Member Spotlight — Co-President: Aidan Wood
Meet Aidan Wood:
Aidan is currently a fourth year Mechatronics Engineering student at the University of Waterloo and has been with 180 Degrees Consulting for over two years. He initially joined 180 Degrees Consulting because he wanted to broaden his learning experiences in a way that also allowed him to give back. In his spare time, he enjoys playing and watching soccer.
In this interview spotlight, we asked Aidan about his experience as a Co-President and how his 180 Degrees Consulting journey has been so far.
What is the biggest thing you have learned since taking on this leadership role?
The biggest lesson that I have learned since becoming Co-President has been the importance of compassion in leadership. Ultimately, our branch is most successful when everyone is working together, towards our common goals, as best we can. However, it’s impossible to always be at your best, and people often cannot deliver what they promised. As a leader, it was my job to set the branch’s standards and constantly support our teams as best I could to work towards them. Supporting our team meant being compassionate when work didn’t go as planned and being there for them professionally and personally to grow from these situations. This taught me that people don’t care what you know until they know that you care.
What is your proudest accomplishment or biggest achievement during your time as co-president?
My proudest accomplishment at 180 Degrees Consulting Waterloo has been expanding the number of projects we take on every term. For the branch, this has given us the ability to generate more revenue and spend on improving the experience of our consultants and department managers. It has also allowed us to grow our team and enable more people to be part of 180 Degrees Consulting Waterloo and take advantage of a unique opportunity to work with leaders in the non-profit sector.
What methods do you use to oversee multiple departments and ensure your work is error-free?
Anyone at the branch can tell you that my work is never error-free! However, the most important thing I’ve learned during my time at 180 Degrees Consulting Waterloo is to seek feedback and utilize it to make improvements regardless of your role. I’ve been able to use the teams’ talents in each of our departments to make sure that the work I put out is up to the high standard of the branch.
What advice would you have for those who are looking to join 180 Degrees Consulting Waterloo in the future?
Obviously, the most important thing I would say to someone looking to join is to submit your application! However, once you get in, the best piece of advice I can give is to take the initiative wherever possible. 180 Degrees Consulting Waterloo has given me some of the most unique and best experiences of my university career. Incredible opportunities are there for anyone at the branch to take — it’s just up to you to do so!
180 Degrees Consulting Waterloo is a branch of one of the largest university-based consultancy organizations in the world. We offer affordable consulting services to not-for-profit organizations and social enterprises. The Waterloo branch has consultants from University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University.
For more information, check out our website here.
