Autodesk Engineering Manager, Talks Advocating For Yourself
Natalie Gaysinsky is an Engineering Manager for the Cloud Licensing Services at Autodesk. Natalie shares how life events — including moving to a brand new country to having children - have shaped her leadership style. She also provides insight on how she has advocated for herself in order to continue growing in her career.
Pathway to Leadership
How would you describe your journey to leadership?
My leadership journey started when I had my first baby in my early twenties. My kids have taught me how to lead by example, how to practice humility, how to listen with intent to understand, and how to fail and get back up. I have also done my best to lead by example and empower people around me throughout my professional experience as a software engineer, and then as a tech lead.
In addition to leading technical initiatives at work, I've been fortunate to have leadership opportunities outside of work, such as organizing a nonprofit project and taking on a high school PTSA president role.
The engineering management opportunity at Autodesk presented itself a year ago and has provided a way for me to transition to an official leadership role while building on an already strong foundation. Taking on an engineering manager role was not an easy decision for me. I've wanted to be a software engineer since high school and never planned to explore any other career paths. The primary reason I decided to transition from a tech lead, data engineering role at a startup to an engineering leadership role at Autodesk was the opportunity to make a positive impact at scale. It is truly rewarding to be able to empower my team as we deliver mission critical systems to Autodesk’s cloud transformation.
“My kids have taught me how to lead by example, how to practice humility, how to listen with intent to understand, and how to fail and get back up.”
Was there a definite moment/event that led you into a leadership path?
If I were to pick just one moment it would have to be landing in the Ben Gurion Airport in Israel as I repatriated from Russia with my family at the age of 14. This was the beginning of redefining my identity and soaking up the Israeli "chutzpah", a Yiddish word for the confidence, or courage, that allows someone to do or say things that may seem shocking to others. This combination of “chutzpah" and my lifelong passion for making a positive impact has been my guiding compass for many years.
What are three skills you have that are important to your leadership role?
Courage to make critical decisions
Humility to learn from my team as we collaborate on objectives and expectations
Strong technical foundation that helps me guide my team as we execute on our roadmap priorities
How can leaders empower their team?
I would recommend:
Making objectives and expectations clear.
Including their team in the decision-making process.
Ensuring information transparency.
Providing autonomy to the team in execution on priorities while also making sure they feel supported.
Focusing on individual team members' career development and making space for the team members to grow.
Leading by example and consistently displaying values of inclusion, courage, accountability, innovation, humility, and getting stuff done.
Providing, accepting and acting on constructive feedback provided during one-on-one and team settings.
How has your leadership style changed in response to remote working?
Taking care of my team is something that is very close to my heart and has been since I joined Autodesk a year ago. With the pandemic, I have doubled down on showing empathy, providing flexibility to team members based on their individual needs, and finding new ways to do team building in this new fully virtual work environment. I also encourage my team to take time off work and recharge.
What is an overlooked aspect of leadership?
Listening with intent to understand, not respond.
What is something you wished you knew at the beginning of your career that you know now?
I wish I knew at the beginning of my career that I've got this. I wish I believed in myself more. I still have self-doubt moments occasionally, but it helps to know my strengths and the value I bring to the table.
“ I still have self-doubt moments occasionally, but it helps to know my strengths and the value I bring to the table.”
Advocating for Yourself
How has advocating for yourself helped you in your career? Can you share a real-life example?
During my job interview at Autodesk, I was able to articulate what I was bringing to the table, and how I planned to make a positive impact for my team and Autodesk in general. Given I had no previous engineering management experience at the time, I focused on showcasing my potential by providing concrete examples of projects and initiatives I had led in the past.
“It is important to clearly communicate your professional goals and aspirations to your manager so that together you can define a career development plan that will get you there. ”
Moving to the next level in your career, you need to be your own best advocate. How do you approach conversations with your manager around wanting a promotion or raise?
I first make sure I exceed expectations of my current role by having a consistent feedback loop with my manager about what I'm doing well and what areas need improvement. Once I have a proven track record of consistently exceeding expectations for my current role, I start focusing on any gaps I need to close to exceed next level expectations. It is important to clearly communicate your professional goals and aspirations to your manager so that together you can define a career development plan that will get you there.
What are ways to demonstrate your impact and growth?
You first identify goals you want to achieve as well as metrics to measure success. These can be business outcomes, behaviors you want to improve, or cross organizational leadership opportunities. Then make sure to track data as you accomplish your goals. As you identify goals, try to be strategic and focus on goals that benefit others, empower your team, help your peers, and make a positive impact across the organization. This way the accomplishments can be demonstrated through 360 feedback, skip levels, and impactful outcomes for the organization.
As a leader, what advice would you give others about advocating for themselves to their boss?
Make sure the job expectations are clear. Then track and present data that showcases your achievements to your manager. If you go through an interview process with a hiring manager, make sure you ask questions that show if you can trust the hiring manager and if they will have your back. If you can, pick a hiring manager who will support you as you advocate for yourself. A manager plays a very big role in your career advancement – they can either help your growth or stall your progress.
Natalie will be sharing more about her experience at ModelExpand’s upcoming #WomeninTech Leadership Breakfast: Advocating for Yourself at Work The ModelExpand #WomeninTech Leadership Breakfast Series provides a space for women to connect, inspire and uplift one another. Check out our upcoming events here or learn more about our sponsorship opportunities.
ModelExpand: ModelExpand is a diversity recruiting strategy firm that supports teams through strategic consulting, workshops, and events.
