Her Story
About Toshana
Toshana Arcila serves as a Senior Customer Service Representative for Meritain Health, one of the CVS Aetna companies. She brings more than 10 years of experience in the customer service industry, having previously worked as an office assistant at a clinic, a bank teller, at a construction company, as a universal banker, and as a senior technical support advisor at Apple. Arcila excels in bilingual customer support and prides herself on taking ownership of issues to ensure full resolution. She has no formal degrees or certifications, relying instead on her hands-on experience to advance her career. Outside of work, Arcila is a mother who prioritizes work-life balance and volunteers at a local shelter while supporting women's causes and community initiatives for families. She attributes her professional success to her faith in God guiding her path and draws inspiration from career advice received from a former manager at Apple emphasizing the value of giving one's best effort without overextending.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Toshana
01What do you attribute your success to?
My success is largely because I believe that God has helped me every step of the way. There are times where there have been jobs where I really wanted them, but I didn't get them, and even though I didn't get them, later on I come to the realization, no, I'm exactly where I think I should be. I'm very intentional with that.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I received was from my former manager at Apple. I was struggling with my metrics and he sat me down and said you're giving me your all right now, aren't you? I said I am, and it's not enough, and he told me no, yes, your all is all I'm asking. Now, if it will get better, you will build up what you need to build up to get the scores that you need. But as long as you're guaranteeing me that this is the best you can give me, I will gladly take it. Don't overdo yourself. Don't think that you have to be perfect from the get-go.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Do not settle for just staying there for years, unless that's really what you want to do. I learn things very fast so once I get the hang of it, I look for opportunities. I say can I shadow or can I help with this. Don't let anything stop you. Constructive criticism and feedback is very important in the workforce. Never take it the wrong way. Instead, learn from it, because it will take you way further.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenges right now is there are bad apples, rude individuals, and the companies still have the customer is always right policy in place. That's a big barrier because 9 times out of 10 they're not. The opportunities are there is a lot of room for growth. You can start as a simple call center agent and end up moving up to HR. The sky's the limit. You can get cross-trained on many things. Put the effort in, it does not go unnoticed, and you will move up, but you have to let it be known.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The biggest one is the work-life balance, because I am a mother, so that is really important to me. I need to be able to make sure that our schedules are aligned. I appreciate when we have a supportive work environment. My biggest thing is if I'm supported by my higher-ups, and I'm able to manage home life, and keep the two separate, then I got it.
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