Employee Q&A: Carrie Bortz

Carrie is a Customer Delivery Manager at Mappedin. We’re discussing her experience transitioning into the tech industry, advice for someone looking to get into tech as a Project Manager, and qualities that are important for a project management role.

Carrie, thank you for chatting with me. To start off, can you tell us about your current role at Mappedin?

I’m a Customer Delivery Manager. I work closely with our customers and our internal teams to ensure a successful implementation of our mapping solutions. I work with our Sales team to kick-off projects together, then with our Mapping team to get customer maps up and running. As a final step, I work alongside our Developer Evangelists to sort out integrations and syncs on the backend. 

You’ve been at Mappedin for over a year now. What made you decide to join the team?

I had been working as a Project Manager in my previous role for 9 years, and was ready for a change. I went to school for interior design and architecture because it was something I was always really interested in, so when I saw Mappedin’s job posting, I immediately applied.

The core values at Mappedin align with my own, so despite coming from a different industry, I went for it. I met Ian, the Director of Customer Experience, and I immediately knew he was someone I wanted to work with. I joined the team for many reasons, but I was ready for a change, so when the appropriate time came, I went for it and embraced it.

Is there one thing that you like the most about working at Mappedin or in your role specifically?

I love that every single day I’m learning something new. In the project management field, it can become a bit stale, but it isn’t like that at Mappedin. I’m constantly looking for new ways to better support our customers, to better create new processes within our team, and Ian embraces that as well.  I’ve also learned a lot about myself through this job– I’m constantly discovering and recognizing new things about myself, which is an amazing feeling.

What are some qualities that you think are important for a project management role?

You need to be really customer focused. You also need to be organized, detailed, and prepared for any direction that a project might go in. It’s important that you remain flexible and prepared so that you’re not being reactionary all the time; you need to foresee what’s going to happen before it happens in case you need to quickly shift gears.

You must be on the ball, really know your projects, and know your customers. Also, if you have a nice personality that can warm customers up, that really helps. Building relationships with your customers goes a long way, and ensures that you’re not just someone behind an email.

Prior to joining Mappedin, you worked as a Project Manager for a different industry. What was it like transitioning into the tech industry?

It was a big change. However, once you have those baseline project management skills, you can apply them to any industry. The project management skills that I’ve learned along the way from my past career, I use in this field. 

Transitioning into the tech industry was more of a mindset change for me, because I came from a job where I knew my day in and out, to a role where I’m constantly learning and being challenged in different ways. Fortunately, the Mappedin team is so supportive and genuinely engaged, and if I ever have a question, no one has ever been like “I don’t have the time right now, can we talk later?” - never. Our teams are knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly across the board. Those sorts of things are so helpful and make the transition so much easier.

Do you have any advice for someone wanting to move into the tech industry as a Project Manager?

I would say be ready to accept new challenges and face them full force. Be confident in yourself and your abilities. Don’t shy away from new learning opportunities, and really push yourself beyond what limits you might think you have regarding tech. If you’re open minded, ready to learn and ready to try something new, I think you can succeed. It’s such an awesome opportunity to learn and to work with a wide range of smart people. Go into it ready for a challenge, embrace it, and have fun. It IS fun! 

How would you describe Mappedin’s culture and the team environment?

I love it. Before starting at Mappedin, I had heard great things about the company. Once I changed my LinkedIn status, I received messages from people I hadn’t heard from in years saying “oh wow you’re working at Mappedin. I heard it’s great there.” It says on the website that it’s a great place to work, but is it really? Yes, it is. The entire team all the way up to Hongwei, the CEO, is friendly and welcoming. It’s a great culture, and I’ve had such a positive experience.

Interested in working with us? Check out our Careers Page for all open roles, or send an email to our recruitment team at careers@mappedin.ca.