Granola Grazer. Smooth operator. Committed to committees.
‘Jonathan Sheen’ is a familiar name in the company—peek into any employee’s inbox and you’ll find his name on almost every committee-related email. He has earned the reputation of ‘Jonathan Sheen on the social committee’ for his part in organizing the annual company holiday party. He’s always the first person to put his hand up to volunteer for a committee at CMiC, but that’s only if the formation of that committee wasn’t his idea to begin with.
When did you join CMiC and why?
I joined CMiC 8 years ago. I was looking online for a role at a software company coming out of my computer science program at the University of Toronto. When I came in for an interview, I enjoyed the conversations I had with my interviewers so much that it ultimately confirmed for me that CMiC is where I wanted to work. They gave me a tour of the office and introduced me to the people I would be working with. I left with the impression that the company was super cool and cared about finding like-minded people.
What is your role at CMiC?
I originally joined CMiC as a Product Analyst and moved to be Solutions Consultant. As an SC, my job is to discover the client’s unique business processes and build a sample snapshot to showcase how our software can complement their needs. This can be a challenge sometimes. Every company is slightly different, and we find a way to show how we can simplify and streamline their processes as much as possible.
Sometimes we need to go onsite to map and present the solution that we have. This is nice because it gives us the opportunity to travel instead of sitting in the office day in and day out.
What is your best client-facing story?
Prior to meeting any clients in person, a lot of planning and prep-work needs to take place. The best moment is during the presentation, when I see that all the effort put into it has paid off. It is all in the body language! Nods of agreement and confirmations of their understanding is what I look for. There was a time it went so well, the client offered to take us to a nice dinner afterwards.
Share with me your best CMiC memory.
The company holiday party I planned in 2018. I spearheaded the planning that year and coordinated most of the logistics on my own. The best moment was seeing it all come together and everybody enjoying themselves that night. Oh, and the moment when I surprised everyone with a second Dyson hairdryer during the raffle draw. Needless to say, it was a coveted item by the ladies of the company.
Name all of the committees that you’re on
Social Committee; JHSC (Joint Health and Safety Committee); First Aid; Corporate Social Responsibility Committee; Fire Wardens.
*I asked Jonathan which committee is his favorite*
My heart says social committee, but my brain says first aid because it’s more important.
Where are the best lunch spots?
Centre Street Deli for smoked sandwiches
Burger’s Priest for burgers
Sofras for good Turkish food
Roti in Jane and Finch
If I don’t go out for lunch, I eat lunch at my desk. In the hustle and bustle of the day, a quiet mid-day meal is exactly what I need to refresh and rewind. Of course, this is also contributed to the fact that I eat my lunch at 11am and no one else is eating lunch at that time.
I’m also known to make yogurt parfaits with the granola in the office. I bring my own yogurt and mix it with the granola and the fruit of the week in the kitchen.
What do you listen to on your morning commute?
I listen to the radio on my drive into the office. I’m a channel flipper—but no rap, ugh. Once I find a song, I go into autopilot and use that time to think about the day. I can’t think when someone is talking, so I do my best thinking to music.
Go-to CMiC office snack?
Usually Dinusha’s lunch. *A joke directed at very concerned Dinusha (our Business Development Lead), who was putting his lunch in the fridge*
Like I already mentioned, I make my own yogurt parfait (yogurt, blueberries, and granola) using the granola in the kitchen.
What is your favourite part of the day?
I would say my favourite part of the week is board game night. Being a software company, we are honestly just a bunch of geeks. When things get competitive, we don’t fight to settle the score—we play a game to earn the glory. Employees are invited to bring their board games to the office, but we also have an impressive collection at my desk. The only rule is that we avoid Monopoly and Risk style games. Instead, we play more obscure games like Codenames, Catan or Sushi Go!. My favourite game is Codenames because you can theoretically play with an unlimited number of players and you are always thinking throughout the game.
Any tips for someone looking to join the CMiC team?
To be successful, it requires an open mind to learn whatever you need to learn, especially to understand the software itself. You must have good communication skills because it really goes a long way to being able to talk to the customers and members of your team.
What is a common misconception about the search for a new software?
There’s this misconception that searching for a software is a daunting task. Well – it is not a misconception! Do you remember going from Windows 7 to Windows 10 and how much you dragged your feet? But once you have the right mind set and see what the newest bells and whistles are, then you just jump on board!
Bonus Question: How do you keep your hair like that?
I put gel in it. I have bone straight hair.