Hacks to accelerate your career

By WCCO Belting Inc.

To say the coronavirus crisis shook up the U.S. economy is an understatement. According to NPR, 38.6 million Americans have filed for unemployment since March.

Many Americans are on the hunt for new jobs and careers, especially those in essential industries where demand for product has spiked. Our team put together a second post in our Career Hacks blog series to help our family, friends, neighbors and community members accelerate in the workplace, whether it’s in a current role, with a new employer, or in a new industry.

While these organization skills may seem like no-brainers, they are often taken for granted or overlooked. If you aren’t utilizing these skills already, start to learn and use them now so you are poised and prepared for growth when the time is right.

Get your facts straight. Coworkers and customers may assume you lack capability simply because it’s early in your career, you are new to a company, or you just broke into a new industry. The best way to combat this is to do your research and justify your reasoning with facts. This rule applies across projects both big and small and is applicable at every level of the business. You can take a lot of risk, opinion, and emotion out of discussions by doing so. And with the power of search engines today, you can find strong evidence in a matter of seconds. Learn how to “make your case.” A business case answers the question, “What will happen if we proceed with this investment decision?”, defining investment as time and/or money. A well-documented business case provides confidence and a level of certainty that the proposal will be successful. Also, a business case isn’t just for your

ND Association of Realtors names new communications director

BISMARCK, N.D • The North Dakota Association of Realtors has hired Sarah Caldwell as the new Director of Member Services and Communications.

Sarah Caldwell

A native of Connecticut, Caldwell comes to the ND Association of Realtors from New York City where she worked as an associate manager with Bloomingdales, Inc. Her experience includes sales planning, communications, marketing, operational logistics and customer service. Her previous experience also includes working in the production department at Ralph Lauren and as an office assistant in the Honors Department for Liberty University.

Caldwell earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Liberty University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude.

supervisor’s benefit, it’s to gain buy-in from the team members your project will rely on.

Gain project management skills and use them. A formal approach to project management is a skill that much of the workforce lacks experience with. To get a leg up, define the scope of the project, including your vision, to drive your goals. Your goals should tell you whose support you’ll need and the team makeup, among others. A simple “who, what, where, when, why, how” approach can help you plan projects, activities, and events, and determine whose buy-in and approval is required for you to move forward.

Learn process management skills and use them. You have your vision and goals, but how are you going to accomplish them? Process management ensures all the desired results of the project are achieved with all appropriate steps occurring throughout. Projects will become chaotic and unsuccessful if you don’t lay out the more detailed milestones and tasks people need to complete so your project can progress. A big part of the success involving process management is understanding how to run effective meetings.

WCCO Belting is a rubber belting manufacturer based in Wahpeton, N.D.

natalie Kollman

Essentia

Health welcomes new health care provider

FARGO, N.D. • Dr. Natalie Kollman has joined the Essentia Health team and is now seeing patients in dermatology at the South University Clinic in Fargo.

Dr. Kollman earned her medical degree from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Grand Forks, N.D. Her residency in dermatology was completed at MetroHealth System in Cleveland, Ohio.

Raised in Fargo, Kollman is looking forward to helping improve access for excellent dermatologic care in her hometown.

Pat Porter Phillip Miller

Houston Engineering welcomes several new team members

GRAND FORKS, N.D. • Pat Porter has joined Houston Engineering Inc.‘s corporate team as an accounting specialist and will serve all locations from Fargo, N.D.

Porter will support HEI’s accounting team by preparing invoices and reports, processing payroll, and monitoring project costs and payments as well as completing special projects to support staff, clients and vendors.

Originally from Breckenridge, Minn., Porter earned an associate degree in accounting from North Dakota State College of Science and will be earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting in December from the American Military University in Charles Town, W.V. He has managed million-dollar military budgets and coordinated more than 50 major construction projects, making him a great addition to HEI’s team.

Houston Engineering also has welcomed David Johnson as a client development manager. Johnson brings more than 29 years of experience in the architecture and engineering industry, developing strategies for market share growth in dynamic business environments for national and global firms. As a former public employee with both the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Board of Water and Soil Resources, he will help both HEI’s clients and staff coordinate with regulatory agencies more efficiently than ever before.

A Minnesota native, Johnson earned his master’s degree in environmental biology from the University of Minnesota and his bachelor’s degree in biology and chemistry from Gustavus Adolphus College. His passion for customer service will be valuable to both HEI’s clients and their employees as he leads processes and strategies across HEI’s firm.

Phillip Miller also joins Houston Engineering’s Fargo team as a CAD Technician I. He will assist project managers with preparing raw drawings and construction plans for project design plans and surveys.

A Fargo native, Miller earned his bachelor’s degree in industrial design from Iowa State University. He previously worked as a drafter, detailer, and estimator at Wrigley Mechanical.