Have you ever felt like you were just a number to your company’s leadership? That you weren’t being invested in by the company? That they don’t recognize your value or see your vision? I haven’t. I work at Crossfuze!
Crossfuze was my first foray into the corporate IT world after graduating high school. A friend of mine who I used to build computers with in middle and high school left my workplace at the time to take a position as a Service Desk Analyst at Crossfuze and recommended I join them. I had always had an interest in technology and loved tearing things apart, understanding how they work, and rebuilding them (many times unsuccessfully in my early years, sorry Mom and Dad), so this opportunity sounded like a perfect fit; after all, my computer-building partner was having a good time, so I certainly should as well.
I applied, with my friend’s backing, interviewed, and landed the job in 2016. I was thrust head-first into the world of IT and ServiceNow and enjoyed every second of it: I strived to be an exemplary Analyst, taking on extra responsibility where I could to continually improve operations on the desk and learn as much as I could. After a short period of time, I was introduced to the world of ServiceNow development, which I immediately set my sights on as it aligned with my creative, builder (or breaker, depending on who you ask) side. ServiceNow development was a mysterious black box to me at the time, but I voiced my aspirations to leadership, nonetheless, to get the ball rolling. I was quickly introduced to a ServiceNow technician to give me an overview of their day-to-day work. This technician traversed a similar path to the one that I eventually would; starting on the Service Desk, setting sights on ServiceNow development, and putting in the work to get there. This tech gave me a birds-eye view of their day which, at the time, left me incredibly confused (Business rules? Client scripts? Javascript?) but at least illuminated my end goal. With Crossfuze’s prioritization of promoting from within and helping employees grow their careers, I could see easily that the goal was attainable if I wanted it badly enough.
I mentioned that this technician and myself took similar paths, but I took a detour between the start and end. Being a Service Desk Analyst involved a lot of learning, and I was also committed to making improvements to the processes involved. A Quality Management team had been spun up and headed by a former Service Desk Analyst to focus on continuous improvement of our operations, which aligned with my visions as an Analyst at that time, and they were interviewing for another member. With almost all positions at Crossfuze, the team opens the position up to internal employees before ever going external, giving their current employees the opportunity to step up and take on new roles. I took the opportunity to interview for the position and ended up landing it! I was, again, faced with new knowledge to be learned and processes to improve upon, capturing most of my time and attention. I still had my eye on the prize though: being a ServiceNow Developer. After a year or so on the Quality Management team, I essentially restarted my ServiceNow journey. I reached out to leadership on the ServiceNow team and voiced my goals, and they set me up with ServiceNow courses and certifications to prepare me for a future role on the team. It was, of course, my responsibility to learn the materials while still performing my current duties, so many hours were spent either utilizing my designated weekly training hour at work, learning at home, or even sitting by the pool in the summer with my laptop completing ServiceNow courses.
A position opened up on the ServiceNow team and I was elated, ready to utilize all the new knowledge I had gained from my courses. Unfortunately for me, after interviewing, the position was given to a more qualified individual internally, which illuminated how much I really didn’t know yet about the platform. This could always go two ways: I could either sulk and quit or double-down and dig my heels in. I took the latter route and took on more courses, spent more time with my coworkers on the ServiceNow development side of the business, and continued to grow both my knowledge and rapport with the team and leadership. Thankfully, Crossfuze’s leadership has an open-door policy, so I had the opportunity to simply walk into an office (or, today, have a virtual call) and have a discussion with any one of our leaders, who are always happy to provide guidance and lend a hand.
Another year went by and the position I had previously interviewed for opened again, and this time I was more than ready. I landed it. I could finally put all the courses I had taken, certifications I’d earned, and knowledge I’d gained to work building within the ServiceNow platform. I’ve been on this team now for almost 3 years and it’s everything I’d dreamed it would be and more. This certainly would not have been possible without the backing of leadership and peers who cared, listened, and saw my vision and said “Yes, let’s make it happen.”. I’m living proof that the symbiotic relationship between Crossfuze and its employees is alive, well, and succeeds.
