At JMP, we are a well-educated group of professionals, and we are also the kind of company that greatly values people’s abilities and interests. And, as our mission statement says, we work to “ensure that JMP is a great place to work and have a career.” It is important for our employees to find purpose and fulfillment in what they do.
We recognize that our careers are a tremendous part of our everyday lives. They even form us as people—many of us have had experience with ‘good’ jobs and ‘bad’ ones too. But the ability to grow and evolve throughout a career is tantamount to the feeling of personal happiness and joy for many of us. Nobody likes to feel like they are stagnating.
Employees own their careers. While managers, colleagues, friends and family may be part of the journey, ultimately that responsibility falls on us. Many of us have not taken a direct route to get to where we are today, nor should we expect a circuitous route to suddenly become straight once we land at JMP!
We can look for encouragement and wisdom in the lived experiences of our colleagues so that we can envision the possibilities for our own careers. Bringing these stories to the surface provides inspiration to have career conversations more often. Hearing how our colleagues went from renting cars in the Inland Empire to being an account executive at a statistical software company in Cary, NC, may inspire us to reflect on our journeys—where we have been and where we want to be. After all, I’ve come a long way since sweeping trash and cleaning toilets at Legoland!
Let’s share stories of career transitions – both big and small, from both seasoned and early career professionals – that took us from A to B (or to C or D), and eventually to where we are today.
Would you be willing to tell us a little bit about how you arrived at JMP? If so, please fill out the survey. We will publish monthly vignettes here on InsideJMP.
