"Why do you find your work at PCIC exceptionally rewarding?"
This great question was posed to me by several different candidates whom I was interviewing for a new data analyst position at PCIC. While my immediate answer was honest and concise – that I enjoy problem solving, developing databases, and creating innovative data solutions – I didn’t feel that it fully encapsulated what makes PCIC a special place to work.
Desperate to find a more satisfactory response, I found myself breaking the bigger question into smaller questions to get closer to my answer:
What makes me feel intellectually excited and motivated?
I find inherent joy and motivation in learning – I frequently seek out new opportunities to improve my practice and increase my expertise.
When was a time I felt extremely excited about my work?
I recently had the opportunity to listen in on a meeting with stakeholders from a partner organization. In the meeting, they provided several suggestions about how to increase the utility of the data analysis dashboard we created for them. Hearing their ideas made me excited that they are engaging with the dashboard. It also provided me the opportunity to see through the stakeholder’s eyes and gain deeper understanding of what information is valuable to them. I have since incorporated their ideas into subsequent designs to deliver better actionable data solutions.
What does this mean?
I concluded that my best "Aha!" moments came when I’m not directly working with data, but rather when I’m listening to collaborators from different disciplines think out loud. It’s these moments – when I can step into their shoes – that I am motivated to learn more; both deeper into my field and broader into other fields.
We are currently interviewing applicants for various new positions at PCIC. As we bring new team members on, I will be eager to share this insight with them to better gauge whether they too will be excited to be out in the field actively engaging with clients and stakeholders.
