Meet the ai Team: Cat Chenery

We shine the spotlight on members of Team ai to learn more about their roles, what it’s like being part of the team, and what training and development opportunities ai offers. This month, we sat down to chat with Cat Chenery, Project Manager.

What made you choose to be a Project Manager at ai?

In 2020, my first role with the company was as an Executive Assistant (EA) following an 11-year career break. Before I took the break,  I previously worked in the city in financial operations. I was responsible for reviewing, developing and documenting processes and procedures to ensure they were robust and scalable.

Before I joined ai, I felt nervous returning to the workplace and wanted to add value quickly and prove myself, so I took the EA position.  Within the first few weeks, I established good working relationships and learned about the company’s products and services.

The pandemic significantly impacted how ai was going to operate in the new environment, and as a result, the nature of my role changed. In July 2020, I became Operations Executive and was responsible for the operational-wide activity that looked into ai’s policies, procedures and governance.

My role evolved due to taking on additional responsibility, which resulted in being promoted to Project Manager. I now lead on many internal projects in ensuring we continue to be PCI compliant and internal infrastructure projects. I’ve now begun taking ownership of external projects and have relished the opportunity to work closely with our customers.

What does a typical day look like for you?

Every morning I will have an IT and security stand-up meeting where we go over the critical priorities for the day. I usually have one or two project meetings, followed by daily/weekly calls. The nature of my role means that I need to keep many plates spinning, ensuring that we can meet deadlines and that blockers can be resolved swiftly. As a Project Manager, a large proportion of my time is to plan out upcoming activities for the following weeks ahead.

What is your team like?

I’m fortunate to have a great team that is very supportive and we all get on really well. The wealth of expertise that they all have has made my transition to being a Project Manager a smooth one. As a team, we constantly collaborate on the best ways of working through regular meetings.

How do you ensure you keep your training and knowledge up to date?

A critical part of my role is ensuring that we, as a company, continue to maintain the highest standards in security. ai have ensured that I have the available resources and time to maintain this knowledge base. As the company is transitioning to an Agile way of working, I have been reading about the subject area.

What’s the best part about your job?

I really enjoy my job when I receive recognition from our customers, which solidifies that I’m meeting the expectations of their requirements.  Another part of my job that I enjoy is hitting project milestones and completing a project on time!

What’s your proudest moment at ai so far?

I was fortunate to be involved in an internal campaign to help colleagues build their awareness of our policy framework. Not only did I get the chance to work with different colleagues across the business, but I led on some activities that involved a Wheel of Fortune and a few games of bingo!

I’m proud to have developed at ai within a short time. When I started, I was working part-time as an EA. Now, I’m leading projects that are making a positive difference in the company’s success.

How would you describe ai in 3 words?

Innovative, friendly, positive.

Fun fact about Cat?

The first time I met my stepsons, I fell into a river!