Manager – Accounting Services
Teterboro Airport
A career change is daunting for anyone, never mind moving from one coast to another. After moving from California to Chicago, Ciba wanted something different. What she found was not only a different career field, but a different culture to overcome. Next stop, New York.
Meet Ciba Williams
Andrew King: Let’s start by introducing your work history at AvPORTS.
Ciba Williams: I work at Teterboro Airport. I’m the accounting manager here and I’ve worked here for four and a half years now, since June of 2016. I came from a different project, I actually worked at the Gary/Chicago International Airport for a very long time. Well, not a long time, but I worked there for a couple of years.
Andrew King: How’d you get your start in aviation?
Ciba: It’s actually a really funny story because I had no interest in aviation. I traveled a lot when I was younger, but never had a passion to work in aviation or in the aviation field. My background really is in the food service industry – about 11 years in that industry. When I relocated from California to Illinois, I left the food industry. I wanted to start fresh and do something different. I love accounting, I’ve always been an accountant. I started doing that when I was in high school. I worked in my school bank and I took my first accounting class when I was a sophomore in high school. And I haven’t stopped doing this type of work for a long time.
When I moved to Chicago, even though most places are looking for field related experience, I applied to all kinds of jobs. After one particularly long interview process of three interviews, I wasn’t hired because I had too much experience. It was sad, but the company called to tell me that they were really impressed, and they wanted to keep an eye out for other opportunities on my behalf. And she says, “How do you feel about that?” And I was like, “Well, obviously I’m disappointed, but sure why not?”
Not long after, she calls and says, “The president of our company is on the board of the Gary Chicago Airport and they’re actually looking for an accountant … I can’t even remember what the job title was, but they were looking for someone to work in their accounting department and wanted to know if we could pass your resume along to the accounting manager over there.” I said, “Sure, why not?” Not really thinking anything of it, never really hearing of the Gary/Chicago International Airport, I didn’t know what it was.
It was really such a gift that they passed my resume along, because the next day GYY called me. Within a week I’m interviewing and on the spot she hires me. And it’s kind of how I got involved with aviation, so very strange story.
Andrew King: Yeah, that’s really cool. How did it feel when she called you for that job and realizing that you’re going to start working in aviation? What was that on-boarding and learning curve like for you?
Ciba: Well, at that time I was working somewhere that I really didn’t like. And so I was really excited to just do something new, again, not really knowing anything about aviation. I just really liked the woman who interviewed me and it seemed like a really good fit. And again, it was something different I had never done before. So when I first got to the airport, I was a little intimidated because I didn’t know what people were talking about. I felt like I was a complete outsider. Everybody was talking in a whole different language – they use a lot of acronyms in aviation. So it was exciting, but it was also very scary because I didn’t know very much about aviation.
Andrew King: Ha! I think there’s an entire handbook of acronyms for aviation. Tell me about the journey from where you started to where you are now.
Ciba: So, in November of 2013, that’s when I started working for the Gary Chicago Airport and then shortly thereafter, AvPORTS came on. Fast forward a couple years, I was kind of wanting to not necessarily relocate, but just really advance my career. I was the accounting assistant, their staff accountant at the Gary Chicago Airport, but definitely looking for something different. I had previously had been a manager at another company and even though I think at the time at that point in my life, I didn’t want to be a manager.
Andrew King: Why not?
Ciba: It’s a lot of responsibility and I just kind of wanted to be a worker bee and come in and do my job and leave. But I think the one thing I didn’t realize at the time is that once you start thinking like a manager, you can’t go back. So, working in a position for a while where I didn’t really have the voice to make what I perceived to be necessary changes was really a struggle for me. And I didn’t know how not to think like a manager, and I didn’t know how to go back to just punching a clock.
Andrew King: What happened next?
