In Conversation with Rania El-Sharkawy, WFM Operations Manager, GEC

Rania El-Sharkawy is a Workforce Management Operations Manager for our Guest Education Centre (GEC) based out of Vancouver, BC.

Rania spoke to us about her career journey, what she loves about working for the GEC at lululemon, and how she keeps engagement and connection high when working with her remote colleagues. Read on below!  

1.Tell us about your career journey?

I started in the contact center industry over 25 years ago, in a part time role on the phones while at the University of Toronto, and loved the energy and diversity in the work. I moved into a full-time position and worked various roles within the organization, exploring various career pathways. I then had the opportunity to get into workforce management (WFM) for the contact center of one of Canada’s biggest telecom providers, and I really enjoyed how dynamic and strategic the role was. I was also able to consult as a WFM subject matter expert on several business transformation projects prior to joining lululemon that were key to my career growth.

2. What do you love about working for the GEC at lululemon? 

I love the people and the culture. I really love my team; they truly move mountains and they motivate me each and every day. I also love our product and value our employee discount for the gear that I love and adore.

3. How do you keep engagement and connection high working with many remote employees? 

We check in on each other’s well-being when we connect, and we make it a priority to have FUN!!!! We have virtual lunches, we introduce new people to the team through PechaKucha presentations, we play engaging virtual team games, and we create a safe space to be authentic and come as you are.

4. What is your favourite lululemon value and why? 

My favourite lululemon core value is connection. I think it’s the foundation to building a healthy culture where we genuinely care about each other’s wellbeing, and it also helps us service our guests from a lens of connection as well.

5. What growth opportunities are there within lululemon for employees who start at the GEC? 

We are constantly evolving and growing at the GEC and have a variety of roles across different areas of the business. Most of our roles at the GEC are held by employees that started as educators and progress into being administrators, analysts, team leaders, operation managers and senior managers. So really, the sky is the limit when it comes to the growth opportunities!

Interested in a role at our Guest Education Centre, Store Support Centre, Distribution Centre, or one of our stores? Apply today via this link: https://careers.lululemon.com/en_US/careers