ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONALS’ DAY 2021
Today Baseline celebrates National Administrative Professionals Day (April 21st, 2021), to recognize the accomplished individuals on our corporate team. This group encompasses a wide variety of talents: from office managers, to human resources, marketing, business development, accounting, leadership, and everything in between.

SURVEY THE ADMIN TEAM
This event is celebrated annually, during the last week of April, to acknowledge those that are often times doing the behind-the-scenes work in order to ensure that the company operates smoothly. In honor of National Administrative Professionals Day, and the important role our team members have played in our firm’s success, we recently sat down with these individuals to learn more about their overall career and current role.

Baseline’s corporate team was asked to reflect upon their professional experiences, and answer questions in our “Survey the Admins.” See what they had to say below.

Q1: WHAT’S THE BEST PART ABOUT YOUR JOB?  

“Helping to grow the company and that every day is different. There are new projects to pursue, new PIM bids to price, and new ways to engage employees and our communities with our services and projects. I love that there are always new ideas to explore, technologies to review, and people to collaborate with.” —Misti Hopson, CF.APMP, Marketing Manager

“The greatest satisfaction I get as a leader is watching someone grow and develop in their job.” —Rhonda Madsen, Human Resource Manager

“Interaction with the clients. It’s nice if you can make them laugh when they are having a bad day or the other way around.” —Mary Lovett, Office Manager

“The best part of my job is meeting new people and building new relationships.” —Deanne Frederickson, PLA, Business Development Manager

“Being able to build strong relationships with co-workers throughout Baseline. As part of the marketing team, I have the opportunity to work closely with all divisions of the company in effort to market all of the services we provide, as well as the people that continually move Baseline towards success. I get to engage with different people each week and enjoy learning from (and about) others.” —Alexis Healey, Marketing Coordinator

Q2: WHAT SKILLS HAVE YOU FOUND TO BE MOST VALUABLE IN YOUR POSITION?  

“This may sound corny; however, looking back, my most valuable skill is the ability to type. I took typing while in junior high as an elective and we had a very strict teacher, who was militant in her mannerisms. However, my typing skills enabled me to earn money typing term papers and reports for students who couldn’t type in college, as well as earned me high scores in the admin pool at StorageTek (a high-tech company of 10,000 employees worldwide) after college, where I began my writing/marketing career! My other most valuable skill is the ability to interview/talk to people through my journalism skills and former role as a staff reporter, as I’m actually more introverted than people realize.” —Misti Hopson, CF.APMP, Marketing Manager

“Active listening and strong communication skills.” —Rhonda Madsen, Human Resource Manager

“Communications, organization, and thinking outside the box.” —Mary Lovett, Office Manager

“Being a generalist in all aspects of land development, including soils science, survey, storm water management, land planning and landscape design.” —Deanne Frederickson, PLA, Business Development Manager

“Prioritizing organization and communicating clearly. Lists, notes, and reminders are a crucial part of my every day schedule and have contributed significantly to my success. Further, being thorough and thoughtful in your communication with others can go a long way.” —Alexis Healey, Marketing Coordinator

Q3: WHAT’S SOMETHING THAT YOU’VE LEARNED DURING YOUR CAREER THAT YOU WISH YOU KNEW OR ADOPTED EARLIER ON?

“I wish I had explored proposal writing earlier in my career. While traveling back from Switzerland, where I was working as a technical writer and presenter, I struck up a conversation with a woman who said she was also a writer. She was a proposal writer. At the time, I told her that sounded like a miserable job. Boy, was I wrong! Little did I realize that soon, it would be my career calling, as I fell into proposal writing while working at a consulting firm. Ultimately, proposal writing has been so rewarding and challenging for me and has taken me around the world (literally), I wish I had made the transition sooner!” —Misti Hopson, CF.APMP, Marketing Manager

“Every decision or choice we make is based on two things: love and fear. I try to never make rash decisions, by giving myself time to think about whether my response is coming from love or fear. Next, I sleep on it for a day or two, and then make the decision.” —Rhonda Madsen, Human Resource Manager

“When I was high school, I worked for a newspaper in the circulation department. I learned very quickly that if someone called and was very angry, the nicer you were, the more it made that person calm down.” —Mary Lovett, Office Manager

“The most valuable advice that I have gotten in my career is to stay open to suggestions. This leads to continued growth and understanding. At the risk of getting too ‘cosmic,’ I strive to try to turn ‘blame’ into ‘wonder.’ Rather than blaming myself or others for difficult situations, I try to WONDER what is really going on. This attitude can lead to giving others the benefit of the doubt.” —Deanne Frederickson, PLA, Business Development Manager

“Something I’ve always known was valuable as a creative, but is much easier said than done, is not taking criticism personally. Graphic design, and any other related art-form, is always going to be subject to vastly differing opinions; it is inevitable. After all, there is technically no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ in such a subjective field. Some people are going to agree with you, and others will never uncover the same vision— that’s simply human nature. I think the sooner that this can be realized and accepted, the better.” —Alexis Healey, Marketing Coordinator