How Melissa Franklin finds inspiration in helping others grow in tech
Interview from Clusity with Melissa Franklin, Program Manager at OMP USA
If you work in tech, is it enough to be passionate about IT? Or is the enthusiasm of those around us also part of it? For Melissa Franklin, Program Manager at OMP, you don't even have to ask. She loves how she combines her analytical and people skills in tech, finding ways to help develop the talents and skills of her team members. Read on to be inspired by Melissa
How the past shapes the present
As Program Manager at OMP you have a very varied role. What exactly do you do?
Basically, I help manage. I’m the team lead for all the project managers in the US, that’s 8 full time project managers, and another 4 who have hybrid roles and do project management as well as working in other capacities, such as being a lead consultant or a member of the advisory team. I support them as they report and communicate with customers and I often coordinate with the leadership on the customer side to build relationships and make sure everything runs smoothly. I’m also ultimately responsible for the budget and timeline. Plus, I’m managing two major consumer goods projects at Fortune 500 companies right now. I’m definitely busy!
It sounds like your job consists of a lot of interactions with people, both to help them develop their skills and knowledge and to keep projects moving. How did your background lead you to OMP?
So, I got my undergraduate degree in industrial engineering from Vanderbilt University. While I had originally started out studying biomedical engineering, I quickly realized that I didn’t want to spend my career in a lab. I really enjoyed the math and science side of things, but I wanted a business spin. So, I transitioned to a major that allowed me to pick up more business-focused courses while keeping the engineering courses. It was the right choice.
After completing my undergraduate degree, I worked in industry for a while before deciding to go back and get my Master’s in Business Administration. It was after my MBA that I started working in tech as a consultant for IBM, specifically in the supply chain field. I was working with software and I loved it.
During my 7 years as a consultant at IBM, my daughter was born. In those days, consultants traveled every week, usually Monday through Thursday. I was fortunate to be the only consultant in my office who didn't have to travel, because my project was done in my hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. I was an odd duck there.
When my daughter was 2, my project ended, but I wasn't ready to hit the road again with her so young. So I took a position at the client where I was working. It was a tough decision because I really loved my team and I wanted to make sure no one felt like I was being hijacked or anything like that. I've always found it important to build good relationships that last. My new job was in the works. After a few other positions in business, I found out that I loved consulting, project work, implementations and being able to solve problems. In 2017, on a whim, I applied for a consulting job at OMP and during the interview they said I would be very good in a project management role. They were right!
When did you first notice your interest in working in a structured way? And how has it helped you in your career?
I struggle with things that don’t make sense to me. For example, as a little kid I remember watching the Smurfs and not understanding why they were blue. I guess that’s how my logical, rational side first showed up. Before you can start providing advice, you have to spend some time learning.
"I quickly discovered that I liked working with software and explaining it to others. The thing I was most interested in was bridging the gap between technology and people."
And that’s always been the litmus test for me, especially when I was giving trainings: could I make everybody in an organization, from the highest to the lowest level, understand the tool so they can use it to create value and improve their day-to-day work? That was how I measured success. And that’s where my love for software and technology really started.
Have your parents influenced your passion for tech?
Nobody in my family works in tech. My mother is a cosmetologist, she is very in tune with the beauty sector and taking care of yourself. I learned a lot working with her and spending time with her as her shop was in the back of our house so I would see her customers. I think that’s where I really learned about relationship management, being on time, sticking to deadlines, and creating a balance between being social yet still being business minded. These women were her customers, but they felt like friends to her. I definitely learned a lot from her.
When my father came back from Vietnam, he went into warehouse management for the government. He's very structured, very organized, a man who makes a plan and executes it (laughs). Even though he didn't work at home, it's funny how I picked up those things too. I like to start with a plan to solve a problem and then execute it. That's basically how I go through life. From the outside those two approaches may seem contradictory, but to me it makes sense.
Overcoming adversity
When you look back at your career, what would you say have been your biggest successes so far?
For me, I feel that I’ve succeeded whenever I can take a situation and overcome something that is really challenging or tough. That’s the true test. I’m proud of who I’ve been able to become after going through some tough times. Those tough times can be really challenging situations with a customer. Your default is to approach the situation from your viewpoint, and then – sometimes – think about other perspectives. Over time, I’ve grown to be much more empathetic and see things from different perspectives. That’s not just at work, but also in my private life. I try and think through my response based on how I see or I think they’re feeling, understanding that my ultimate goal is repairing the problem and moving forward.
It sounds like you have a solid method for ensuring success, but what are you most proud of?
I’m proud of the way I was able to navigate leaving my consultant job at IBM. It was a tough decision because I loved my team and my job. But I had to make a decision for my family. I wanted to continue on the project I had been working on, so I spoke to my leadership at IBM and at the new company to navigate a symbiotic agreement.
"I’m proud that I found a solution that would work – for my daughter, the two companies, and for me. I stayed calm, stayed collected, created a plan, executed it, and came out the other side, stronger and better."
I feel that I have all these tools that give me the wisdom to continue to improve and feel accomplished. Even at OMP, the first project I worked on was large. Despite having a great team, there were some quality issues and some tense moments. But staying calm, motivating the team, and keeping it all in perspective helped.
