In our Centered on Your Success blog series, get to know our experts and how they measure success for clients. In this installment, meet Megan Robicheau.
What’s your story?
My career in the people and change space began in undergrad, where I received my degree in psychology, having no idea what I wanted to do with it. Through internship and job experiences, I knew I wanted to focus more on the business side of psychology, looking at the behaviors and attitudes of employees in the workplace. I then received my master’s in organizational psychology with the goal of working in change management. I started at a smaller, local consulting firm before coming to Centric about five years later. I’ve been at Centric now for almost a year.
Why did you decide to become part of your field?
Trial and error, mostly! I worked with the Medical School of Brown University as a Research Assistant to see if the clinical side of psychology was in my future, but it wasn’t the right fit. I also briefly tried out HR and recruiting and knew those weren’t my calling, either. I learned about organizational change management (OCM) through grad school and became really interested in the topic.
How are you working to guide your clients to success right now?
Many clients, and people in general, aren’t aware of what OCM is and how beneficial and often necessary it is. Educating clients on the necessity of focusing on the people side of change, and the risks of overlooking it, has been key in getting them onboard for their own success.
What, in your opinion, do companies need the most help with right now?
With all the change happening in the world and workplace, companies need to focus on managing that change while retaining employees. There is a lot of upheaval going on in the workplace amongst most industries, with baby boomers retiring or preparing to retire, the great resignation and the war on talent, and confusion around when and how to bring employees back into the office. OCM has never felt more important.
What are you looking forward to in your industry?
Change management continues to grow in popularity as well as becoming more widely recognized by leaders. This is an exciting time for both OCM practitioners as well as the organizations focusing on these types of efforts, as it will further their success when done right.
What piece of career advice keeps you passionate and purposeful?
Not being afraid to try something new has always helped me learn and grow. I probably wouldn’t be in this industry if I wasn’t willing to step out of my comfort zone and try new things. Leaving jobs that didn’t suit me any longer and declining offers that didn’t feel right, even though they may have been the safer choice, has – so far – worked out in my favor.
What do you do when you’re not guiding clients?
I love to travel, and my bucket list seems to be getting longer, even though I keep checking off new places. The next few priorities on my list are Costa Rica, Northern California and Egypt. On a day-to-day basis, though, you can usually find me walking my dog, at the beach – relaxing or surfing – or reading in my backyard.
What’s your favorite thing to do in Boston?
The best part about Boston (in my opinion) is the proximity to so many other great areas. I’m from Cape Cod and visit home most weekends in the summer. There are endless places to explore on Cape. In the winter, it’s a short drive up to myriad mountains for skiing, which are also beautiful for autumn hikes.
