Recognizing our ACE Award winners
This past November at our Anaplan Community Experience (ACE) event, we recognized two Community members who have gone above and beyond in 2022 to represent Advancement, Culture, and Education — the key elements of ACE — and who embody the spirit of the Anaplan Community. The winners were chosen specifically for their contributions to the Community and with input from Anaplan field teams who are closely aligned with the work they do every day. They truly set the bar high for what it means to be an exemplary member of the Anaplan Community.
Today, we want to again recognize and highlight our two winners: Senior Financial Analyst, Timmy Thomas (@TimothyThomas) at Groupon, and Anaplan Process Developer, Andrew Tye (@andrewtye) at Aviva!
Meet the winners
Timothy (Timmy) Thomas, Senior Financial Analyst at Groupon, spent his first five months at Groupon dedicated to leading and developing the solution for the Incentive Compensation Management (ICM) global implementation, as well as supporting the CoE team. Previously at Roseburg Forest Products, Timmy is celebrated for his all-in commitment to Anaplan — actively leveraging the Community to learn best practices and collaborate with his peers. When Timmy joined Roseburg Forest Products, Anaplan Customer Success Business Partner Aaron Wasinger said he’s never seen or heard of anyone who has gone through the Anaplan trainings so quickly who wasn’t a partner or Solution Architect, ultimately finishing Level 3 Model Building and becoming a Certified Solutions Architect at the end of 2021. Since then, Timmy has continued his devotion toward accelerated learning and is on track to become a Certified Master Anaplanner by early 2023.
As a top-engaged Community member in 2022, Timmy has an impressive 300+ engagement activities, including 110+ overall posts and 100+ replies. Timmy has not only maximized Community engagement opportunities to advance in his own career but also gives back his time and talents to peers who are looking to grow in their Anaplan journey.
Andrew Tye, Anaplan Process Developer at Aviva, holds a CoE leadership role and has been delivering complex Anaplan initiatives there for three years — all while supporting and mentoring team members on their individual Anaplan development. Previously at Thomas Cook, he was the Anaplan owner in Finance and delivered a number of Anaplan use cases, including FP&A and cash flow planning.
Andrew, a Certified Master Anaplanner (CMA) for nearly 4 years, passionately advocates for new Anaplan product features and actively enables others within their organization and externally within the broader Anaplan ecosystem. He is a top most-engaged customer Community member in 2022, boasting 110+ posts, 7 ideas posted, and over 150 kudos received. Andrew is also one of the top CMA contributors across EMEA, completing all three of the CMA engagement zones so far this year – Thought Leader, Technical Expert, and Connected Planning Evangelist. In 2022, Andrew spoke on an Anaplan Product webinar, participated in the pilot program cohort for the Anaplan Growth Program, contributed UX Quick Tip videos, and spoke at the ACE event.
We asked Timmy and Andrew to share more about their participation in the Community.
How has the Anaplan Community helped in your career advancement and journey?
- Timmy: The Anaplan Community has helped my career in a multitude of ways, from early on as a new model builder to helping me land my current role. When I was first starting out, I used the Community to help problem solve when my team was running into issues, and through creating my own posts as well as referencing others, I was able to get quick help from Certified Master Anaplanners and others with more experience to help solve complex problems, which helped me learn expert tips and tricks for future building. The community also encouraged me to work towards the Certified Solution Architect badge, which was an invaluable asset when talking with recruiters throughout the job search process - the CSA designation is clearly valued by talent sourcers!
- Andrew: The community helped me answer questions I was having, especially in the beginning when the team I was on was all learning Anaplan at the same time. It has also helped with being to able answer most questions that either myself or the team has in easy-to-understand solutions.
What do you enjoy about the culture of the Anaplan Community?
- Timmy: I love that the culture of the Anaplan Community is genuinely focused on teaching, learning, and sharing knowledge. There are so many out there with a wealth of Anaplan experience who have stressful, demanding jobs who still make it a priority to help others with questions they may have. There is a genuine sense of community there that seems to come from true enjoyment of the tool itself, and I find that very heartening when looking to the future of the community!
- Andrew: Everyone in the community is there to be a better Anaplanner, and that means it’s a highly collaborative environment.
What advice would you give to others looking to get more involved in Community?
- Timmy: I probably sound like a broken record at this point, but my advice is to simply not be afraid to jump in and get involved. Start reading questions people are posting on the forums, start trying to think through potential solutions, and begin answering when you can. You will meet experts and can make great connections that can turn into friendships, future career opportunities, or both! There's truly not a downside to getting more involved in the community.
- Andrew: If you want to get involved — start where you’re comfortable. Ask and answer questions on the forum and if someone has answered a problem you’ve been having, say that they solved it for you too. Before you know it, you’ll be writing articles and hosting sessions in User Groups!
Thank you, Timmy and Andrew, for being exceptional leaders in the Anaplan ecosystem!
Are there other Community members you would like to thank for their guidance and help? Leave a comment and shout them out!