Carrie Chizuk

Director of People Resources at Goodwill of the Finger Lakes

One Quote I Love:“Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did. She just did it backwards and in high heels.”   -

Ann Richards      

BRIEF CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:

My growth at Goodwill of the Finger Lakes spans over 16 years which includes 5 careers. Career Development for people who are blind, Contact Center Manager, leading a Youth Mentoring Program, and Learning & Leadership Development, which is now part of my role leading our HR & Loss Prevention teams. The various careers enabled me to build a strong foundation of experience and people skills, priming me for talent development.

What part of your work are you most passionate about right now and why?

I am most passionate about facilitating leadership development programs. Here at Goodwill, leadership development is part of our culture and strategic plan. I am honored to lead the charge and have thoroughly enjoyed witnessing many of our leaders evolve into confident, empathetic, and innovative leaders across our organization.

What situations, experiences and beliefs inform and shape your work today?

I was afforded the opportunity to continue my formal education in Nazareth College’s Leadership and Organizational Change Master’s Program. Currently halfway through this two-year program, the curriculum has and continues to shape, influence, and broaden the perspective of my work. The synergy is timely and valuable. (Members of ROCATD receive a discount at Nazareth College)

What has created your core values and beliefs about working in talent development?

One personal discovery, having done my own leadership work, was recognizing that my true purpose is to promote impactful connection. Since we spend so much time at our jobs, wouldn’t it be great to have genuine connections with those we work with and those who lead us? Shouldn’t we want to feel that our leaders care about us as people and not just employees? While I choose to personally connect with others daily, my role in talent development has the potential to affect this exponentially. As I see it, my work is to influence leaders to promote better connection with the people they lead while developing other leaders to do the same.

How has ATD contributed to your development?