Michelle Azizzi’s Journey Inside Adobe

By day, she’s an information architect; by night, she studies organizational development.

“My day job and schooling complement each other well and feed my passion for employees having a positive digital and developmental experience,” Michelle Azizzi said.

Along the way, she’s learning everything she can by gaining experience across Adobe.

A Talent for Helping Others

Michelle is part of the Employee Communications group, managing employee experience content on Adobe’s intranet site, Inside Adobe.

Her work is two-pronged: One focus is to refresh and optimize existing web pages; the other is working on digital communication strategy related to employee experience campaigns.

“I love working with my partners in determining what information they want employees to know and turning it into a web page that easily provides employees with what they need,” Michelle said.

About three years ago, after receiving a degree in Criminal Justice, Michelle joined Adobe’s legal team—first on a contract basis, then as an employee. Since that initial position, she has seized opportunities to enhance her understanding of Adobe’s business by taking on roles within Customer & Employee Experience and now the Global Marketing Organization.

Keys to Successful Internal Mobility

Michelle attributes her success to several factors: passion for learning, persistence, developing transferable skills, and being open and transparent with managers about her career goals and development.

“I started working at 15, in retail and then hospitality,” she explained. “I was fortunate to develop people skills such as empathy and conflict resolution, which are crucial in any field. I attribute my success in landing my first role at Adobe to those skills.

“Lisa Konie, my manager in Legal Ops, truly values her employees’ development, and I was transparent from the beginning about my interests and ambitions,” Michelle continued. “I had her full support when I was ready to take on a new challenge.”

Finally, Michelle has learned that persistence always pays off.

For example, due to scheduling conflicts, it took several attempts to arrange an informational interview with Liz Quinn, director, Talent Development. Ultimately, that connection led to Michelle’s next position—an onboarding coordinator in Customer & Employee Experience.

There’s a common thread that runs through these positions.

“In each role, I’ve found myself either creating or improving workflow/processes and most importantly helping build or repair strong stakeholder relationships,” she said. “I believe my superpower is the ability to build rapport with just about anyone. I go into every meeting or interaction hoping to build clarity, alignment and commitment.

Seeking Opportunities

“It took a certain level of fearlessness to move among organizations, but I valued Adobe’s culture and resources for internal mobility and allowed myself to take chances,” Michelle explained. “These transitions have given me a strong understanding of our amazing organization. I’m so thankful for the opportunity and ability Adobe has given me to pursue several passions.”

Michelle values the programs and resources Adobe provides to help employees like herself grow within the company. “It is, however, up to you as an individual to use those resources and make it happen,” she advised.

Wine and Grind

Outside of work and graduate school, you can find Michelle at her local CrossFit gym. She’s an avid Olympic weightlifter—a mode of lifting that emphasizes technique over power.

“I have a few mantras, and one that holds true to my career and weightlifting is always to learn, improve and evolve,” she said. “It’s important to embrace, accept and grind through the process of being better than the day before.”

Michelle is also a wine and craft beer enthusiast. No technique or organizational skills required here; just your taste buds and fun. “I love finding the next best IPA and Cabernet,” she said. Her two favorites are Rogue 7 Hop IPA and Silver Oak Cabernet.

Ready to start your journey through Adobe? Apply today on our career site.