“Every business says work/life balance is important. But when the owner’s kid is at the office during your interview you get to feel it.” This past February C2IT hired our Business Development Specialist Ryan Sullivan. He lives in Plainfield with his wife and girls. Last winter he was looking for his next opportunity. At the time he was finishing a statewide custom software implementation with a multinational consulting firm. He knew he wanted to continue working in technology, but being close to home was a priority now with a young family. One of Ryan’s interviews came during a time when Chet and Erin’s children were at the office for a day, and Ryan was able to see the clear flexibility and priority of family/work balance. The longevity and commitment of Joe’s partnership alongside Chet through thick and thin was also unmistakable. Those insights into what C2IT is like solidified that C2IT was the place for him.
Ryan walked into this role with plans and aspirations that would be greatly challenged by all that 2020 has become since March. A large part of Ryan’s work is sales. Coming into a new business and then being hit with quarantine and all that has happened since business and relationship building could not be done in person as was the norm. Ryan met the challenge and realized things had to be done differently. Things like digital marketing that were low on the radar for C2IT’s marketing were moved to the forefront and a new marketing plan was put into place. C2IT has been through a total shift in the business process in the past and Chet and Joe learned to pivot and regroup and grow then. Watching the leadership do that again and continue to move forward helps Ryan face the challenges. Ryan said that coming into this role during a tough year gave him a good perspective and taught him that while he has control over some things there are other things that are completely out of his control.
When asked what things he has learned over the past year with C2IT, he shared that the biggest thing he is learning is how to appropriately scope out projects and being transparent in the quote. He appreciates knowing that our business model is one of long term partnerships. We know we need to be candid upfront about what we know we can do and what will need more discovery. He’s also learned a lot from his team about the services we provide, what the capabilities are of those services, and the value of having a skilled team doing things that could be done DIY, such as websites. He has enjoyed being able to work alongside those running C2IT to learn what it is that business owners and operators are looking for in a company they are partnering with which allows him to better relate to those we serve.
Looking ahead, Ryan is eager to get back to more in-person meetings. He plans on taking the lessons he has learned in 2020 into his second year with C2IT with confidence in what he brings to C2IT, our clients, and prospective clients. He is eager to work with new clients, build relationships with current clients, and to see the marketing infrastructure that we’ve been working on during 2020 start to ramp up.
Ryan summarized working at C2IT much like walking a tightrope with a really, really, really good net. Here he can learn a lot on his own, but he also has tons of support when he needs it. He has done this so well.
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