I sat down with Shonel Symister, Customer Success Manager here at Recharge and one of the leaders of the Black at Recharge employee resource group (ERG). We get a glimpse of her experiences as she shares her insights from her role in customer success to her involvement with the Black at Recharge ERG. With authenticity and resilience at the core of her narrative, Shonel offers valuable perspectives on navigating professional landscapes, fostering community, and advocating for authenticity and inclusivity.
Join us as we learn more about what it means for her to “stand in one’s power” and the transformative impact it brings to both personal and professional realms.
Tell me a bit about yourself and what you do.
I would describe myself as a passionate, creative, free spirited, individual with a really big entrepreneurial mindset, which I love carrying into my work. At Recharge, I am a part of the Customer Success team, where I manage some of our top accounts. I help them strategize and optimize for success and help them grow their subscription platform.
When did you join Recharge and what has your experience been like?
I joined Recharge June 2022, so this year will be two years. My experience has been, I would say a whirlwind in the sense that I’ve really grown as a person and in my profession. It’s really just been a rewarding experience.
Before joining Recharge, I was working at Clyde, which was a warranty platform. And before Clyde, I worked at Easyship for almost four years, a logistics tech platform where I worked in sales.
What gets you up in the morning?
Aside from my kids, I would say knowing that I’m able to help someone else become better while I’m also getting better as a person professionally. That drive or that passion that I have for being creative and being able to help merchants wakes me up in the morning.
I’m glad that I’m at a place where I don’t feel like I’m being dragged to get up in the morning. I really do enjoy working with merchants and engaging with them and utilizing my creative spirit to help them grow.
What’s something you’re working on right now?
It’s QBR season, or quarterly business review season, so I’m working on putting together quarterly business reviews for the merchants that I work with and really diving into their performance and their goals and initiatives for 2024. I’m working on how my position as their CSM can be aligned with those goals and those projects that they’re working on, all while enabling the Recharge features that we have.
What’s your favorite part about working at Recharge?
My favorite part about working at Recharge is definitely connecting with so many wonderful, smart people. I really enjoy learning from all of them. I feel like I pick up something new every day, and Recharge is forever growing, so there’s just so many things to learn.
What is one piece of advice that you would give somebody who’s new to the company or to the industry?
One piece of advice that I would give to someone who’s new to the company or even in the industry is to just continue to bring your authentic self to work, be unapologetically you, and don’t feel like you have to switch up to fit in.
What drove you to join the Black at Recharge ERG and what has your experience been like?
I’ve always been interested in joining an ERG and the companies that I worked for in the past didn’t really have ERGs. I really wanted to be able to be in a space where I can amplify my voice and to have that space where we feel safe enough to talk about the hard things but also vibe with one another.
So far it has been really good in the sense of being able to lean on my colleagues to express any frustrations or any roadblocks that we’re feeling in the workplace. It’s been really, really nice, I would say, because oftentimes we may feel uncomfortable or we may get in this space where we’re stuck, maybe in the workplace, or even personal. But it’s nice to be able to chat one on one, chat to the group collectively or the members collectively, and gather feedback. It’s like having this virtual shoulder to lean on.
What kind of roadblocks or challenges come to mind?
We talked through dealing with unconscious bias in the workplace. How do we advocate for ourselves? How do we speak up on it? Where do we go? Who can we talk to about it? And that’s a big thing that’s pretty common. We deal with that, not just in the Black ERG, but other ERGs too, other ethnicities deal with that specific issue.
So I’d say that as an example, because it can cause work trauma, it can cause racial trauma, it can cause this shifting into imposter syndrome mode. And it’s also like, all right, how do we find solutions for this?
The Black at Recharge group has a theme for Black History Month this year. Can you tell me what that is and what it means to you?
Standing in our power is our theme. And what that is is creating influence and continuing to bring our authentic selves to work. Being seen, supported, and heard. And creating a greater sense of belonging day to day.
It probably means other things to other people, but when I think of the theme in this moment of my life and career, that’s what I think of when it comes to standing in my power, being able to stand up for myself, advocate for myself, being able to to call the shots with my career, be in charge of me and what I feel, in a positive light in order for me to thrive where I am.
Learn more about working at Recharge
Our employee resource groups (ERGs) are critical to fostering an inclusive and supportive workplace. These groups provide employees from diverse backgrounds and communities the opportunity to come together, share stories/experiences, and amplify their voices at Recharge. You can learn more about working at Recharge on our Careers page.