I’m learning more about empathy and what the customer is actually saying. It’s important to remember that we’re all still people when we show up to work and we bring our emotions with us. That’s sometimes a problem for me, as I don’t hear feelings, I hear words and actions. I have to be careful to understand that people sometimes respond more passionately, not because they’re arguing about what we’re saying, but because they don’t feel heard, they don’t feel respected. I’m working on finding ways to address those hidden issues in ways that let us build and continue to grow.
I also learned a lot about that from OMP's leadership training. For example, how you appear at a meeting depends on the topic. Do you want to come across as strong or soft? Do you want to set the tone or lead the agenda? It all matters. But not all my knowledge comes from training; I also watch good leaders to pick things up as they go along. Leading well is not telling everyone who's in charge, it's radiating positive energy and leading by example. And that's the type of leader I want to be.
OMP is growing at a rapid rate which can be both fantastic and challenging. What does that mean for your future plans?
The growth we’ve had at OMP has been remarkable. And I want to support the organization’s growth by leading and motivating others in ways that give the new structure what we need to grow even further.
I think this goes back to what makes me a good mum: I feel successful when the people I’ve coached become independent, self-reliant, motivated, ambitious, and successful. I encourage people to work through their challenges, supporting them to succeed. That’s the next level for me. I feel our organization will look very different in 5 years to how it looks today. So, we’ll have different challenges to deal with.
One thing that has always been very important to me is the culture at OMP and how we feel when we work together. It’s a feeling of family and teamwork. I haven’t experienced it anywhere else because we’re literally dependent on each other here. No one person can run a whole implementation by themselves. You have to really work together to succeed, and that builds bonds between people. I know the quality of the characters of the people I’ve worked with, and I believe it’s important to continue to find the time to foster this as we grow. It’ll be a challenge, but I don’t think it’ll be impossible. We just have to be intentional about how we go about it.
Inspiring growth for me and my team
Your team is spread across the US, with connections worldwide. How does this create the family aspect you like about OMP?
The remote aspect of things makes everything a bit more challenging. A lot of my project managers are experienced hires based in different parts of the country. But it’s still hard for me to connect with them via the screen. I’m trying to encourage everyone to come together at least once a quarter, plus it helps when I work directly with them on certain projects.
Working internationally is another challenge, but it’s one I relish. It opens me up to so many different other cultures and broadens my perspective, outlook, and approach. You learn so much from people who have different experiences, and you can use this to become more well-rounded and more complete as a person. One thing that really helped before covid was traveling to visit customers together with colleagues from different offices. We would then have that face-to-face time together. And that was invaluable in creating the bonds that help connect me to my lead consultants. To sustain these bonds, we need to spend some time together, a team building or monthly happy hour. But being international and working remotely empowers us too. We have more flexibility with who we work with, we’re not just limited to our local area.
Clearly, inspiring your team members is important to you. But who do you look to for inspiration?
I have mentors that I’ve worked with at different times and at different companies. They didn’t always know that they were in that role for me, but some of them do. There are also people I picked out and admired from afar for different reasons. For example, I’m really impressed with Anita Van Looveren’s (our CEO) ability to balance things. We both deal with a lot of things at the same time, and she can prioritize, multitask, and get it done, which encourages me and motivates me to want to step up my game so I could do that too."
Where do you get your motivation to be your best self? Does this come from your daughter or yourself?
It’s funny that you bring up my daughter. I grew up an only child, a straight A student. I graduated third in my class. But it was never important to my parents. It was a part of my identity, something that set me apart. I knew I could do well, and I wanted to continue to be the best, so I hit the books.
When I think about my daughter, it’s different. I’m amazed at how creative she is – and how dissimilar we are. But I find it funny to see the things about me that she has. She is very communicative, very mature and very aware. She’s 15, but I talk to her as an adult. I give her real-life perspectives.
For example, she’s in the school band and practice is tough. One coach often tells them one thing while the other coach says something different. When she complains to me, I always ask if she wants me to listen or to give her advice. I know how important that distinction can be, and I’m trying to teach her to respect people enough to find out what they want. It’s only when she says she wants advice that I feel that she’s going to hear my suggestions.
My last question is for the people who want to follow a similar path as you. What would you tell them to find their own way in tech?
"I would tell them to take every day as an opportunity to be your best self. Sometimes you’ll have a bad day with failures but see the failures as opportunities to become so much better than you were. And as long as you stay focused on becoming better, you’ll get where you need to be.
"It’s almost inevitable that you’ll continue to grow in the right direction if you first find what you’re passionate about."
What makes you happy? A lot of times you find people who are doing jobs they don’t really like, and that really doesn’t help. I feel so lucky to come to work. I love my team. I love making a difference. You won’t love every aspect of your job but find the bits you do enjoy and continue to reflect and become better.
"There’s always room for growth. Prepared or not, tomorrow is coming, so we have to get it together and be ready for whatever comes our way."
Eager to dive into the world of tech? Explore OMP’s open positions today and become a part of our global community.