What Fatherhood Taught Me About Leadership, Hiring, and Career Growth
The moment I became a father, everything changed.
Overnight, success stopped being defined by performance metrics or quarterly goals. It became about presence, patience, and the example I set every single day. What surprised me most wasn’t just how much fatherhood changed me personally, but how deeply those lessons began showing up in my work.
Fatherhood didn’t just make me a better person; it made me a better professional.
One of the first lessons you learn as a parent is that influence isn’t about control; it’s about guidance. You can’t force growth in your child. You can only create an environment where they feel supported, challenged, and safe enough to become who they’re meant to be. That same mindset has shaped how I approach my work.
Why Leadership Starts with Supporting People
As a Team Lead in Talent Acquisition, it’s easy to focus on outcomes: filling roles, hitting timelines, checking boxes. But I’ve learned that the best results come from focusing on people first. Understanding what drives someone, where they want to go, and how you can support that journey creates far more meaningful impact than simply matching skills to a job description.
The habits I cultivate at home - patience, active listening, and empathy - have become some of the most valuable tools I carry into my work each day.
Becoming a dad has also shifted how I think about potential. When I look at my daughter, I don’t think about what she can do today; I think about who she can become. That perspective carries directly into how I approach hiring. It’s not about finding the “perfect fit” on paper, it’s about recognizing potential and investing in it.
Some of the most rewarding moments in my role are watching someone step into an opportunity and grow beyond it. That’s when the work becomes meaningful. At Hilti we use the term "Made Real”. It reflects the company’s philosophy of turning possibilities into meaningful, tangible outcomes - where ideas, potential, and ambition are brought to life in ways that truly make a difference. It’s also when the idea of “Made Real” truly comes to life for me - not as a slogan, but as a tangible impact on someone’s career and future.
Chase and his daughter in the snow.
Balancing Career Growth and Parenthood
Of course, being a working parent brings its own challenges. That understanding of balance isn’t just something I’ve reflected on, it’s something I’ve experienced firsthand at Hilti. Shortly after I returned to work from my parental leave, I was presented with a great opportunity to participate in a Talent Exposure Day - an internal initiative designed to support talent development by inviting team members to present on their career path and discuss perspectives on corporate strategy with senior leadership.
While preparing for this day, I was navigating both professional expectations and responsibilities at home. It was an important opportunity, one that required focus, preparation, and presence. At the same time, I needed to be there for my child during a time of adjustments, new routines, and simply put, a lot of change. What stood out wasn’t the challenge itself, but the support around me. There was trust and flexibility to manage both without compromise, reinforcing that success here isn’t defined by choosing one over the other, but by being supported in both.
How Hilti Supports Working Parents
At Hilti, I’ve been fortunate to be part of a culture that understands the reality of balancing work and your personal life. It’s a place where performance matters, but people matter just as much. That balance isn’t just good for productivity; it’s essential for long-term fulfillment and growth.
That’s also what makes me proud to represent Hilti. The company genuinely invests in people through development, opportunity, and a focus on who you could become, not just what you do. From a talent acquisition perspective, that’s exactly what I look for in candidates: intention, drive, and a willingness to grow.
Because just like parenting, building a career isn’t about having all the answers from day one. It’s about having the right mindset and the right support system.
At the end of the day, whether I’m at home with my daughter or at work helping someone take the next step in their career, the goal is the same: to help people grow into their full potential.
Fatherhood has taught me that the greatest impact we have isn’t in what we accomplish ourselves but in how we influence and support others along the way. That’s the legacy I’m working on building - both at home and at Hilti.
Chase, his wife, and his daughter at a park.
Explore Opportunities at Hilti
At Hilti, we are committed to creating opportunities for our team members to connect to one another and develop meaningful and long-lasting careers with impact. Learn more and explore our opportunities in North America and worldwide here: Jobs | Hilti Careers
