Connect Series: Meet Business Development Coordinator Kiran Deol
Kiran joined Reportex after about 10 years in legal administration and then as a hybrid paralegal. She has seen the legal world change dramatically, especially in the technological applications it uses, and was keen to stay on top of the ever-changing playing field. Her background in the legal field and her tech savviness have made her a great asset as our business development coordinator. She works closely with our business development team on marketing initiatives and creative content and has been the face of Reportex at the many events and seminars we attend and sponsor.
Kiran, however, is now stepping away for a bit to head into a brand-new adventure as a soon-to-be mom of twins! We are so thrilled for her, and we can’t wait to see these tiny new members of the Reportex family.
Your time as business development coordinator has seen a lot of dramatic changes (thanks, COVID-19) in how everyone was doing their jobs and living their lives. What was the biggest adjustment you had to make, and how did you manage to keep all the balls in the air?
I joined Reportex at the beginning of this pandemic, accepting the job while the whole world went into lockdown mode. To say the least, I did not know what I was getting myself into or what to expect. Since a year ago there have been many adjustments — from holding 10 virtual proceedings at a time via Zoom to accepting the business development role and coming up with new ideas to help navigate our clients through this unprecedented time. The biggest adjustment for me was to roll with the punches. No day was the same as new challenges arose weekly, but working with a team such as our tech team made it easy to navigate through.
Like it was for everyone else, working from home was an adjustment, but it came easy to me and gave me a great balance to my life. Saying that, the biggest adjustment was helping everyone else adapt to their new lives and to keep them working in the smoothest way possible!
At Reportex our core values of team, mentorship, equality, community and industry are central to what we do. Which of these values resonates most strongly with you and why?
All of these core values have become something I breathe every day, especially with our current expansion and keeping in mind what Reportex stands for. In the last year “team,” “mentorship” and “industry” stick out the most.
At the time I joined Reportex, “team” was a big deal! I have never worked with such a great group of people that will do anything to help each other out. During the lockdown we were taking things in stride but as a team would always pull through and make things happen smoothly!
Shortly after joining Reportex, I accepted the business development role. I’ve excelled in this group because of the mentorship I received from my team. Having each other’s backs and having an open communication process without ever seeing each other in person is hard to come by.
And “industry”! The legal industry has changed drastically in the last year — more than it has in the decade I have worked in the legal world. Reportex is all about the industry and being on top of all the latest trends and finding ways to keep people working without additional stress. To be a part of a company that is making such a positive impact in the legal industry is humbling.
We have been talking a bit about wellness on the blog and through our Slack channels. Do you have a favourite way to recharge or any tips for staying well?
Wellness has always been a huge part of my life, but I have always struggled with the balance of work/life as well as keeping my mental and physical state in check. Reportex has made this easier for me to do as we incorporate wellness into our daily lives constantly. With our monthly challenges and daily check-ins wellness has become a daily practice for me. When I found out I was pregnant with TWINS! I knew I could tackle this new adventure in my life because of how I was taking care of myself with the support of my peers. Wellness has become the most important practice while being pregnant because as we all know, it is harder than normal to keep a positive mindset.
My favourite ways to recharge have to be meditation and journaling. Being grateful for all I have and working that into my meditation and journaling has really helped with my balance between life and work.
My biggest tip to staying well is gratitude. If you journal like me, write down three things you are grateful for each day even if it is as little as your morning coffee or a beautiful sunny day! If you don’t journal, verbalizing when you are thankful for something is helpful. For example, thank your husband for vacuuming so you didn’t have to do it! Just be grateful for the little things in life that you have and never concentrate on the things you want. If I have learned anything in the last year, it’s that the things you want magically appear.
As you head into this new adventure as a mom, can you tell us what you will miss about reporting into Reportex every day?
This new adventure excites and scares me at the same time! I have never not worked since I was 17, so it will be an odd transition; however, I can only imagine this will be the busiest, most rewarding year of my life.
I will miss our many channels on Slack when I would take a break from being in the zone and check in on the “pets of Reportex” or “just for fun” channels! There are only a handful of people I have met in person, but I feel like I have known all of my co-workers for years because of all the constant communication.
I will also miss all the familiar faces I see via Zoom, mainly all our friendly mediators with whom I have become very familiar in the last year.
Lastly, I will miss my team! They have been so supportive and understanding throughout this pregnancy, and I couldn’t have asked for more. I know we will all keep in touch, and I will keep everyone updated on all things “mom.” Maybe I’ll surprisingly pop into one of our Tuesday weekly meetings … stay tuned!
We are going to miss you too, Kiran, and we are so thankful for the groundwork you have helped lay out for the many new ventures on the horizon at Reportex. We are so thrilled for you and your husband, and we cannot wait to see photos of babies as soon as possible!
