NORWEST’S FEATURED EMPLOYEE: TINA SALATTO
“Anytime I see color, like the spectrum of colors in a garden full of flowers - beautiful, bright, happy, enthusiastic, cheerful, and varied - I think of Tina"
At Norwest, we are extremely fortunate to have an amazing team. To honor them, we have created a program to feature one member of our staff each month for our website news column. This month’s Featured Employee is Tina Salatto.
Tina is a very talented member of our business administrative team who in her tenure with Norwest has earned the title of "Director of Fun". In speaking with her manager Marcy, she stated that she is WOWED by the level of creativity and effort Tina puts into every effort for her Norwest team. “Tina embodies all 10 of Norwest's values fully, but I would highlight CREATIVITY.” Marcy went on to describe Tina as a beautiful bundle of color that brightens every project that she is involved in. “Anytime I see color, like the spectrum of colors in a garden full of flowers - beautiful, bright, happy, enthusiastic, cheerful, and varied - I think of Tina. She incorporates the color of who she is in every task she does whether it's picking the different flavors of chocolate for the new hire gifts, planning a team party, or putting together an announcement for a charitable event.”
Having had the honor of teaming with Tina on several occasions, I could not agree more.
Chelsea (C): "Tina, thank you so much for taking the time to sit down with me today and chat. I typically like to start these pieces off with some background information about the featured employee. All of us at Norwest know that you have been given the title of “Director of Fun”, I’m curious to know what brought you to Norwest and how you developed into that role."
Tina (T): "Well I used to work in title and escrow, but after a housing crisis and the back and forth in that market, I decided I was done with real estate. It was really important to me that I be close to home, because I had a young child at the time and my folks are in my same neighborhood and needed some extra help. I was taking a check to the bank that shares the Norwest parking lot and I looked over and noticed the office building for the first time. I decided to just walk in and see if they had any openings."
C: "Really? What drew you to the office?"
T: "I don’t really know. And I wasn’t dressed for it at all. I was just in jeans and a t-shirt but the location really fit my needs so I figured why not. Plus, I was ready for a change. I was ready to start something new and reinvent myself."
C: "So what happened?"
T: "Well I walked in and there wasn’t anyone at the front desk and I think it was Tracy that came out and greeted me and I said to her “Looks like you need someone answering the phones.”
C: "Oh wow! Did they hire you on the spot?"
T: "Haha No. I did get them an updated resume and did an interview with Mike and Tracy. I think Mike was looking over drawings during the interview actually, which immediately made me feel at ease. It was just such a more casual atmosphere. I believe all things happen for a reason and about a month later when I was about to start back at my old company down in Lake Oswego, Norwest gave me a call and asked me to start as a receptionist. I immediately said yes and called the other folks to let them know I wouldn’t be back."
C: "Coming from a different industry, did you notice any cultural differences right off the bat?"
T: "I had come from an office and industry that was mostly all women, so I would say working in an office that was almost entirely men was different. Everyone at Norwest was really nice and the flexibility of the office was amazing. I was able to help with school functions for my daughter and assist my mom with my dad who was in the beginning stages of Dementia, which was really important to me."
C: "So how did you become the Director of Fun?"
T: "I think I was given that title by Mike or Brian at our boat party last summer. But I’ve grown in my role over the years. Tracy moved on and I was trained to take over some of her role with expenses and accounts payable, but I kept being involved in the event planning, scheduling luncheons, company events, and community charity events. I think the title Director of Fun really evolved from a comment from Brian that I was in charge of “forced fun”."
C: "What is “forced fun”?"
T: "Yeah it's fun, but with a little push. These guys are so intelligent and so dialed in when it comes to providing engineering services that I wanted to get them to step outside of the box and have some fun. That’s really how “Break Time Fun” was created.* It’s about providing a space and encouraging folks to have a little break. It reminds them to not be so serious."
