One Company, Many Careers – Justyna’s career journey from Assistant to Portfolio Activations Specialist
2 min read
Over the years, Cisco has practiced #internalmobility promotion, encouraging employees to move and develop within the company. Cisco is all about retaining and supporting top talent to pursue their passion. Under the motto #OneCompanyManyCareers, we will be sharing the success stories of our employees throughout the whole year!
Today’s story is about Justyna, a Portfolio Activations Specialist.
Q: Tell us what has been your career journey at Cisco so far?
A: In 2017, I started with Cisco as an assistant in TAC. I was the main point of contact for assisting managers and directors in TAC, responsible for organizing team events and employee development training sessions. After a year, I moved into the same role in Professional Services, where I began my learning curve, and in early 2021 I moved into a Portfolio Activations Specialist role where I am now.
Q:What or Who inspired you for the change?
A: In Professional Services I met my manager, Anna Barker. Anna saw a big potential in me, and always encouraged me to grow my responsibilities and visibility. I quickly picked up additional project manager responsibilities with smaller projects and joined Connected Poland – a community of Cisco volunteers from all walks of life and various levels of seniority that share at least one passion – giving back to the community (both Cisco and local) – as a co-lead of Inclusion & Collaboration team.
Thanks to Anna, I saw there was more to my skills than I thought, which gave me confidence to apply for jobs where I didn’t tick all the boxes. Yes, I did fail several times, but I also saw this as an opportunity to learn. This push out of my comfort zone was worth the effort because one day, I succeeded and got the position of Portfolio Activations Specialist.
Q: What was your biggest learning through the transition?
A: It was a big change – I never worked with an external client and lacked presentation skills. Cisco’s supportive culture and openness to give people a chance to learn helped me in the beginning – I felt comfortable asking my team about even the smallest details.
For me, this journey brought a great attitude change – I gained confidence in my abilities, developed resilience and patience, and improved my diplomatic skills.
Q: What advice would you give to those who are thinking about a change but are still hesitant?
To anyone, thinking of changing their career, I wanted to advise you to be open, especially with your manager. They should know what you want to do, and you should have a development plan. Don’t be afraid to make decisions even if you lack something – the worst that can happen is that you’d have another opportunity to learn.
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