Powerful perspective

I believe that advocating for the customer is one of my most important responsibilities as a NetApp^® Active IQ^® product manager.

I work closely with our customers to understand how they’re using our products and then bring their voice, input, and needs back to our engineering teams. After all, we design our products for the end user; it’s important that we make things as simple and effective as possible for them.

Ultimately, it’s not just about solving problems; it’s about anticipating them, breaking them down, and making the best product we can.

In the realm of Active IQ, data has a huge impact on everything we do. Data from the AutoSupport telemetry allows us to proactively identify problems—and opportunities—for our customers.

Data allows us to challenge the environment and ask important questions. What is underutilized? What should be enhanced? What can we do to make these things more apparent to customers? How can we grow that usage? These large volumes of data allow us to look at the usage of different product modules and figure out where we should focus our energy.

Before you can use data to solve a problem—or optimize an opportunity—you have to understand the situation. It’s so important for us to get to the core of an issue before we jump in and start acting on it.

My first goal, especially when dealing with problems, is to get some perspective. I want to see an issue from other people’s perspectives so I can understand where they’re coming from.

We all see things differently, so taking that step back, understanding where different folks are coming from—getting that diverse perspective—allows me to see the bigger, broader picture. And ultimately, that perspective gives me a better idea of how we can solve problems and move forward.

Working in an extremely complex environment with ever-shifting requirements and priorities, the problems that we face can be incredibly challenging, and they often have a multitude of complicated solutions. In situations like these, it’s important to find the solution that is going to work for the greatest number of people.

In the short term, my first strategy is to address the issues that might have the biggest impact and that can be solved with the least amount of disruption. Longer term, I always take a customer viewpoint. I put on my customer hat and look at the things that are impacting our customers, from our tools to their systems. I look at all the available data and then, by choosing the simplest path and starting with baby steps, I move forward, making improvements by addressing one thing at a time.

Navigating these complex environments is not limited to our customer-facing operations. The COVID-19 pandemic has created a challenging landscape for us as a global team.

It has taken some creative problem solving to design inclusive virtual environments that foster growth and innovation and allow us to make and maintain meaningful connections with our colleagues. For example, to connect with my colleagues around the world I’ve started having meetings earlier in the morning to accommodate different time zones. This way I can have those one-on-ones, build connections, and gain a better understanding of what my team is working on and what I'm working on with them. It’s worth the effort to help me get to know and understand everyone just that little bit better.

Although it’s important to make connections with customers and colleagues, it’s even more important—especially for us as women in technology—to make connections in the wider community. Your input, and your effort, can have a big impact, so don’t be afraid get involved.

For many years, I’ve volunteered my time to organizations and causes like the Alzheimer’s Association’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s and the AnitaB.org Grace Hopper Celebration. The benefits go far beyond my contributions to these incredible organizations; I’ve enjoyed getting to know other women, especially other women in technology.

So get involved! You don’t have to take on a big role. Even networking, just saying hello, can be enough. I want people to succeed, because when one of us succeeds, we all do. Don’t be afraid to say “yes.”

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