My boss told me that despite my weaker resume, he chose me over 20 other candidates. He said I stood out because the questions I asked in the interview process were very different from those asked by other candidates. I recall those interviews clearly. I asked my potential new boss to explain how the Information Technology group fit in the overall organization. I asked where and to whom IT reported. I wanted to know the strategic importance of IT to the company's infrastructure--after all this was an oil company, not a technology company. I spent considerably less time in the interview asking about the specifics of the job itself. What I needed to determine for myself was whether the job was going to provide me a feeling of significance. After all, I was looking at IT as a starting point for my career, not a destination.

I actually took the job because the answers my future boss gave me stood out as well. First of all, I was encouraged that IT reported up to a leader that was well-respected and ultimately to the CFO. My boss was a new MBA and his way of thinking was broader than the usual technical managers I had come across. He spoke about strategy and politics of countries in which the company operated. We talked about negative press, of corporate raiders and the company's rich 100-year history. Through the interview process, I also determined that the company was lagging behind its competition in technology so the early years of my career were a time of great security, activity and opportunity.

As the technology infrastructure stabilized, the company began to shift its thinking and large functions with IT began to be outsourced. Because my role was never relegated to purely day-to-day programming work, I wasn't stuck in a dead-end job or pushed out with the various outsourcing initiatives. Instead, significance in the workplace empowered me to build deep relationships within the company. When the time was right, I had several opportunities to move from IT to other areas within the company. I chose corporate real estate and I've been in the corporate real estate field in one form or another ever since.