Change sucks. Today was a difficult day for many RedPrairie and JDA folks. Our merger is now mostly completed. As part of that merger, too many of our friends and coworkers were let go today. No matter what side of that fence you are on, it's not an easy day to go through. I wish all the people seeking new opportunities tonight the best. My thoughts and prayers are with them and their families.
Change sucks. But it also brings new opportunities. Tomorrow is being touted as Day One for the new company. We will try and look past the difficult times of today and garner excitement to being a new venture as a new company. It will be a challenge. Two companies merging to form a new company with close to 4000 employees obviously presents a lot of challenges. The message being pushed is one of excitement and enthusiasm. It's a difficult message a day after so many were let go.
Change sucks. But if we don't change, we don't move onward to better things. Personally I have a huge opportunity in front of me. It's one I'm very excited to take on. I will be the new product manager responsible for user experience for the combined company. I will interact with all the development groups and leaders to help define and drive our new user interface style and user experience vision. It's a big task, but one that the company seems excited to take on and do well. It's also a fairly undefined task. Step one for me will be to start creating a plan for this grand venture. That involves quite a bit; forging new relationships with sales, marketing and development teams. Learning about products and their users. Setting up UX teams and helping the succeed. Daunting? Yes. Challenging? Of course. Exciting? Absolutely!
Change sucks. This move closes some doors for me as well; as I move from my software development track to a product management role. I'll miss the technical aspect of my previous roles. I'll also miss the awesome team I had. While I'll still see them every day, I'll miss working actively with them.
Change sucks. I'll most definitely have to travel more as part of this new role. That obviously presents challenges for Kathie and my family. But I know I have her support and that she'll do absolutely great even when I'm away.
Change... Ok, maybe change isn't so bad. I suppose it's more in how you handle change and what you do with the opportunities that change throws your way. So as I bid farewell to some, I look forward to meeting many more wonderful people in these new adventures. As I look back at the day-to-day tasks I'm leaving behind, there are many I won't miss, some that I will. But as I look forward to the new challenges, I can only imagine where they will take me and the opportunities that are in store. With the support of my family, God, and my coworkers, I know I will succeed at making change not suck!
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