Sometimes, the best career moves are the ones you never planned for. Triyoko Boatwright wasn’t looking for a new role. After 16 years in healthcare, she enjoyed what she was doing. But at an event, a Textron Specialized Vehicles employee spoke to Triyoko. Textron Specialized Vehicles had just created a brand-new position within HR and thought Triyoko would be the perfect fit for this new role.

“I wasn’t even looking,” Triyoko admits. As she read the job description, she thought, “I think this is for me.”

She embraced her role at TSV and immersed herself in all aspects of talent management—performance, learning, leadership development—with employees at every level.

“I worked with everyone—business partners, senior leaders, frontline employees,” she says. “Being out there on the shop floor, letting employees know we were there to help them develop or enhance what they already knew, was an amazing experience.”

She loved the work, the people, and the impact she was making. Three years later, another conversation set her on a new path.

While attending a leadership training course at TSV, Triyoko connected with HR leaders from around Textron. When a Textron Systems leader mentioned they had an open position, she casually responded, “You know I’m mobile, right?”

The truth was, even Triyoko herself had only just realized she wanted to be mobile. Ironically, Triyoko came to this realization just a few months earlier while facilitating a leadership training session at Textron Systems. She thought to herself: I think being mobile will be good for me.

Soon after, two business units reached out with opportunities. She said her leader, Stacy McDaniel, the vice president of HR for TSV, encouraged her to explore them.

Even her Textron mentor told her, “Just look. If you don’t want to go, you don’t have to. But at least take a look.”

That “look” turned into something permanent. In 2024, Triyoko became the senior manager of Talent Development at Textron Systems, leading a team of three.

“At TSV, I was a team of one—me, myself, and I,” she jokes. “Now, I can be more strategic instead of constantly being in execution mode. Before, I was always doing, doing, doing. Now, I have the space to research, strategize, and think about how to elevate what’s already in place.”

She’s also adjusting to a new industry, moving from commercial to government operations. The pace is different, and access to information isn’t the same. “I just want to be a sponge,” she says. “I don’t claim to know everything, but I have a great team and leaders to learn from.”

Looking back, the biggest influences in her career have been the people around her.

“Complete your Career File. Have a development plan. Even if your leader isn’t bringing up performance conversations, start them yourself,” Triyoko says. “And most importantly, get a mentor. We all have blind spots. You need people who will tell you the things you don’t see, who will push you to grow.”