New Start – New Outlook
Since starting at SK Chase on June 19th, I have absorbed an abundance of business changing frameworks and techniques, learnt company ins and outs, and attended some wonderfully insightful and inspiring team workshops. As a result, the source of writing material for this blog is huge! I have, however, chosen to describe my journey of getting to know SK Chase so far…. with a little about the exciting times I can see and look forward to ahead!

Beginnings
When I came across the job advertised at SK Chase I was only browsing…. just seeing what was out there. And I said to myself that any job I went for now I wanted a more culturally aware company, and one which ‘felt right’ to me. I certainly found that with SK Chase! I think I only spent a couple of minutes scanning the website (and checking some Youtube videos – *cough*) before raising my eyebrows and saying, “this place is different” – and as I read on, from the ‘meet the team facts’ to the ‘blog posts’ I could see that there was a beautiful transparency about what is done here, and that each and every one of the team are part of making it this way.

I was delighted the recruitment process went well and I was offered the job as Head of Client Services, a role which I hold an incredibly amount of passion for.

Cultural Change
There was an incredibly warm welcome and supportive induction. As expected, the culture shift was vast and there was a lot to adapt to. And I’m not just talking about the standard things associated with moving company, such as the company structure or learning what everybody does, but there are some fundamental company beliefs and values which make SK Chase so very unique.  Never before has anyone asked me at work ‘how my energy is’ or to ‘share my feelings’ – all of which is done without an air of pressure, only encouragement to set free.

‘To be courageous. To be true and fair to all’… you really couldn’t choose better words to describe what SK Chase stands for and what it does. And after being a part of the team for 5 months now, I can really say how refreshing an outlook this has been.

Functional Focus
Throughout the time I spent learning my role, the supportive theme continued and I was aided all the way before getting to a stage where I could be confident in my knowledge of the company and with how best to support each client with their requests and needs. And each week something new will come up, but it is a nice feeling to know that I’m not alone when I’m unsure and support is always there.

In a relatively short space of time I have learnt an awful lot about myself, and am also continuously being helped to develop new skills & techniques that will stick with me – 6 steps to aid meeting structure, Think/Feel/Know communication styles to raise awareness of others, energy matrix etc.  – these at first meant very little and were just things written down on a page, but now not only do they make sense, they form the structure I use to create a positive working environment for myself, which I hope will benefit all my clients in the future.

Looking Forward
Time is spent concentrating on not only the growth of SK Chase and our clients (systems developments, etc.), but that of staff too. It is great to be part of a company that doesn’t stand still and is always looking to focus on ‘what’s next’ and ‘how we can continue to improve’. Our recent sequence of workshops have given focus to how we can become as efficient as possible in business, shown the importance of trusting ourselves and each other so we can reach an inter-dependent stage so to work seamlessly together, and that we strive to understand and improve our communication styles (both internally and externally).

In a nutshell
It is wonderful to be part of such a culturally aware company, that doesn’t have their values just written down, but actually lives by them. A company that is passionate about supporting all, making everyone a trusted and valued member of staff who can take the ultimate responsibility and the wonderful opportunities that are on offer.

The times that lie ahead with SK Chase are exciting, and I look forward to being a part of such a unique and refreshing company as it continues to grow!

Jonathan McElroy