AGE: 38
TITLE: Director, Customer Strategy, Technology & Support
COMPANY NAME: Northeast Utilities
COMPANY’S LOCATION: Hartford
RESIDENCE: Hamden
What do you do? I direct customer strategy for Northeast Utilities.
What do you want to be doing in 10 years? I want to be a C-level executive that earns customer recognition for excellence, while making my firm a best company to work for.
What is your biggest strength? Communication. I’m passionate about the art and science of increasing people’s happiness. Excellent communication makes a difference in this area. One unique way that I communicate is through a weekly voicemail I leave for my entire team. In it, I share positive feedback about individuals and recognize their accomplishments. I also share company updates and ways that I am following through on something that I have committed to, and I always close with a safety tip. I have received dozens of “thank you” responses for these voicemails; for me, sending it is often the high point of my work week.
Where do you go for new ideas? Most often, I take comfort in knowing that my challenge is not new. Someone else has likely faced it before and succeeded in overcoming it already, so the first place that I go is to those who have solved similar problems to me. After starting with my peers, leadership team and employees, I use market research, industry best-practice research, academic research and my professional network. My favorite sources are JD Power, Harvard Business Review podcasts, and my husband, Daylian Cain, an assistant professor at the Yale School of Management.
What is the best advice you received? Make decisions as if you were looking back on those decisions from your future self. Often, the choice and its impacts are clearer from a distance.
What service or charitable cause has your attention? Encouraging and supporting female mentoring, support, collaboration, and networking will always be important for me. At Connecticut Light & Power in 2011, I championed and launched a Women’s Forum for all female employees to and support professional networking and encourage the creation of internal mentors and sponsors. In the New Haven area, I am a sponsor and active participant in a weekly, one-hour, professional women’s group committed to growth and wellness. Meanwhile, my favorite cause is my three-year old son. In his early years, my service as a mom is the most valuable contribution that I can make.