Ciba: So there’s this position that comes up at Teterboro Airport. And, I just kind of say, “Well, why not? I’ll apply for it. They’re never going to call me. I live in Indiana. Why would they call me?” And they actually called me, I did a phone interview and after what seemed like forever, which was probably maybe three weeks later, they called me back and said, “Oh, could you be here tomorrow?” And I was like, “Okay, sure.” So I fly to New York, I go in for the interview and within a couple days I get the call that they wanted to offer me the job. And that’s how I ended up at Teterboro Airport.
But I have to say, I absolutely love aviation now, it’s really great, it’s very fascinating, it’s very rewarding. I really like working for AvPORTS. I really feel like there is definitely … they make employees feel good about themselves and I feel like they’re really trying to look out for us. And I think a lot of places where people work, you don’t always get that. You don’t always feel like they want to support you or they want to really look out for employees. They’re always talking about the bottom line, which is important, but I don’t think it’s the most important thing.
Andrew King: That’s an interesting thing for an accountant to say that.
Ciba: Haha. I know! I feel bad.
Andrew King: Switching topics a bit, have you ever have you ever felt like you had to overcome extra barriers because of your gender?
Ciba: Well, I mean, I guess maybe there’s always something there, but … So, because I’m African-American, I feel like there’s always some sort of barrier. I grew up in California and I have this, what I describe to people, is I had this peace, love, and happiness upbringing. So outside of California, I guess I’d never really experienced life the way maybe some other people who look like me do. And I guess what I’m ultimately trying to say is, is that as long as you’re confident and you’re not afraid to speak up, I think that is what’s going to make people pay attention to you, but if you’re sort of docile or shy and timid and afraid to speak is when people try to talk over you or not acknowledge your worth.
Andrew: What do you love about what you do?
Ciba: Well, like I said, I knew I’ve always known I wanted to be an accountant and that’s why I really love my job. I like coming to work every day and I just feel like if you do what you love, then you’re really not working. I mean, don’t get me wrong, there’s times where it’s very stressful, but because I’ve always wanted to do this, it’s just a pleasure to be able to do it for a company that you feel like supports you, so.
Andrew King: Well, I really appreciate your time Ciba and I appreciate learning about you and your experiences. I think it’s a learning experience for many of us. The last question I have is, for people who might be going through a similar experience, what would you tell them?
Ciba: So I really would tell them that at your core, you are who you are and someone’s reaction to their preconceived notions of who they think you are, should not affect who you are or who you know yourself to be. So just continue to be yourself and to be authentic. Be authentically yourself.
Andrew King: I know that I said that was the last question, but what you just said seems really important. For you, what’s important about being authentically yourself?
Ciba: The best thing about being your authentic self is that you’re not putting on a performance for anybody and you don’t have to remember anything extra because you are being who you are. I’m a self-described nerd who likes to watch period movies and I don’t know how to be anybody else. I think a lot of times when people put on this face that they think everybody wants to see is that they could forget the way they act this day or that day. And I think ultimately, you can only hide who you truly are for so long and your true colors will always show, whether that’s a good or a bad thing. It’s just better to just be yourself and to sort of take whether that’s the good side and the bad sides and always keep working on some of those negative traits, but just be yourself.
Andrew King: You don’t have fear around being yourself?
Ciba: Growing up where I grew up, I don’t know how to be anybody else. I listened to punk rock and I listen to all different types of music and I don’t know how to be anybody else. And sometimes when, especially when I worked at Gary, people talk to me using slang language, I don’t really know slang language. So, I think it’s very … it would be very hard for me to try to be somebody else. I can only be who I am.
Andrew King: What advice would you give others or a younger version of yourself?
Ciba: A younger version of myself? I don’t know what I would tell other people, but I definitely would tell myself that don’t be afraid of constructive criticism. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes because mistakes are how you grow and learn. And, don’t be afraid to ask questions. I ask a lot of questions, but I like to make sure I understand what is being asked of me and I want to do the best possible job I can. I think those are really the most three important things that I would tell myself or anybody when they’re looking to move forward in their career.
Andrew: Thank you, Ciba.
Ciba: Thank you!