It's hard to believe that I've been at my job here in Seattle for a full year now. So far the initial impressions that I had a year ago seem valid. I still believe that this is a pretty good company to work for and I could see myself staying here for a while.

My current position was created for me and I haven't had a lot of external definition of my role, so I've done what I can to find ways to contribute. As this is also a relatively new department without a lot of managerial oversight, I've put a lot of emphasis on better defining and improving how we work through standard processes and documentation as well as through leading team meetings and implementing tools to facilitate collaboration. I've worked with others across the company to help manage projects for my department and I've helped with several small projects outside of my department. My visual design skills and web experience have also been very useful as I've lead the design of a few web interfaces. Also, as I'm new to this industry (or I guess, I was new to it a year ago), I've learned a lot about facility systems and HVAC, especially with regard to building controls. Also, my experience as an IT business analyst has helped me to understand our integration controller hardware and better define our project requirements. And, while I haven't been able to work with others as much as I'd like, I've made the most my involvement to build relationships across the company.

Just looking at the highlights, I've really enjoyed what I've done. I appreciate the freedom I've had to identify things to do and have worked on a lot of things that I've been interested in. But, a job is more than highlights and, to be honest, I can't help but feel disappointed that my role has been limited and I still am not contributing to the level that I'd like to. I'm doing my best to try to find ways to help others and am continuing to look for additional opportunities to contribute. I'd be interested in having more ownership and working with others to manage projects, improve processes, and serve our customers better. I think I'll be able to find some more of those opportunities soon and am optimistic that my second year will be more exciting and fulfilling than the first.