Mara

Q: What do you do at Gallup?

A: While my official title is "Subject Matter Expert," I see myself as an integrator. I help integrate our science and research and what we know works best into the culture of organizations we work with.

Q: What made you want to join Gallup?

A: I used to be a manager at a client of Gallup, and I saw firsthand the impact employee engagement and strengths-based development made on what was a low-performing, dysfunctional team. In 15 months, we turned our performance around and became one of the top-performing branches in the district -- and we were having a lot of fun doing it! When I thought about what I wanted to do next, I thought of Gallup.

Q: Why do you enjoy working here?

A: Without a doubt, the opportunity to grow and develop is what keeps me here and engaged. I've grown more in the past five years than I have ever imagined, and I'm doing things that I never thought I'd be doing when I started. My first couple of years at Gallup, I said yes to everything and got experience with a broad variety of work, clients and industries. Slowly, I started to identify the areas I really loved and wanted to do more of. Every year, I reassess what I'm working on and where I want to go next, and together with my manager, we look at my portfolio and design a year that allows me to do what I do best. I continue to do more of what I really want to do, and that's by my design and the key to why I can't imagine a career anywhere else.

Q: What motivates you to do great work at Gallup?

A: For me, what motivates me is making an impact with my client organizations. I work with the same clients for years, so my best friends at work are also my clients. I care a lot about their success and the work we're doing, and I'm just as invested in them and their success as they are in their success.

Q: What are your favorite parts of your job?

A: One of my favorite parts about working at Gallup is the access we have to executives and senior leaders in organizations. We are helping these leaders tackle big problems that are really important to their business. Our work isn't a "nice to have" and it's not just another HR initiative -- it's transformational, and knowing that we're solving big problems is really energizing.

Q: What advice can you give about working at Gallup?

A: Have a point of view. The caliber of talent here is bar none, and people have really interesting backgrounds, both academically and professionally. People are super smart, and we're hungry for points of view. Use what you're bringing into the organization, regardless of what it is or if it's a new way of thinking, and share that with people. My peers have always appreciated it from me, and I've appreciated it from them.