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When we first got in touch with Kyle, he was already a successful Senior Mechanical Engineer, churning out design work as well as internal QA reviews and engineering legwork behind the scenes, day-in and day-out.
While he was successful in his role, Kyle knew he wanted to alter the direction of his career and get amongst the client-facing side of business, rather than operating primarily behind the scenes. Fortunately, all it took to open up this avenue and get the wheels in motion was an exploratory chat with our Divisional Manager, Ben Lapworth.
With 84's assistance, Kyle took a Commercial Lead role at Jacksons Engineering Advisors - an opportunity that ticked all his boxes and met his long-term goals. It was a pivot in his career trajectory that felt genuinely aligned with his personality.
As an extrovert, sitting behind a desk in a technical role wasn’t where Kyle saw himself forever.
“I wanted to be more client facing, meeting new people and creating business opportunities, rather than primarily ‘on the tools’.”
This is where our Divisional Manager Ben came into the picture and worked with Kyle to find a role that wasn’t just going to have him using his technical skills, but was going to challenge and stretch him in the ways he wanted to grow.
“When we first started talking, Ben asked what I was looking for and I told him what I was hoping to get out of my next role. Based on that, Ben recommended that I consider going to Jacksons. He digested what I wanted and then sent me down the right chute.”
After sending Kyle in the right direction, Ben followed up to make sure it was a smooth transition and Kyle felt great about the move.
“Ben facilitated the entire process and made it work for me. He’d call me after each meeting asking how it went and I knew I could give honest feedback to Ben. Being very relatable and easy to talk to, the process felt comfortable. He was extremely helpful throughout.”
Once the decision was made, the benefits got better and better.
In his new role at Jacksons, Kyle found himself pleasantly surprised at just how well aligned the role was – and the perks that went with it.
“I was pleased by the increase in salary and the perks, it wasn’t what my decision came down to but it certainly helped! Mostly, I was stoked with the opportunity to challenge myself, grow and do what I knew I was capable of doing.”
On top of that, the flexible style of working was better than he’d ever experienced before.
“Flexible working at Jacksons is great, you can pick and choose if you come to the office or work from home, with a strong feeling of trust. This helps me to focus on my tasks at hand, particularly if I have a busy schedule and need to balance work & life.”
As a company, Jacksons had a different work-life balance ethos entirely that aligned well with Kyle.
“Outside of work, I compete in horse riding which is tricky to do in a typical 9 till 5. Jacksons have been great in helping me achieve what I want to do outside of work with the flexibility that works for me. They trust me to manage my own time, which I greatly appreciate.”
Finally, Jacksons was leaps and bounds ahead in terms of technology, which made the role far more efficient and manageable. One of our key values at 84 is being three steps ahead, so we knew how much of a drawcard this would be for Kyle’s future career progression.
“The processes at Jacksons are something that I've never seen done anywhere else… The technology we're using is also second to none. This makes my job easier, and I have the tools and support to succeed.”
We know at 84 that work isn’t just work – if you’re in a role that’s truly aligned with your best path, you’ll grow on a personal level and everything feels just that little bit easier.
For Kyle, the impact of the decision to move has been evident not just in how he feels at work, but also in his habits and home life.
“I’m growing into a much better person, and someone that I like a lot more. It’s been the most successful 12 months of my life, not only in my career, but personally too.”
At 84, we’re all about empowering you to grow, so hearing this feedback from Kyle tells us that he’s exactly where he needs to be.
As for the job itself?
“People often say new jobs have honeymoon phases, but I’m coming up to 11-months now and every single day I’m happy with what I'm doing. I've got a clear plan and my team is there to help or support me. If the workload ever gets too much, I ask for help and someone always puts their hand up - I love it!”
We’re thrilled to hear how well it’s going for Kyle already and looking forward to watching him continue to nail it in the future!
For a confidential discussion to explore your options, get in touch and let's catch up!