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Relentless Ally

A People-First Paragon

In the world of corporate shared services, success can often depend on one major factor: connections. When supporting teammates in different business lines and across the country, it’s vital to embody our �ձ����� spirit by fostering relationships and building upon a foundation of trust.

Thankfully, Senior Financial Accountant Isaiah Nix isn’t just good at building relationships, he’s an expert. Sitting on the financial accounting team based in Dallas, Texas, Isaiah is foundational to ensuring our financial statement audits run smoothly, facilitating the flow of financial information from throughout the organization to our external auditing team.

From his first day on the job, Isaiah was building relationships, ensuring he wasn’t simply connecting with his teammates professionally, but personally as well. He’s never been one to rely on trading emails to get the information he needs – he’d always prefer a phone call or stopping by someone’s desk.

“Talking one-on-one has allowed me to learn so much from our experts across the business,” Isaiah explains. “It’s given me the chance to connect with the people I’m serving on a human level. Building those relationships doesn’t just make our work more enjoyable, but more effective as well.”

Embodying �ձ����� Spirit

After just over a year of embedding himself into the fabric of �ձ�����’s culture, Isaiah was asked to join his local Spirit Committee. This committee is responsible for planning and executing local events, which bring teams together for teambuilding, networking and fellowship.

“I saw it as an opportunity to expand my network within the company,” Isaiah says. “I’ve always been the person to raise my hand and offer to help, and I was excited at the prospect of getting to engage more deeply with our company culture.”

The committee is on a two-year cycle, with members spending their first year assisting with smaller events and the second taking on leadership roles. In his first year, Isaiah stood out as an excellent organizer and a passionate supporter of the business’ culture, which led to him being chosen to chair the group in his second year.

“Leading the committee gave me the feeling that I was leaving my mark on the company,” Isaiah says. “I was encouraged to mix things up and get creative when planning events, and I think they were better for it. I was honored to do my part in building our company culture on a local level.”

Even now, after finishing his term with the Spirit Committee, Isaiah is still benefitting from connections he made through it.

“People I recruited to be part of the committee still come to me to brainstorm ideas for events and ask questions,” Isaiah laughs. “I joined that group as a way to meet and interface with more people throughout the company, and it’s great that I still get the chance to do so.”

An Affinity for Connection

Isaiah’s search for company connections didn’t stop at the Spirit Committee; he has also been an active member of our employee affinity group NOBLE (the Network of Black Leaders and Executives) for the past two years. Isaiah got involved with the group to meet and fellowship with teammates with whom he doesn’t directly work.

“I find that NOBLE gives me the opportunity to talk to people I wouldn’t engage with otherwise,” Isaiah explains. “We’re all from different departments and working on different projects. The group allows us to step outside of our usual circles and lets me make broader connections in the business.”

His experience with the Spirit Committee has come in handy as Isaiah has helped the Dallas chapter of NOBLE plan service days and events celebrating holidays such as Martin Luther King Day, Black History Month and Juneteenth with all employees. The group also hosts socials and organizes dinners, giving all employees a casual environment in which they can connect. Isaiah cites these less formal events as one of the reasons he has been able to build such strong relationships with fellow employees.

“It’s a very relaxed group, which has put me at ease and made me feel like I can be myself,” he says. “We can talk about business, or we can talk about life. It’s been wonderful to connect with my coworkers on a deeper level.”

People-First Proof Points

Those deeper relationships, formed through the Spirit Committee and NOBLE, haven’t just made Isaiah’s time in the office more enjoyable – they’ve also been proof points of �ձ�����’s commitment to a people-first culture that values everyone.

“’Culture’ is one of those big buzzwords that you don’t always see in action,” Isaiah says. “Being part of these groups makes our culture come to life. Being people-first isn’t just something we say we do – I get to see it in action with every NOBLE meeting or Spirit event.”