Stephanie Thiel
Stephanie is full-time product manager at SaaSquatch, and part-time co-lead for the Victoria ProductTank chapter. She's never met a croissant she didn't like.
Recipient of:
Emerging Leader of the Year
What brought you to Victoria?
A great business program, but mostly the weather 🙂
Where did you go to school and what did you take?
Uvic for Business School, followed by UBC and UVic for additional professional studies.
What was the biggest obstacle to getting where you are now, and how did you overcome it?
My biggest struggles were self-doubt, and figuring out what my passions were in life that gave me the energy I needed to tackle the everyday. I believe I overcame these by putting myself in uncomfortable situations, and pushing myself to continually be working toward bigger goals. Every time I was able to achieve one of these goals, I felt that much more confident and validated in my personal and professional path, which has also helped me be more confident and focused.
What are you most proud of in your career?
Recognizing when I was being limited or not treated fairly, and having the confidence to face the situation, move on to something better, and prove people wrong.
Who has been the biggest influence on your life? What lessons did that person teach you?
So easy. My Mom. She is the definition of dedication, perseverance and strong worth ethic. When I was 6, my little sister had just been born, and I’ll never forget going down to the office at 4 am to find my mom working on her Masters thesis. I told her she was nuts, but I thought she was superwoman. She taught me how to work harder (even when I didn’t want to) and that it will always pay off. I also credit her for teaching me how to stay humble and realistic when things aren’t going as planned, which has helped me persevere through many tough situation, both personally and professionally.
What’s something most people don’t know about you?
I almost went to post-secondary to study Music.