My ServiceNow Story: Cody Jankowski, Sr. Technical Consultant and U.S. Veteran
The team at GlideFast Consulting is full of passionate, skilled, and enthusiastic developers and architects. If there is one thing that we all have in common, it is our love for the ServiceNow platform and community. “My ServiceNow Story” is a blog series that will give you an inside look of the work and lives of the consultants at GlideFast Consulting and how they started and built their careers in the industry. Our consultants will share their stories with you and will lead you down the path that brought them to where they are today.
This ServiceNow Story features Cody Jankowski, GlideFast Sr. Technical Consultant and United States Veteran, based out of Midlothian, TX.
How were you first introduced to ServiceNow? What was your first job using the platform?
I was connected with a veteran recruiter who introduced me to a company. At the time, they were in need of ServiceNow developers. The company was offering ServiceNow training to vets through their program with a guaranteed job. After a month of training, I started my first system admin role on a government contract.
What other jobs have you had working with ServiceNow?
Just the two. My first ServiceNow role was working as a system admin with the firm mentioned above Now I’m here working as a Senior Technical Consultant with GlideFast.
What are your primary ServiceNow skills?
I primarily focus on ITAM and ITSM as a developer — everything from OOB to custom scripting and service catalog items. Most of my roles are within the government sector.
What are your plans for the future in your career and in the ServiceNow industry?
I hope to continue working my way up to become an architect in the near future and keep working with clients to assist them with their implementations. I love problem-solving and that’s what I plan on continuing to achieve for my clients.
Why did you choose to join the military?
I like to think of it as the typical answer. My father was in the military and I needed a way to pay for college. I only planned to do my 4 years, but one thing led to another and here I still am, 12 years later.
What branch were you a part of and where did you serve?
I am a power generation mechanic in the US Army Reserves as a Staff Sergeant. All of my duty stations have been local to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, but I did serve in Afghanistan for a 9 month tour.
What did you learn about yourself while serving?
I learned to slow down, listen to others, and take charge of my career. The best part of being a leader is not leading in my opinion, but rather helping others and teaching them from your mistakes and how to make them a better future leader.
Do you see a correlation between your work now with the military?
As a consultant, my role is to work with clients to better understand their business process and how to improve upon that. Part of that is listening and solutioning an idea for their problem. The military has really taught me how to think outside of the box and not come up with a one size fits all solution. We continue to improve with each additional mission, adapt, and move forward.
What are some of the things you remember about adapting to military life?
Adapting to be more so a part of a team was probably the most difficult part. Being thrown somewhere with random people from all walks of life and geographical locations and expected to work together from day 1 was difficult. The Army really taught me to overcome this and be able to work in any environment to accomplish the mission with utmost efficiency.
What is some advice you would give to other service members looking at getting into ServiceNow?
I would say to definitely network. ServiceNow also has a NextGen Program for service members looking at getting into ServiceNow. I’ve heard some great things about the program, and it is a great head start. Always be eager to learn more and listen to others in the field. It’s a culture change from the military, but a great one.
Interested in working with the experts like Cody on the GlideFast Consulting team? Reach out to our team here. We would love to learn more about your ServiceNow challenges and how we can help your organization build better solutions.