How Maja Chauncey is creating an environment for opticians to grow at Specsavers Sherwood Park
With over 15 years of experience as an optician, Maja Chauncey has gained the knowledge and skills to allow her to excel in her field. As someone who received valuable support early in her career, she believes that sharing her experience with others is an important way to give back to the industry and ensure the continued growth and success of the profession. Today, Maja shares her fulfillment in hosting student opticians at her Specsavers store in Sherwood Park, Alberta.
Q – Tell us about yourself and your journey in the optical industry.
What inspired me to become an optician was the purpose of the profession. We’re able to support optometrists by filling prescriptions and serve our patients by offering a continuum of care that can help improve their quality of life.
My mentor, Carrie Matthews, has undoubtedly been the main reason behind where I am today in my career. The support and development I received under her opticianry expertise, inspired me to pass on my experience to other dispensers in the industry. Currently, we are hosting a student optician at my store and hope to bring more students onto our team in the future. Our industry’s future is dependent on having the support of licensed opticians leading the students.
Q – What drew you to business ownership with Specsavers?
What drew me to ownership was the belief system of the company. Since they launched Specsavers in the 80s, Mary and Doug Perkins’ goal has always been to make eyecare accessible and eyewear affordable to all. Each of the locations around the world are locally owned and gives each partner the opportunity to make an impact in their local communities first-hand.
I liked that the Specsavers business model offered a partnership between opticians and optometrists, which builds a strong foundation to service patients with quality eyecare and eyewear.
Q – What has been a surprise about Specsavers you didn’t expect?
The biggest positive surprise about Specsavers is the amount of support the partners receive. Hence the name ‘support office’ instead of head office. The growth mindset of the company is exciting because everyone is always innovating together to build a healthy culture that best serves our patients’ vision and eyecare needs.
Specsavers is excellent at finding amazing people to be part of the support office and team members in each location. The community built within Specsavers offers a healthy environment to grow in and has exceptional resources that any team member can access, whether it’s continuing education or great employee benefits.
Q- Do you have any special shout outs to people who have supported you throughout this partnership journey?
From the very beginning, Nick Kammermayer has been a pillar in setting the vision for how our futures will be with Specsavers. With his professionalism and passion, Nick has made the journey exciting to be a part of. There are many amazing support office team members, but I will give a big shout out to the retail support team including Martin McNamara and Patricia Bassendowske. Their support is ongoing and the wisdom they bring from years of experience is invaluable. Also, our local team wouldn’t be where we are without trainers Richard Fielding and Hayley Ellis. We enjoy everyone’s visits and appreciate all their knowledge.
Q – What inspires your leadership style as a business owner building your own team?
Leading with kindness and compassion towards patients and other team members is the core value of our location. The support that we give each other creates a growth mindset environment for professional development, allowing team members to thrive no matter their level of education and background. We also dedicate time for team building and training. We enjoy celebrating each other’s life milestones and each other as individuals.
If you’re passionate about changing lives through better sight, let’s get in touch. Learn more by reaching out to our recruitment team at enquiries.ca@specsavers.com.
Explore your opticianry career with Specsavers here.