TIFFANY EVANSQ: What is your favorite lunch routine?
A: I don’t really have a lunch routine. However, at some point in the day, I’ll run out, grab something and eat at my desk.
Q: What projects were particularly interesting, exciting, or challenging that you would like to reflect on?
A: The most interesting and challenging project would be BHP-Closed Copper Mines. This project requires a lot of support and provides daily challenges.
Q: Who has been your favorite customer (company / individual) and why?
A: All of our customers are unique in some way and provide many challenges for Champion so I can’t say I have a favorite.
Q: What company / office sponsored event did you enjoy most and why?
A: Our office has several small functions throughout the year so it’s nice to have our employees and their extended families spend time together. As far as a company event, it would definitely be the annual Christmas party. It’s exciting to see our offices come together at this one event which gives the perfect opportunity to mingle and let loose.
Q: What would you like to be working on here at Champion in the future?
A: I’m passionate about assisting others, but for me, it would be to become engaged with the technical piece of Champion.
Q: When were you proudest to be a part of the Champion team?
A: I stay proud to be a part of the Champion family. Since the day I started, God knew this was the place for me.
Q: What is something that you’d like to see Champion do in the next 15 years?
A: As we grow, I would like to see Champion develop departments (e.g., accounting, safety, human resources, etc.).
Q: Describe a memory from your first years at Champion.
A: As I look back, I remember wondering how everyone functioned without an OA, lol. Now, as we rapidly grow, I realize a “support team” is much needed and appreciated in a work place.
Q: In your opinion, what is the #1 improvement you’ve seen take place since you’ve started?
A: There are so many improvements, but the #1 improvement to me is streamlining all offices to operate the same. This doesn’t mean to change the office cultures, but to have one system, one team, one procedure with many offices.
Q: How are the dynamics at Champion different than when you first started? How are they the same?
A: When I started, processes and methodologies weren’t implemented like they are today. I believe this has helped tremendously with executing projects. As far as being the same since I started, our Champion team never loses focus of satisfying our customers.
ALANA SKIPSKIQ: What is your favorite lunch routine?
A: Going to Swanny’s with my co-workers.
Q: What projects were particularly interesting, exciting, or challenging that you would like to reflect on?
A: The Olam Sterilizer Automation Assessment Project was really the first project that I felt that I understood the entire process of creating the client, then the project, ordering all the parts, making sure that everything was here, sending it to Lake Charles for the panel build, then making sure that it was delivered to Olam for the FAT. It’s almost complete now, and I really feel that I contributed to it being a successful project.
Q: Who has been your favorite customer (company / individual) and why?
A: So far I’ve been impressed with both Bryan Maclin from KMCO and Lorne Hughes from CNP. They both really try and make sure they have a presence here and they are both very personable.
Q: What company / office sponsored event did you enjoy most and why?
A: The Christmas party was a blast! I really enjoyed meeting everybody from the other locations. I’m looking forward to going to the Automation Summer Trip in Port A as well.
Q: What would you like to be working on here at Champion in the future?
A: I love my position as the Office Assistant for the Houston office and look forward to continuing this role and gaining as much knowledge to support Champion’s future along with my own.
Q: When were you proudest to be a part of the Champion team?
A: Surviving the twelve weeks I worked at “being Shawna” while she was on maternity leave. Everybody from all the different offices were so helpful during this time. I couldn’t have made it thorough without all the support and guidance I received while she was gone.
Q: What is something that you’d like to see Champion do in the next 15 years?
A: I know that Gary has a vision of growing this company into a 100 plus million dollar company. I want his vision to see fruition and to be a part of the teams that will make it happen.
Q: Describe a memory from your first years at Champion.
A: Planning both Subhash and Doug’s going away parties. I was struck by how generous Rama, Les and Champion as a whole, were towards them even though they were each leaving to go to another company. Companies claim all the time to be employee oriented; however Champion truly is. You can see it in their actions that they do have the employee’s best interests at heart when they encourage them to pursue a career with another company whether it’s for a better career opportunity or just so that person can be closer to home to spend more time with their family. It is so refreshing to be a part of a company that practices what they preach.
Q: What is your favorite Champion work-related memory?
A: On my first day, I was handed keys to the office, the alarm code and was told that I would be receiving a company credit card, business cards and could get three Champion shirts of my choice. I was pleasantly surprised that I was given all of this, even though I was a part-time employee.
Q: Why did you decide to join Champion?
A: Originally, when I saw the job listed on Indeed.com, I liked that it was a great location and it was part-time. When I had my first phone interview with Laurie Firmin, I knew I wanted to work for this company. She has so much energy and you can truly feel her enthusiasm towards Champion as you are talking to her on the phone. I remember as we were wrapping up the phone interview, I told her that this job was perfect for me and she should just consider it mine. Thankfully she didn’t hold my boldness against me. After I met with Rama Sinha, Les Coker and Shawna Grieve for my in person interview, it sealed the deal for me and I knew, not only was this the job I wanted, these were people I wanted to work with and Champion was the company I wanted to work for. Happily it all worked out, and I’m here.
Q: Who’s been most influential on your role (mentor), and how / why?
A: Shawna Grieve; I’ve had many different careers in my life, I’ve trained people and I’ve been trained by people. Shawna is by far the kindest, most patient and thorough trainer I have ever had the pleasure of working with.
TYLER DAIGREPONTQ: What is your favorite lunch routine?
A: I like going to the new Rouse’s Market by our office. They have really good hot plate options along with sushi, sandwiches, a salad bar, and more.
Q: What company / office sponsored event did you enjoy most and why?
A: I really enjoyed the Baton Rouge office’s summer trip for 2016. I had just started, so it gave me the opportunity to get to know more of the team in a laid back setting.
Q: When were you proudest to be a part of the Champion team?
A: I was proudest after successfully completing Kinder Morgan GLT’s migration to Wonderware 2014. When I was first introduced to the project, GLT’s whole system was running on one standalone workstation because their other three workstations had crashed along with their server and backup server. On top of that, their historian had completely stopped recording data. I was given the project to do primarily by myself, and when I finished they had all new hardware and software running their system in a more reliable configuration than before. I felt like I raised that system from the dead.
Q: Why did you decide to join Champion?
A: I took a PLC class at LSU my junior year and from then on I couldn’t imagine going back to the power side of the Electrical Engineering curriculum (which I had been focusing on before). I started looking for companies that dealt with that type of work, and when Champion showed up at the LSU career fair I was sold.
SAM FARRQ: Who has been your favorite customer (company / individual) and why?
A: As part of the ASSIST team, the primary customer I’m serving is the Champion team. They are a great group to support, and everyone clearly makes an effort to collaborate and help each other succeed. You don’t ever have to look very hard to find someone willing to help get information or solve a problem.
Q: What company / office sponsored event did you enjoy most and why?
A: I really enjoyed going on the Baton Rouge office beach trip last year. It was very shortly after I had started, so it was a great opportunity to get to know more of the people here and their families. It’s always good team building to spend time with your co-workers out of the office setting you’re used to.
Q: Why did you decide to join Champion?
A: I decided to join Champion because I could instantly tell that the company is built up of a strong, passionate group of people that care about what they do and how they do it. Now that I’ve been here a while, that fact is very clear and it’s a joy to be a part of.
AUGUST IS NATIONAL FAMILY FUN MONTH
