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Name: Todd M.

Employer: John Deere Credit

Title: Master Process Professional

What do you do?
I lead and manage John Deere Credit's process management and process improvement efforts by identifying and executing crucial process improvement projects to insure the organizational change and business results required.

How did you get your job?
I attended a Regents Job Fair in Des Moines while in my MBA program.

What is your educational background/degree(s) earned?
I have a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Iowa and a Masters of Business Administration from Iowa State. Additionally I have completed Deere & Company's Six Sigma certification requirements and have been certified by the American Society of Quality (ASQ) as a Certified Six Sigma Black Belt.

Which degree(s) do you recommend for this career field?
Business and Statistics provide the necessary business acumen and skill sets, however I have witnessed individuals with other majors perform very well in this job. This career is a hybrid of multiple disciplines. Ultimately, it comes down to your intelligence, personality, and passion.

What talents, skills, or personality traits help someone do well in this job?
A successful quality professional must have the right personality as much as they need skill set training. First and foremost you have be an extrovert because you'll be in charge of running meetings, challenging the status quo, influencing people to change their current process-basically getting people to do what they don't want to do. You have to be both a good team member and good team leader. You have be credible to your team so spend time job shadowing, documenting major problems and their causes, and knowing who the decision-makers are in order to be effective. You need to put yourself in the shoes of your customer when designing processes and defining recommendations. You have to be able to communicate succinctly and efficiently in person and with emails.

What are the challenges of this job/career path?
The biggest challenge is lacking the formal authority to change what needs to be changed and influencing people to action even though they don't report to you.

Any misconceptions about your job?
Solid statistical & analytical skills (aka "hard skills") are important, however a key differential to be successful at business process improvement is the "soft skills" (organization change, facilitation, communication, attention to detail) count for more than the "hard skills". "Soft skills" are the most important in actually implementing and obtaining the buy-in needed for the changes you are seeking to make.

What do you know now that you wish you knew as an undergraduate at The University of Iowa?
I wished I paid more attention to Stats class and kept my text book. At the time I thought "when am I ever going to use this?" It would've saved me a lot studying when it came time to take my Six Sigma certification exam. Look for jobs that have certifications to them, (example: IT Project Manager) typically getting a certification will result in a higher salary but you may have to put time in workforce in order to eligible to take the certification exam. I wouldn't put off taking any job-related certifications as soon as you can because being fresh out of school you are already in study mode and typically have more personal time to prepare. Advice for when you’re in the workforce: 1. Regardless of where you work or what your position is come up with ideas to improve things. 2. Don’t assume your good idea is self-evident to all - you will need to communicate and influence and sell it if you believe in it. Use influencers as sounding boards, let others help you promote your good idea. 3. Seek to understand the culture of the organization, what behaviors are rewarded/punished? How do you conduct yourself? Just ask others they will tell you 4. Find out what your immediate supervisor and their manager's personal goals and the department or company goals are and then communicate back to them how you’re contributing to achieving the goals. 5. Seek out additional responsibility, to be promoted they have to know you can do the job of the next level- this is a good way to show proof. 6. Don't assume everyone knows how good a job you are doing.(assuming you are doing a good job) Tactfully make sure others are aware of how well you do your job - create your own buzz about yourself. Perceptions become reality. 7. Don't minimize your skills to others (no matter how trivial) - turn it to an opportunity to sell yourself. Be proud that you know how to insert a hyperlink in Word and they don't. 8. Ask for complements/positive feedback others provide you to go into emails to your Supervisor. It may be the only way your Supervisor knows of your efforts. 9. Avoid the first day overly friendly person hovering over you attempting to take you under their wing- If they can spend all day holding your hand then they have nothing to do or ignoring their work - Usually you don't want to be closely associated with that person. Be polite but take time to learn the lay of the land. 10. Start your own glossary - acronyms and industry terms come at you fast - ask what they mean and write down the definition and learn it. If not half of your meetings will sound like they are in another language.

Final words of advice...
Have a good, positive attitude- you'd be surprised how much that counts for in life and in a career. "The smallest good deed is better than the grandest good intention." -Duguet