The Power of Transferable Skills: A ServiceNow Journey
Some careers are carefully mapped out. Others unfold through courage, curiosity, and the willingness to say “yes” before you feel completely ready. Today, we are spotlighting Corrine Luthy, a leader whose journey into the ServiceNow ecosystem did not begin in IT, but whose impact now spans Change Readiness, Talent Leadership, and most recently, Brand Leadership at Intact Technology.
Her story is proof that there is no single path into this industry and that transferable skills often matter more than technical origin stories.
When I recently met Corrine, I was inspired not only by her warmth and authenticity, but also by her brilliance as a communicator and leader. The more I learned about her professional journey, the more certain I became that others in our ServiceNow community would benefit from hearing it. She represents what is possible when curiosity, courage, and people focused skills lead the way, even without a traditional technical background.
Let us dive in into her wonderful journey in the ServiceNow world!
Let us start at the beginning. Before ServiceNow and consulting, what were you doing professionally? Did you ever see yourself working in IT?
For most of my professional career, I have been in communications and content creation roles. Across all of these roles, I was required to process information and determine how to share it to tell an interesting, understandable story – as a reporter at a community newspaper, as a web content specialist at an arts university, and in content creation roles for educational technology companies. I have also always been interested in technology, so IT seemed like a natural next step for me.
How did the opportunity to join a ServiceNow partner land on your radar? What went through your mind when you were offered the role?
A friend and former colleague of mine referred me to the company as a communications and change readiness consultant because she thought it would be a good fit for my skills and personality. When I got the job, I was excited about moving into a new role that I thought would be challenging and interesting.
Be honest. Coming from a non IT background, what felt intimidating at first?
This job was intimidating at first on a number of levels. I was excited about the challenge because there was so much to learn, but that was also intimidating. It wasn’t just IT and ServiceNow that I needed to learn the language for, but also learning to be confident as a consultant, especially in the federal space, which has its own vocabulary and rules. That felt like an even bigger leap for me.
Do you remember your first assignment? What were you thrown into, and how did you navigate those early days?
I do! It was as a change readiness consultant for an implementation project at one of our largest customers. The project was to replace a legacy system with the ServiceNow CSM module. I needed to build an OCM plan and execute the deliverables for the customer to build excitement and awareness about the new capabilities and enable their users on CSM. Because it’s such a fast-paced environment, I didn’t get a lot of handholding on engaging with the customer or what deliverables to include in the plan. I remember thinking I wasn’t ready, but I jumped right in. In some ways, I felt like I was making it up as I went, but I ended up doing well. I am grateful for that experience because I learned to trust my expertise and instincts and have confidence in the skills I had built throughout my career.
“I remember thinking I was not ready, but I jumped right in. I learned to trust my expertise and instincts and to have confidence in the skills I had built throughout my career.”
When you realized you needed to get comfortable with the platform and consulting environment, what did you actually do to get up to speed?
The great thing about being at a consulting company is that you are surrounded by experts and most people at Intact are happy to share their knowledge. A turning point for me was when I learned the power and simplicity of asking questions of the people around me. Also, the ability to use the ServiceNow platform myself while building training materials was a great way for me to learn.
Corrine and her beloved pups
Looking back, what skills from your previous career turned out to be your greatest advantage in the ServiceNow ecosystem?
I think there are two big ones. One, which I already mentioned, is the ability and willingness to ask questions. I have spent a lot of time in my career asking knowledgeable people questions about their work and their lives. I try not to hesitate to ask questions that seem simple or common sense, because hearing how people answer those simple questions is often the most enlightening.
The other is the ability as a content creator to put yourself in your audience’s shoes, to understand their perspective, thoughts, and needs. This is incredibly valuable in the IT world, when I need to translate technical information or concepts to users with varying levels of tech savviness.
You have grown from Change Readiness Manager to Talent Lead and now Brand Lead. When did you realize you were stepping into leadership, not just supporting it?
I realized that I had stepped into leadership when I had the ability and responsibility to speak up for others besides myself – and leaders listened to what I had to say. I stepped into a team lead role temporarily while our lead was on maternity leave and immediately felt a responsibility for my colleagues. Everything from project assignments to hiring decisions impacted everyone on the small team and it was a great way to understand on a small scale the impacts leadership decisions can have across an organization.
“I realized that I had stepped into leadership when I had the ability and responsibility to speak up for others besides myself and leaders listened.”
Every strong leader has a story about something that did not go as planned. Can you share a moment that stretched you and what it taught you?
As the change readiness lead on one of our customer accounts, I felt compelled to create some flashy options for communications to get the customer excited about our implementations. While that particular initiative never really took off, we also established some simple but effective communications around regular platform maintenance and releases – and the customer loved it. This taught me a few lessons: never underestimate the impact of the basics and to listen carefully to the needs of those around you.
What excites you most when you step into a new client engagement or initiative?
First, I enjoy getting to meet and engage with new people, so that is always exciting. I also love to problem solve, so getting to hear the particulars of a client’s environment or a new initiative and thinking creatively about how to best tell the story is always exciting.
When you are faced with a new module, new client, or unfamiliar territory, how do you approach learning without feeling overwhelmed?
I like to start with understanding what I do know about a particular topic and then identifying the gaps. What information exists that I have access to? Are there any experts that can give me an overview and help me narrow down topics for self-guided learning? Anyone who can give me a rough framework that I can fill in? I like to discover knowledge myself when I can, but it’s always helpful to have a guide point me in the right direction. I also rely strongly on feedback. When I have the opportunity, I like to try something myself and learn from feedback on what I got right and what I can improve.
Stepping into a Brand Lead role is a meaningful evolution. What does brand mean to you, and how does it connect to change, people, and impact?
Brand to me is sharing the core of a company, person, or product with a community in a way that is both compelling and authentic. You want to build credibility in a way that others know they can trust you to effect change and impact that aligns with their goals. I’m looking forward to bringing my experience working in Delivery to the Brand Lead role and highlighting what makes Intact singular in the industry.
For someone watching your journey and thinking, “I do not come from IT, so this is not for me,” what would you say to them?
I’m a firm believer that many career skills are translatable across roles if you take the time to think through the connections. One of the things I love about my career has been the opportunity to learn about many different industries. In all of my roles, the most important factor has been curiosity and a willingness to learn. Trying something different is always worth it for what it has to teach you, even if you ultimately decide it’s not for you.
“One of the things I love about my career has been the opportunity to learn about many different industries. The most important factor has always been curiosity and a willingness to learn.”
