Biggest Challenges Faced by a Chief Strategy Officer at America Achieves
Allison's biggest challenge as Chief Strategy Officer is adapting to a remote work environment after a career spent in local, in-person settings, stating that it's "hard to get energy in the same way." The increasing complexity of the world, particularly in education, climate change, and politics, also presents a significant hurdle in long-term planning, despite a preference for "thinking short-term and being nimble."
Executive/Leadership, Overcoming Challenges, Stress Management, Communication, Workplace Challenges
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Allison Bajracharya
Chief Strategy Officer
America Achieves
Middlebury College, 2000
USC, MPP
Environmental & Related Sciences
Nonprofit, Foundations & Grantmaking
Business Strategy
Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. Maintaining energy levels while working remotely and finding new ways to connect with people
2. Adapting to uncertainty and complexity in the current world
3. Balancing short-term thinking with long-term planning in a rapidly changing environment
Transcript
What is your biggest challenge in your current role?
My biggest challenge is that I'm an extrovert and get a lot of energy from meeting and working with people. For most of my career, about two decades, my work was local. I was working at an office or at schools.
Now I work from home and on Zoom. It's hard to get energy in the same way that I used to, so I have to create new ways to do that. I do get to travel, which helps.
I think finding opportunities to get out, go for a walk, and refresh is important. Stepping away from the computer helps me find energy and be refocused on the work.
The other piece is that there's just a lot of uncertainty. Historically, I've been in high-stakes jobs that centered on uncertainty. But as our world gets more complex, with education, climate change, and politics, it becomes challenging to plan long-term.
I enjoy the opportunity to think short-term and be nimble. But I would love to get to a place where we, as a community, are better at building trust and listening to each other. This would help create a greater sense of hope for what the long-term could look like.