A year ago I stepped into Client Services and moving into this role that was very different from anything I had done previously. Having never worked in a client success role before there was inevitably a bit of a learning curve and, at times, perhaps a slightly steeper one than I would have liked!
The biggest challenge of the first year has probably been learning how to operate effectively in a completely client facing role. Understanding what clients need is one thing, becoming fluent in their priorities and long-term goals is another. That’s something that has developed through experience, conversations and simply spending more time working with them.
Our client base is an extremely professional and friendly group. This has made the transition all the more enjoyable. Building relationships and getting a better understanding of what matters to each client has been one of the most rewarding parts of the role thus far!
Working in a smaller company has also brought its own challenges. Unlike in a large organisation there isn’t always someone immediately available who has the exact answer you’re looking for. That has meant becoming more resourceful, finding different ways to learn and getting comfortable with figuring things out independently.
Ultimately, these challenges have been extremely valuable. They’ve pushed me to develop a broader understanding of the business and become more confident in finding solutions rather than always looking for someone else to provide them.
One particular adjustment has been getting used to working in an agile environment and the way we structure work around sprints. It took some getting used to initially but the value of the approach has become much clearer over time.
The idea of continuous delivery really starts to make sense when you see it in practice. Rather than waiting for one large project to be completed before delivering value, we can make smaller improvements and deliver incremental value along the way.
That’s particularly satisfying from a client facing perspective. Every time you check in during a monthly Infinity meeting there is always something new to show, whether that’s a new feature, an improvement to something existing or simply a better way of doing something.
As I head into my second year, one of my main goals is to continue building my knowledge and become more self-sufficient.
Our developers are quite frankly, a river of knowledge. One of my ambitions for year two is to make sure my own stream starts to trickle some knowledge in as well!
More seriously, I’d like to deepen my technical and operational understanding so that I can answer more questions myself and understand the possibilities and limitations of what we do, ultimately becoming even more effective in supporting our clients.
After a year of learning the role, the clients and the way we work, I’m looking forward to building on that foundation and seeing what the next year brings!
Article written by:
Julian
Time spent winter surfing off the Cornish coast is not deducted from life.
I was honestly surprised when I was asked to write this blog post detailing my first month at the company. Not because I hadn’t gotten plenty of prior warning, of course, but more so that I couldn’t believe that a month had already passed since starting at VI.
Read more about One Month At VISharing my experiences of my first month working at VI as a business development manager.
Read more about One Month At VIFinishing University was a pretty scary time for me, I went from having a schedule for studying, coursework and exams, to suddenly being let loose in the real world. As much as Universities try to prepare you it’ll never be enough.
Read more about One Month at VI - Sam