Our Getac Profile series celebrating female leaders at Getac during Women’s History Month wraps up with Getac quality assurance and vendor manager, Shannon Baronowski. We caught up with Shannon to learn how her role has evolved over the years and how she supports the Getac Professional Services team. Shannon spends her spare time mountain biking, hiking, and playing tennis. She and her family enjoy cooking together and traveling.
How has your role changed since you started at Getac?
I started out being responsible for one repair center and within my first year that expanded to an additional US center and a Canadian center. The business we are in is fast moving and we are always on the cutting edge to stay ahead of our competitors and provide stellar service for our customers, so our roles are always evolving.
What is a typical day-in-the-life like?
Every day is different. What keeps it consistent is the focus on problem-solving. That’s one of the things I like most about my job. There is always a new challenge or opportunity.
What do you enjoy most about your role?
How highly we regard our customers. It is sincere when we speak of the value and importance of our customers. Every person at Getac goes above and beyond daily for our customers regardless of if that customer has a 1 device account or a 10,000-device account. I’ve been in this business longer than I’d like to say and I am very proud to be part of a company that embraces the value.
What do you think someone outside the organization would find surprising about working at Getac?
What has been great for me is how closely our mostly remote team works together. Only a relatively small number of people work in the office and some of us only see some of our co-workers at our yearly kickoff, but that distance doesn’t prevent us from working closely with each other.
Who or what inspires you professionally?
People who are excited to see their co-workers, friends and family be successful are an inspiration to me. It’s easy to focus on doing the best thing for yourself but it’s a different level of stoke when you want that for the people around you as well.
What characteristics make for a great leader?
I think being a great leader calls for honesty, transparency, and humility. Being in a leadership role doesn’t mean you have all the answers or are always right. If your team knows you are there for them and that you trust them, they will be there for you and trust you.
Do you have any advice for the next generation of female leaders?
Keep pushing. Believe in yourself. Know your value. You are not defined by other people’s perceptions.
How do you manage work/life balance?
You have to think about what’s most important to you and make your personal prioritization clear. I make it a priority and I schedule it in.
I am fortunate to work for a company that encourages balance, and even then, the tendency is to just ‘take care of this next task’. I’ve taught myself to tackle the things that can’t wait until tomorrow and let the things that can wait, wait. I think the older you get the more you realize how truly important it is to take a step back and take a breath.
What’s an interesting fact about yourself?
I got my private pilot’s license when I was 19 but I haven’t flown a plane in years.
