy & Products department of CBC is committed to providing their people with the support they need to foster career growth and progression. One such leadership growth opportunity is to develop one’s skills to progress into a director role.
The series Career Development, Growth & Progression invites people to take a courageous step and tell the story of their journey as to how they applied for a more senior role and were the successful candidate.
To join our teams at CBC, check out our current openings here.
You never know what to expect when going into an interview. When I came into the CBC back in May 2019 to interview for a senior manager position in Digital Strategy & Products, I was pleasantly surprised to see 12 pairs of eyes focused on me. ALL of the management team was there to meet me. It showed that they cared enough about my position that they would invest the time and money into just meeting me.The next interview was made up of a panel of people who could potentially report or work very closely with me. I knew right then I would be working for an organization where people counted first — it was evident that everyone had a voice. This completely won me over. The interview process solidified where CBC Digital’s values lie.
This is the first workplace where I have felt completely supported and accepted for who I am. I was comfortable sharing vulnerabilities and not feeling like I always had to be the best at everything. It quickly became evident that I could set my own boundaries. And If I had an idea to improve something or try to do something in a different way, I was met with “go for it”, and off I went.
I started by supporting the Web Experience, Advertising Integrations and Accessibility teams. Later I also got a chance to support the Loyalty Experiences (previously known as Audience Acquisition & Engagement) and Customer Experiences teams. It was really helpful to have come from an Agile environment in my previous job and come into one where it was being practiced. Some of my focus was spent on helping people reach their potential and removing obstacles so they could grow. And during the pandemic I really learned to stretch and grow myself — I did things I would normally have said “no” to things that scared me a little bit. Everytime I did that, I realized I could do anything as long as I allowed myself to fail and learn.
It was in mid 2022 that an Interim Director role became available.I saw this as a challenge to once again do something that scared me. The job posting had the right stuff to scare me more than just a little bit. At the same time, I asked myself, “what would be the worst thing that could happen if I didn’t get the job?”. The answer was I get to keep doing the job I love, realize more successes, positive outcomes and learn even more. So really, I had nothing to lose.
In preparation for the interview, I took the approach that I have used most in my professional life; the most important thing is to be able to bring up examples to back up what you say. Real life experiences count and tell more of the story than what you put in your resume. Always know what challenges you have encountered and how you overcame them. And if the outcome didn’t turn out as expected, share what you learned.
At a director level, everything is on a larger scale. The organization is looking for someone who can think systematically, and be able to look at things from a time horizon level that spans several years. Keeping a continuous improvement mindset is key. The core of the role is still to help our people be more successful, but amplified at a much larger level as you are there to support the success of the department as a whole.
In short, I get to do what I did as a senior manager but on a much larger scale. People have always been my passion. Working with teams of very intelligent people that have the same values and goals is invigorating. I’ve seen a lot of changes for the better in our department and we all play a part in that.
I’ve been asked what’s next in my career goals and right now my answer is “I don’t know yet”. There is still a lot to learn where I am and I am enjoying it. That’s what gets me up in the morning, feeling gratitude for this opportunity to lead with curiosity and empathy and happily saying “I get to go to work today!”
