Get to know four new coworkers through their answers to goofy questions. And keep reading for a special “throwback” to a longtime UPMCE colleague.
Justice Conder, Scrum Master – MyUPMC and API Teams
How did you get into the industry? I was in seminary studying theology and I got really interested in formal logic and analytic philosophy. That lead me to formal languages, so I dropped out of seminary and started studying computer programming instead.
Do you have any kids? I have a son named Blaise. He’s 2. Named after Blaise Pascal.
What’s your favorite quote from a movie or TV series? In Thor Ragnarok, Thor is complaining to his father that he can’t win a conflict because he lost his hammer and Odin says: “Are you Thor, the God of Hammers? That hammer was to help you control your power, to focus it. It was never your source of strength.”
Where in the universe would you like to visit someday? I’d like to visit some of the major cities in China for the real-life Cyberpunk experience.
Judd Englert, Senior Director of Product Management – ITTC
How did you get into the industry? I never really saw myself having a career in industry and always thought I would be an academic physician-scientist with a lab. I trained as a medical oncologist and during my post-doc my project led to the discovery of a novel therapeutic and formation of a small biotech. During this process, I realized I lacked the skillset and understanding of drug development to actually bring ideas from “bench to bedside.” I spent the last 2.5 years in the early phase oncology group at Medimmune (the biologic arm of AstraZeneca) gaining expertise in drug development and look forward to utilizing my experiences to help others bring their lab discoveries to patients at UPMC Enterprises.
Are you a Pittsburgh local or did you grow up elsewhere? I grew up in Allentown, PA but lived in Pittsburgh for 6 years during my graduate and medical school training. It is where I met my wife (in the lab) and got married (at the University Club). So, while I am not technically a Pittsburgh native and certainly lack the local accent, we have strong ties to the city and are very excited to be back and raising our family here.
Do you have any kids? Any pets? I have two children, a son Brayden who is 4 and my daughter Lena is 1. My wife also has 2 cats, but I don’t like to claim any ownership of them.
What makes you a geek (if you consider yourself one)? I am an avid learner. I spend the majority of my evenings or early mornings while the kids are asleep reading scientific/medical journal articles and catching up on world news.
Free space: Share any fun fact! I am an avid college basketball fan and look forward to UNC winning this year’s NCAA tournament.
Scott Focer, Director, Product Management
How did you get into the industry? A prior employer was approached to start a new business in telemedicine, and he recommended me instead for the position. I spent eight years in total with the startup until choosing to come to UPMC.
Do you have any kids? Any pets? One child, Justin, who is 19 and a freshman at Pitt. No pets, but I am very happily married for almost 26 years. I am also a very proud uncle to a young man who is living with Autism and for who I am active in raising funds for each year.
Do you have an unusual talent or hobby? Love to vacation in Disney. Have made over 20 trips to various resort locations.
Free space: Share any fun fact! I love spending time at sporting events with my family. Have seen several NCAA basketball tournaments, NBA games in many cities including playoff games with LeBron James, MLB games in many cities including Derek Jeter’s last game in Fenway against the Red Sox, various NFL games as well as NASCAR.
Paula Sullivan, Pharmacy Technician – Rx Express
Are you a Pittsburgh local or did you grow up elsewhere? I am a Pittsburgh local. I grew up in Baldwin Boro and currently live in Pleasant Hills.
Do you have any kids? Any pets? I have 3 children who are all “grown-up.” One is a pharmacist. One is almost a pharmacist-next year will complete rotations. One is a “Pre-med/Biology” student, and we are currently “fostering” her cat until she moves out of her dorm in May.
Do you have an unusual talent or hobby? I used to be an elementary teacher, so I’m fairly good at remembering names and faces…but you have to stay “seated” at your desk for me to be accurate!
What’s in your perfect meal? Shrimp, shrimp, and more shrimp!
A ‘Throwback’ Fun Facts
Jennifer Brown (Jen, Jenny), Operations Manager/WorkPlace Strategist
How did you get into the industry? I was hired into UPMC Presbyterian in 1991 as a part time receptionist in medical records. This was back when Presby, Montefiore, and WPIC each had their own medical records department. Presby’s was on the first floor of the hospital directly across from what is now Starbucks. Back in 1991, the best coffee you could get in Presby was from a little gift shop café that was replaced by Starbucks.
How long have you been working at UPMCE? August will be 5 years at Enterprises and 28 years at UPMC.
What’s changed the most since you started here? Growth. Extreme and constant growth. Both in terms of the direction of Enterprises and the size of our operation.
Thinking about your work, what is the funniest thing you used to use tech-wise that you don’t use anymore? Oh, gotta go with the typewriter.
As technology has evolved throughout the years, what stands out to you the most? When I was a newbie to UPMC, medical records used to have to physically deliver patient notes to the patient floors and place them into the patient chart. Imagine that…progress notes, surgical notes, labs — all of these were in paper form and were housed in huge plastic binders used by the clinical staff for duration of the patient’s treatment. Now look where we are.
What’s your favorite part about working here? It’s fresh – we work in the “happening” part of health care. It’s crazy busy. Our colleagues are super smart and that pushes me to learn more and expand my boundaries. Every day brings something new and that’s exciting to me. We have an opportunity to be creative and inject our uniqueness into our work. You don’t get that opportunity in every work atmosphere.
Do you have an unusual talent or hobby? Have a thing with remembering telephone numbers from when I was a kid. I also have a super good sense of space and what fits where, like packing up a car. Guess I might have been born for this job at Enterprises. I also like to think that I can sing pretty well. I really can’t. But I did learn the Italian version of “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran and Andrea Bocelli.
Share any fun fact. I’m super passionate about basketball. Passionate to a point of ridiculousness that I’m too embarrassed to talk about. Two of my 3 children have played or are playing, and I’ve coached them throughout the years. My daughter is a sophomore at Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School. I’ll be on the bench with her again starting next month as we begin to prepare for her Junior year of high school.
