From Driver to Branch Manager: Why Supporting Others Is Imperative to Career Growth

Vanessa Miskell’s 25-year career in the electrical industry began as a driver. “From there, I have held various roles in shipping, receiving, counter sales, inside sales, purchasing, branch supervisor, inventory management, operations management, and district operations management,” she tells us. 

Today, Miskell is a Branch Manager at Codale (a Sonepar company). And she views this latest pivot from operations to branch management as the career move she’s most proud of. As for how she made this leap, Miskell shares the following advice:

“Always advocate for yourself and always apply for the position you are interested in — even if you think that you aren’t qualified. It shows your interest in moving forward.”

Here, Miskell took time out of her busy schedule to share more of her best advice, the role of women in her career growth, and how Sonepar empowers women!

The role of women in my career journey.

Women supporting women is an important component of career growth. In Miskell’s case, while she was not surrounded by women, and especially women in managerial positions, during most of her early career, this changed three years ago when she first attended the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED) Women in Industry forum!

Here, “I had the pleasure of meeting Stacy Stanslaski, the President of Viking Electric (a Sonepar company),” shares Miskell. Stanslaski “is a great role model, gives great advice,  and she definitely encouraged me to keep pushing forward.” And not only was this advice important to Miskell’s own career journey, she was also able to pay back this support by sharing her own experiences and advice with women at the NAED event, too. 

Thanks in part to the advice she learned during this supportive and empowering forum, Miskell was able to grow into her current Branch Manager role. In addition to her day-to-day responsibilities of problem solving, employee coaching, and listening to customer needs, she continues to uplift other women within Codale. “It is never a dull moment,” Miskell tells us!

Exploring how Sonepar uplifts women.

For those looking to grow in their career like Miskell has, Sonepar is a great company to join! Not only are there plenty of people like Miskell there to support you, the company itself is dedicated to empowering all employees.

That’s because Sonepar embraces the power of difference and is committed to trusting the skills of individuals as well as giving them everything they need to reach their full potential and thrive. This includes professional development opportunities, tuition assistance, a women’s employee resource group, and a truly collaborative environment.

And, as Miskell tells us, Sonepar has a proven history of “promoting women and allowing us to attend mentorship programs and events like Women In Industry.” Curious about joining their team? Click the following link to browse open roles!

Fairygodboss is proud to partner with Sonepar. Find a job there today!