Typically, I defined success by how well an associate demonstrates our core values. In addition, my response would include updates about the growth of our e-commerce business to answer how we have adapted to a changing market. I now realize that this standard approach to answering candidate questions fails to account for my own personal experiences, how I as an individual define success for myself and the methods I have personally used to be successful in a rapidly changing organization.

Ultimately how you measure success depends on your respective goals and experience as an individual. For me, my success within my current role has been defined by pushing myself outside of my lane to make an impact. To drive a meaningful impact the new lane you are navigating should still align with the overall business strategy. 

The role I was hired for two years ago is not the same role I play today. As the needs of the market and organization change, you too must challenge yourself, be agile, innovate and adapt your role to offer a more competitive value proposition. Originally, I was hired with the primary function as a recruiter to support store operations. Today, I have redefined my role to be so much more. I now support Talent Acquisition in a new capacity; I manage employer branding strategy and content development and am a partner in our inclusion initiatives. Within my first year supporting store operations recruitment, I identified a number of opportunities where I could reshape my role to maximize my impact and lead change to meet quickly changing staffing trends and candidate expectations in the market.

How did I redefine my role to successfully adapt to a rapidly changing environment?

• Frame problems as opportunities: Hard to hire markets, increasing competitor wage rates and low unemployment weren’t just market headwinds, they were opportunities to adapt and innovate. Framing and leveraging these problems as business cases to lead change, experiment and implement new ideas made them feel manageable and exciting. 
• Be curious: Identify where personal interest and passions intersect with your role and the problems you are solving. For me, it was using my previous marketing experience in a startup environment and my interest in wanting a more creative job that overlapped with the problems faced by the recruitment team and my solution to invest in developing a more compelling employer brand. 
• Tell a compelling story: With data, research and passion you need to articulate the vision and help others visualize how you, and your ideas can meet changing demands.  
• Be resourceful: Who knew influencing up and getting others to share in your vision and solutions was the easy part. Navigating how to achieve your vision with limited resources, budget, people and time was yet another challenge to solve. Again, I saw this as an opportunity. It was an opportunity to be creative, learn new skills, source free tools and build new relationships and partnerships outside of my department. 
• Build trust and relationships: Ultimately, none of this would have been possible without having first establishing trust and relationships. It was the trust I had built with my leaders and partners that enabled and empowered me to think outside of the box, think outside of my role and make an impact. 

It’s more than the capacity to be agile, to adapt yourself, your role and skills to meet changing demands. It’s also about having leaders and a culture that is fluid, open minded and adaptable that empowers you to do so. That’s one of the things I appreciate and love most about working with Cost Plus World Market. Here I feel empowered and trusted to experiment, be bold, and be me. I value working on a team who is open minded enough to see past a job title and see the individual. 

Our culture sets you up for success. It’s up to you to define what impact you want to make, we’ll give you the tools to do it. At World Market we empower you to contribute your unique perspective to meet the demands of a changing world.