Member Profile- Sully Heraud
Sully Heraud is currently serving in the Canadian Navy and is a few days away from signing off and taking the big step into a civilian career. As a Naval Lieutenant, Sully would tell you that he can basically “Drive big ships” but that’s not all that he hopes to do in the future. As a Naval Warfare Officer he has hard won experience in delivering operational outcomes in complex and (literally) fluid environments with inaccurate and/or patchy information. All the while he has had to manage a technically skilled team who were under significant stress and often lacked resources. In addition to these formative leadership experiences he has, of course, also picked up easily transferable skills and experience in personnel management, administration and communication. He’s looking for a business that wants to leverage that kind of broad experience to deliver interesting and important results.
What else does Sully want in a second career? Like many young officers who leave in their early 30’s the thought of flying a desk or being separated from the frontline teams holds little appeal. “I love leading teams. I love being part of the action!” Sully says. So, a role where he not only gets input to the plan but also a large part of the responsibility of getting the most from his team enroute to delivering the objective is his primary goal.
What about a lack of business experience? “I am present to the fact that I have not worked in a commercial business before and that is a concern for me. However, my mentors have assured me that a Naval Strategy and Business Plan have a lot more in common than I currently realize. I get my juice from understanding and delivering the mission, whether my budget is weapons and ammunition or manpower and equipment or dollars and cents I will still have to use my resources wisely by prioritizing, motivating & communicating. I’m looking forward to those challenges!”
Where will he be putting down his civvie roots? “I’m pretty flexible right now. I’m currently in Victoria so could stay in BC if the salary allowed but I am French Canadian so I’m wide open to interesting leadership roles in Ontario or Quebec or in the Maritimes if my Naval background helped me land a role there.”
Welcome to Treble Victor, Sully. We know that you’ll find a great role very soon and we look forward to supporting your early years (and more) in the civilian workplace.