AvidXchange is an industry leader in automating invoice and payment processes for mid-market companies. By now you may heard about our new 200,000 sq. ft., six-story corporate headquarters in Charlotte, but did you know we have several regional offices as well? You don’t have to live in the Queen City to take advantage of the amazing culture AvidXchange provides. We’re also located in Somerset, New Jersey, Houston, Texas, and Salt Lake City, Utah. In today’s blog, we’ll take a look at what it’s like to work for Avid West in Salt Lake City and get to know Dan Dempsey, Client Services Manager.
So, Dan, how long have you been at AvidXchange?
Dan: I started in a customer support position at Piracle, Inc. in June of 2007. In November of 2014, AvidXchange completed its acquisition of Piracle, so I’ve been here at Avid West for a little over ten years altogether.
In that time I imagine you’ve held a lot of different roles…
Dan: Yes, I have. I started out with the technical support team, taking calls and helping customers resolve issues with Create-A-Check. I had the desire to go into management, and in March of 2008, I was promoted to Support Manager. I did that for about a year and a half before transitioning into a combination role between support and quality assurance (QA). So I started doing quality assurance for our products and new releases and custom, one-off projects we did for our customers’ specific needs. When AvidXchange acquired Piracle, I took the opportunity to work as a QA Manager with Joe Caravella (Currently Sr. Director, Agile Practices at AvidXchange) who taught me a lot of valuable information about quality assurance.
Recently, in March, I moved over to a new team that combined QA and development and became Development Manager and continued in that role up until two weeks ago. We needed someone to lead the initiative for client services, so I raised my hand because I thought I could add more value in a support/client services role. Everyone seconded that motion and I moved over to Client Services Manager for Avid West.
What are your daily responsibilities now as Client Services Manager?
Dan: [laughs] Yeah, I’m still learning what my day-to-day looks like. Primarily, I’m focused on helping the client services representatives learn and excel in their current positions as well as helping them with career pathing; understanding what their end goals are, if they want to move into development and QA or implementation, etc. Working in support is a great growth position because you learn a lot about our products and services, our company culture and how we operate, and how we make money. A lot of AvidXchange team members start in support and move into other areas of expertise, so it’s my job to engage these folks and find out what their strengths are and help them come up with a plan to get to where they want to be.
What would you say you enjoy most about working at AvidXchange?
Dan: The people. The people are great and the culture is too. It’s fast-paced and fun, but there’s a casual, laid back approach too. We work hard, pitch in and help where we can, but we can also disconnect and de-stress by playing basketball or breaking up the work day. Check printing and payment processes may not sound very exciting [laughs], but the people and the atmosphere, and the opportunity for growth, are huge motivators for me. It’s a very rewarding and engaging place to work.
How long have you lived in Salt Lake City? What’s the vibe like?
Dan: I’ve been in Salt Lake City since 1999 and moved here from West Texas. It’s an awesome place to live. I think the area sometimes gets a bad wrap as this very strict, old-fashioned community, but that’s not the case at all. There’s a ton of fun stuff to do here. I lived in Utah for a few years when I was younger, my dad worked in the oil fields, and I loved being able to get out into the mountains and go hunting, fishing, hiking, mountain biking – everything you could want to do outdoors we have within 20 minutes of the office. It’s cool to be down in a valley that’s around 4,000 ft. in elevation, and within an hour’s time, be on a mountain peak at 10,000 ft., taking in the scenic view and breathing in all that fresh air.
There’s a lot of areas open for recreation: four-wheeling, dirt biking, horseback riding, etc. We have a lot of awesome winter sports too, including skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing and back country skiing, and snowmobiling. Within 30 minutes of the office there are four world-class ski resorts. There’s a lot of great concerts. I love live music – this year I’ll probably attend 15-16 concerts here in the Salt Lake area. We’ve got some cool amphitheaters and outdoor venues and, because we’re sort of in the middle of the country and a major hub, we get a lot of big name acts from every genre imaginable who come through the city.
There’s a lot of great restaurants here too. There’s the Silver Fork Lodge, which is cool for visitors because you drive up through the canyon’s windy roads – it’s really scenic and beautiful. In the middle of all this untouched wilderness there’s this little lodge that has excellent food. You can sit out on the patio and in you’re in the forest. There’s also the Porcupine Pub & Grille, which is about five minutes up the street from our office. They’ve got great food and lots of awesome local beers on tap. We have a lot of breweries and microbreweries here, contrary to popular belief. There’s just so much to do here. I can leave work this afternoon and be camping in the mountains at 10,000 ft by 6:30 p.m.
