Sparking 25,000 Career Conversations
Blog: OpenText
“Careers — not jobs — are purposeful. You navigate the opportunities and obstacles along the way, and you almost never move in a straight line.” — Mark J. Barrenechea, CEO & CTO
This quote comes from Mark Barrenechea’s recently published book Versant: Decoding the OpenVerse. Regardless of where you are in your career journey, different opportunities and obstacles will inevitably present themselves. It’s up to you to decide whether to seize those opportunities and how to navigate the challenges ahead, all while possessing a growth mindset.
Empowering OpenTexters in their unique career journeys
In early March, OpenText held Career Week, one of our most highly anticipated annual employee events. This is a time where OpenTexters around the globe are invited to reflect on their career paths and spark thoughtful discussions about their professional development. The week-long event is filled with a variety of in-person sessions and virtual presentations across our five geographic regions. From tips on how to craft a strong professional brand, to listening to colleagues from around the world share their own unique career journeys, there is something for everyone!
This year’s Career Week had one central goal: to ensure each one of our 25,000 OpenTexters around the world had meaningful career conversations. As a company, career reflections and conversations are essential to our overall employee experience, and while these discussions take place throughout the year, Career Week presents a unique opportunity to bring our entire workforce together around a shared vision, while thinking about futures unique to the individual.
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Fun fact: Career Week initially started out as Career Day.
Due to its popularity, since 2022 OpenText has expanded it to a full week!
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Career insights from our leaders
In one of our discussion panels, one of our regional sales leaders shared insights about the benefits of developing a solid career development plan:
“We spend a lot of time diving into our work, and sometimes our career plan gets a bit lost in terms of where we want to be a few years into our career. Having that career discussion with your manager, mapping out the steps, and rationalizing what your career aspirations are is key for working towards them. So, I think a career plan is critical.” — Jeffrey Neo, Regional Vice President, Southeast Asia
Another senior leader in the panel shared how to encourage teams to take time to develop a career development plan:
“I always encourage my team to complete their individual development plans, as it is about them! It’s about prioritizing and thinking about how they can be better each day. What are the skills that are going to enhance them today to work their best? Or, what are the gaps in their skills to get them to that next level, while they are working on everything else? This is all about building their personal brand within the company for whatever may come along.” — Tanya Lord, Director, Customer Success
Not only is career development important for our employees, it is also valued by our leaders and management.
International Women’s Day panel: Inspiring inclusion in the workplace
The final day of Career Week fell on International Women’s Day (IWD), and we invited the entire company to join special virtual sessions that kicked off a month-long series of IWD celebrations across OpenText. Aligned to OpenText’s Zero-In Initiative, we continue to commit ourselves to fostering an equitable, diverse and inclusive workplace. The sessions were facilitated by our very own Vice President of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Yvonne Thomson, who was joined by a panel of amazing women sharing their thoughts on how to inspire inclusion in the workplace.
Below are some thoughtful takeaways from some of our panelists:
“What my manager does to inspire inclusion may seem so simple, but it makes a big difference. During every team meeting, he gives everybody an opportunity to speak. He goes around the room and asks every single person: ‘Do you have anything you would like to say or add?’” — Yekaterina O’Neil, Distinguished Technologist & Principal Security Researcher
“The leaders at OpenText are really quite special. From onboarding onwards, there is a deep sense of belonging that is instilled within us that I believe is really important. I don’t think I would have been able to deliver on the projects that I did within my first few months as an OpenTexter without having the support of the leaders within the organization.” — Harriet Tobin, Enablement Program Manager
Open your path at OpenText
As the curtains closed on our week-long event, we were delighted with the positive feedback we received! Here are just a couple comments from OpenTexters:
“OpenText making time for Career Week for all employees speaks volumes on the company’s commitment to our career development.”
“It was wonderful to hear about different career journeys. I liked the diversity of topics and hearing from different areas of the business.”
OpenText has a wide array of resources to support career planning and continual dialogue, so our employees can feel well-equipped and empowered to take the next step in their career, right here at OpenText. We have a high-performance learning culture. No matter what your role is, there are always opportunities for growth.
Curious to learn more about us and the career opportunities that are available? Visit our Careers page today! Your next career step may be just around the corner.
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