At Daycos, we believe our employees are changemakers. We know there is value in supporting and empowering our people by providing them with the opportunity to connect with and learn from other like-minded professionals.
A couple of our employees recently got to encounter this firsthand by attending the Connecting Young Nebraskans (CYN) Summit in Kearney. The CYN is a statewide network that encompasses a dynamic and diverse group of more than 900 professionals who have a drive for making a difference. These individuals are passionate about learning and building important relationships to shape the future of Nebraska. Daycos sent two of our emerging leaders to take part in this networking event. Software engineer Ryan Songcuan and Executive Coordinator Angela Henery have demonstrated a leadership ability that we aimed to cultivate through this experience.
The evening before the conference, Ryan attended the “Creative Crawl” pre-event, during which a group toured various local businesses in Kearney. “It was cool to hear about how they overcame different obstacles to continue to thrive and expand.” Ryan said, “A common theme was the importance of local businesses and the benefit they bring to the community, such as the taxes that support schools when shopping locally.”
This thread of entrepreneurship was woven into the theme of the conference the following day. With a focus of “Why Not?,” this year’s summit featured renowned speakers, interactive workshops and panel discussions that tackled this question from the perspective of owning and operating a small business. There were various breakout sessions covering topics from health and wellness to personal investing and working with nonprofit organizations. “I loved the breakout sessions I attended,” Ryan said, “but wish I could’ve gone to more, since there were many topics I would’ve loved to sit in on!”
Angela echoed the same sentiment and also added that one session she attended was part of a larger workshop she would have liked to complete. “I learned a lot about developing my personal brand,” she said, “I have spent years not knowing exactly how I want to show up in the world, and Juliet Wright’s session helped me stop and think about the why behind what I do.”
Ryan really connected to a session led by JetBlue Airlines co-founder Al Spain. In “Leadership Through Turbulence,” the story of the company was told with real scenarios the team faced and the decisions that changed their course of action. “It made me think more about long term impacts of decision making,” Ryan said, “And no matter how much effort you put into understanding the situation and predicting the outcome, there is always the possibility of unexpected circumstances that you’ll have to react to.”
One particular activity at the summit really resonated with both Daycos employees. In the Coffeeshop Conversations event, a table was hosted by an individual and discussion was held around a certain topic. Attendees chose which discussion they wanted to take part in. Ryan sat in on a conversation about personal and professional development in the workplace. “While most people talked about how their companies could improve, I got to brag about how well we’re already doing at Daycos through our personal development plans and team health,” Ryan said.
Angela also enjoyed the table conversations, noting that it was great to have a voice and the ability to speak up about topics that truly matter. She engaged in conversation about unlocking your creativity. “I was able to share some exercises I’ve done in the past to help get the creative juices flowing,” she said, “We also talked about perfection being the enemy of progress. So often we think everything we do has to be flawless, when we just need to make things good enough to move on.” Both came away from the experience feeling both motivated and refreshed. “There are so many ideas I’ve taken away from this event,” Angela said, “I can’t wait to implement them into the work I’m doing at Daycos.”
We believe that through this experience, these young people will be inspired and continue to make Daycos a great place to work. Elevating employees through our involvement with organizations like Connecting Young Nebraskans is another part of what makes Daycos different.
