Director of Client Impact, Bend, OR
Please introduce yourself and describe your career. What do you do for a living?
My name is Jenny Douville and I am a Director of Client Impact for WizeHive (previously WeHero but we got acquired by WizeHive about a year ago). It’s a fancy way of saying Director of Client Success, working with our existing customers and managing top strategic accounts for the company.
As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
As a kid, I think I always wanted to do something with people or animals. There was a brief stint where I wanted to be a Marine Biologist but I also had times where I wanted to be a hairdresser. Pretty random, huh? Safe to say I had NO idea what I really wanted to do.
What did you study? How much schooling do you think is required to get into your role? What could you have skipped?
I got my Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from California State University, Chico. I also did a minor in International Business and completed a semester of my studies abroad in Bilbao, Spain. I would say my degree 100% helped me with my first jobs out of college which were more marketing-focused but then as I grew with those companies I transitioned into this more sales/customer-facing role which personally I think has WAY more to do with your passion for relationship building and people than any degree.
There are so many amazing courses you can take online for sales training and honestly I think those are even enough in some cases. A role like mine does take business knowledge and being business savvy to understand customers but I think that can come just as much from experience as schooling. I attribute so much of my skills and what I know to just being in the field for the last 8 years!
Was your path hard or smooth getting to where you are in your career? (Can you briefly describe what it was like on your journey so far?)
I would say my path has been pretty smooth, a few bumps, but definitely a fun one! I had a marketing internship in my last year of college that led to my first full-time job at that same company doing marketing. While I learned a lot at that job, my dream was to get into travel and I was quickly presented with the opportunity to work for Go Overseas, a travel company (think: Yelp for programs abroad). Go Overseas was very much a startup culture and a wear-lots-of-hats type of company which was so fun for me. My main role there was in sales though so I got to travel to lots of conferences all over the world! I was there for almost 4 years when COVID hit and of course, student travel programs came to a halt and the company was forced to lay off our whole team keeping only a few leaders to try to keep it afloat.
It was truly serendipitous timing though because about 6 months prior I had started working part-time for a good friend of mine who started a social impact company called WeHero. They needed some marketing help and I loved what they were building and wanted so badly to be part of it from the beginning. So when I got laid off I called the Founders (and my friends) at WeHero and said “I’m all yours, let’s go full-time”. It was a few months before they could really bring me fully on board but once we did things moved so fast. We did volunteer events for corporate companies and pivoted to doing virtual events right during the thick of COVID and it was quite the journey. I started in marketing, moved into leading and managing events, and then into sales where I’ve stayed to this day. Within sales, I immediately saw my strength was with current customers and building repeat business so that’s been my focus.
In February of 2023, WeHero was acquired by WizeHive, another company in the social impact space. It was such an interesting and amazing learning experience to be part of a startup from the very early stage through acquisition and then staying on board with the new company! While the whole company, culture, and my role, have all changed since the acquisition it’s all part of the journey and I continue to evolve in my role and professional career.
Walk us through your typical work day—when do you start, end, and do all day? (Where do you work from?)
I work from home mostly, while I do have an office in Bend it’s more of the warehouse where we ship out our volunteer experiences so I only go in on days that are lighter in meetings (which is rare these days). I usually get up, walk my pup, have breakfast, get ready for the day, and then head into my office which I’m lucky to have a separate home office. Being client-focused my days are VERY meeting heavy. I’ll spend most of the morning back-to-back on calls both internal and external until after lunch (I try to take a full lunch break and go eat, workout, etc. to get away from the screen). And then my afternoons I might have 1 or 2 meetings but mostly get things done. Inbox time, proposals, projects, etc.
What are some questions someone should really ask themselves if they want to get into your industry / career path?
I think the biggest question would be “how much do I like interacting with people and being on calls?”. It’s certainly a role (like most in sales or customer success) that requires you to be “on” for a lot of the time. You’re navigating complex relationships, sometimes unhappy customers, large proposals and pitches, and just a lot of people interaction. Being an extrovert and compassionate with people are two pretty key things that help with the success of this type of role!
What do you enjoy most about your career? (What do you enjoy least?)
There’s a lot I enjoy about my career but I think the long-term relationships I’ve built and the impact we make are my favorite parts! I’ve been working with some of the same clients for 4+ years and it’s truly a friendship level for some and I love that. What we “sell” is volunteer events and social impact platforms so it’s all about giving back, making a difference, and empowering their employees to get involved. We’re talking planting trees, making instruments, building little libraries, etc. It’s all such amazing work I feel lucky to get to help people make such a great impact.
And my least favorite part is just like any other sales role you win some and lose some and when you lose the big deals those are always a major bummer!
What tools/resources do you frequently use? (Books, podcasts, mentors, wellness habits, software, etc.)
We use all Google Suite so Google Calendar is my number one, keeps me organized and knowing what my days look like. Then, we use Notion internally for all our resources and notes.
And personally, for mental wellness and stress relief I use an app called “I am” on my iPhone that I absolutely love. I think you have to pay for a year but its absolutely worth it. It gives daily affirmations and you can create a widget so it’s always front and center when you open your phone. You can also pick the topics so there are career / success-focused ones but also stress, anxiety, start your day, sleep, gratitude, etc.
What is something you do when things get difficult? How do you handle stress/ challenges?
When things get tough at work I usually need to take a break away from the computer and recharge. I usually find when I’m more stressed I’ve also likely been at the desk too long and need to go for a walk or eat a snack. Also, leaning on my team for support is huge! People can’t support you if they don’t know you need it and while it might be hard at first I find it so helpful to be transparent with my team when things aren’t going well. We’re all in this together in the end!
What advice would you give to someone who is trying to figure out what they want to do (for work) in general?
I would say think about not only what your strengths are (its always great to do something you’re good at) but also what you want to learn / what challenges you!
Do you have any mentors or key pieces of career advice that helped you get to where you are today?
I do have some amazing mentors who helped me get to where I am and supported me along the way! I would encourage you to build a strong network of people you admire and can give advice when things get challenging or even when faced with a change. I think the best advice I’ve always followed was just to embrace the uncertainty and change. My roles and companies have changed so much and I’ve really only gotten where I am by being flexible, adapting, and taking change as a new opportunity!
What excites you about the future OR what's up next for you in the near future? (Could be career-related, life-related, or even a future career pivot / path)
Well, I have a very big life event happening soon, my husband and I are welcoming our first baby this summer! So for me career-wise, it will really be adjusting to being a working mom and what that means for me. I’m excited and of course a little nervous to see what it brings. Time to learn a whole new job (being a mom) and get back to work after a nice few months away.
Where can readers find/connect with you if they have questions? OR How can we support you?
I would love to connect with anyone reading this that would like to! My LinkedIn is https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenny-douville/ and my personal email is jenniferdouville8@gmail.com. Thanks for reading!