Many of us have not taken a direct route to get to where we are in our careers today, nor should we expect a circuitous route to suddenly become straight once we’ve landed at JMP. We want employees to know they can move from one type of role at JMP to another! But making a big transition is not always easy so we want to gather stories from you; we want to learn how you moved around in your career, from A to B (or to C or D).
Let’s learn about Phil’s career journey.
What’s your current role at JMP?
Senior Systems Engineer and Learning Manager, Global Technical Enablement
Describe what you like most about it.
I love the variety and the flexibility to work on new things when a need arises. I also love the impact of working on JMP Academy - it's a big honour to welcome new colleagues to JMP.
If different, what was your first role when you started at JMP?
Systems Engineer for UK territories, working with customers including Rolls Royce.
The audience of Rolls Royce engineers was captivated by Phil's description of something "about this big."The audience of Rolls Royce engineers was captivated by Phil's description of something "about this big."Did you work at SAS before joining JMP?
No
How long have you been at JMP?
Almost 9 years.
Did your college or university degree(s) relate to your current role at JMP?
Yes (chemistry and statistics) but I had to learn a huge amount on the job about sales.
Outside of your time at JMP, what was your a) first job, b) best job, c) worst job?
a) Washing dishes at the village pub aged 14 - still my local.
b) Data Scientist at Fujifilm.
c) Washing dishes at the village pub.
Phil in the kitchen of the Maypole Inn - still his local pub - where he got his first job washing dishes.Phil in the kitchen of the Maypole Inn - still his local pub - where he got his first job washing dishes.
Have you made a major career transition? If so, what was it and how did you know you were ready for a change?
Moving from a lab development chemist to a data scientist was probably the biggest transition. I had started helping colleagues out with statistical problems. I knew it was for me because it didn't feel like work when I was helping people with their data.
Did you have any concerns about making a change? If so, what were they?
I was maybe a bit concerned that I was moving into something more niche, where there might be fewer opportunities in the future. I was also concerned that I didn't know how to do the job! But I was very keen to learn.
What were the first things you did when you decided that you were ready to change jobs?
It was gradual but I took every opportunity to "do the job" before I had the job. If someone needed help and I didn't know how to do it, I accepted the work and then learned out how to do it. I learned a lot by doing what was needed. Later I got formal training via a part time master's degree.
Grangemouth, Scotland where Phil worked as a development chemist and a data scientist with Fujifilm. They don't build chemical manufacturing plants in pretty places! (Courtesy of Wikipedia)Grangemouth, Scotland where Phil worked as a development chemist and a data scientist with Fujifilm. They don't build chemical manufacturing plants in pretty places! (Courtesy of Wikipedia)
Before deciding on the new role, did you spend time with someone who does that job? If so, how was that experience?
I had spent some time with other people working in the role, both in the company and at other companies through meeting at conferences. It was a great way to understand what was possible and fired me up with passion about following that path.
Who were the people that were instrumental in helping you make the job switch successfully, how did they help?
My managers were most instrumental. At each stage they supported me because I was clear about what I wanted to do and how it would be valuable to the company.
What advice do you have for JMP employees who are thinking about changing their roles?
Find your passion.
Because we love good stories, we want to learn about how your career evolved and tell these stories to our colleagues—the evolution of your career that has ultimately brought you to JMP or even how once arriving at JMP they made a major transition.
Please take the six-minute survey.