* Break Time Fun is an email campaign that Tina created and has maintained over the last two years. Every Friday Tina sends out riddles, a game, a puzzle, or get-to-know-you questions to the Norwest team. While Tina started this activity long before we were all working from home, it has become more important than ever to help us all stay connected outside of project-related work.
“One of my favorite things about coming to work every day are the people here."
C: "Now Tina, you joined the team in 2014. What are some of the biggest changes you have seen in the team?"
T: "We are much more electronic than we used to be. Almost everything can be done remotely at this point. I would also say that I see a lot more teamwork between the departments. Norwest has always been family-oriented and had a family culture, but I think that has continued to grow as well. One of my favorite things about coming to work every day are the people here."
C: "Most people probably don’t know this, but you are actually the one that coined our #itsourpeople hashtag for our social media campaigns."
T: "Well I can’t take all the credit for that. That’s actually a shorter version of Mike Hagan’s saying, “It’s our people that make us the best”. He used to put it on all the proposals and was included in his signature block and on our business cards and in his opinion, it was really the biggest value that Norwest had."
C: "I had no idea. That’s amazing!
Now you mentioned that the people are your favorite part of your day."
T: "Yeah. I love the people here. I lost my Dad just about two years ago and I was just so amazed when I was at the service, and in walks Mike, Randy & Needra, Danielle, Marcy, and Adrian. I just couldn’t believe it. You spend so much time with the people you work with but I never expected that. For them to genuinely care and show up like that."
C: "I’m so sorry for your loss, but the fact that some Norwest folks came to support is wonderful to hear. Outside of the wonderful people at Norwest, what is something you enjoy about being the Director of Fun?"
T: "I really enjoy being creative, like for our “Break Time Fun” Friday emails. Part of the fun is coming up with the questions, but the other part is seeing everyone’s responses. I’m always a little nervous before I send them out but it’s always so great to see everyone responding and having some “forced fun”. I also really like learning new things and have enjoyed helping Marcy with benefits and seeing the whole bigger picture."
C: "Speaking of the bigger picture, which Norwest Value do you feel you embody and why?"
T: "I would say Teamwork. 99% of the time I am willing and able to help where needed. I do have a problem saying no. But I enjoy learning new things and getting to work with everyone. Even with the event planning it really is a team effort. Danielle helps with all of it."
C: "Tina, what would you say is something most folks in the office don’t know about you?"
T: "Probably that my picture is on the wall at Salvador Mollys for finishing the habanero cheese ball challenge. I love spicy food and you had to eat 5 of them or something to get your picture taken. I had been out with some friends and had some margaritas and then decided why not?
People probably also don’t know that I walked the Portland Marathon with my Dad. Or that I did the last six miles barefoot. Oh, or that I did a mud run."
C: "Wait! Barefoot? Why? Six miles is a long way to walk barefoot."
T: "I actually prefer to be barefoot. I don’t like the confining feeling of shoes. But in that instant, I had so many terrible blisters that I just couldn’t keep the shoes on any longer."
C: "Is there anything else you enjoy outside of the office besides running with or without shoes?"
T: "Well Michael and Lucille (Tina’s husband and daughter) are adrenaline junkies so I’ve had a few adventures with them like white water rafting and helicopter rides. And I really enjoy having family time, and spending time with my mom. We both really like to gamble and I take her to the casino often. I grew up going to the dog & horse races with my parents. But, once I won on roulette straight up #17, roulette was my game of choice."
C: "Have you been to the casino since they reopened?"
T: "Oh yes! And it's very different. They are all set up for social distancing and doing temperature checks, but I’m looking forward to when it can get closer to normal."
C: "I think we are all done. Is there anything you would like to leave us with?"
T: "Just that I am really looking forward to when we can all get together again."
Interview by
Chelsea Bracken
Business Development - Southwest
For work inquiries:
Norwest Engineering, Inc.
P: 909.702.0976
E: cbracken@norwestengineering.com
Previous Post
Next Post
