Last week I attended the Memorial Service for my ex-wife, Kaye, who died in her sleep the week before.  Many thoughts ran through my head and the ones relevant to this blog were those about what a wonderful fit she was with the job she held for the last 22 years and how many lives she touched during that time.

Officially, her job title was "Graduate Secretary" at the Department of City and Regional Planning (DCRP) at UC Berkeley. The title should have been "Shepherd of Students" or "Alma Mater," in the original sense, for the students in the department.

She was a perfect example of a person who is lucky enough to find a job that fit and built on their strengths and then made the most of it. The impact on the people she served (the students) was profound.

Kaye was both smart and educated.  With a graduate degree with honors and hours on her doctorate, she could hold her own with the faculty and other university people in almost any discussion.

Kaye loved the academic environment.  She didn't have to adjust to fit the culture.  The fit was there when she was hired.

Kaye loved, most of all, to help people.  The job at DCRP let her apply her intelligence and cultural savvy to helping students. 

As she gained experience she got better and the job was adjusted for new challenges and to build on Kaye's unique strengths. She developed relationships all over the university and the world, that helped her do more for "her" students.

If you hire people, think about that.  Work for a good hiring fit.  Build on the strengths of your people.  Adapt jobs to people, rather than people to jobs, as much as you can.  The results can be astounding. They were for Kaye.

You expect family and friends at a Memorial Service.  We had those.  What you don't normally see at a Memorial Service are "customers."  The church sanctuary was large, but students and former students filled it.  Some of them traveled hundreds of miles to attend the service.

Many who could not attend, from all over the world, shared their memories on the web at Kaye Bock Memorial Online.  If you want an example of the impact that one exceptional person in the right job can have, take a few moments to read some of more than 100 posts.

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