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Meet Alison: Alison began working for Oxford about a year ago, when she was introduced to her Oxford recruiter Josh by a former colleague. She was originally working with another consulting firm, but once her placement ended, that firm would not actively look for future assignments on her behalf. Therefore, she decided to move on to a new opportunity with a new staffing company. When Josh reached out to Alison, she said he really set her at ease. “It was his assurances that they would help me with getting further education, which I knew I was going to need [that really cemented my choice to work with Oxford],” she said. Previous consulting firms had promised further education and didn’t deliver. Alison wasn’t ready to retire, and she knows that keeping herself on the cutting edge of technology is crucial. Josh jumped right in on the certification process for EpicTM — and now Alison knows she can go to him for whatever she may need in the future.
Alison originally worked as a medical technologist for nine years, and then moved into a lab manager role. She was interested in transitioning into IT, as she loved the idea of installing and supporting products, but found the field difficult to break into. After several years as a lab manager, a prior colleague was able to make the connection for Alison to break into IT — her ideal role. Alison shared that “It all worked out in the end, I love my career. It keeps me moving and interested over the years.”
When asked about a professional achievement she was most proud of, Alison highlighted that it was having excellent working relationships with her clients. “I love when my customers appreciate what I do. When I left [my previous placement], two of my customers immediately wanted me to work for them, and that says a lot about what I’ve done in my career.”
About her most recent project: Alison’s current placement is at a health system installing Epic software. For the five months prior to her joining this project, the client didn’t have anyone to support their existing Laboratory Information System. While the implementation is taking place, Alison is working on solving problems within the reference lab interfaces in order to ensure issues don’t carry over to the new system.
When Alison began the project, the client was overwhelmed, but happy she was coming on board. “There was always something going on, and they hadn’t had that person to fill that gap and do that for them for several months since a lot of their staff moved over to help with the Epic build.” Alison has a great relationship with the client, as she brings knowledge of four different systems to the table. The client is very appreciative of that breadth of knowledge. There were several issues within the systems that, due to a high turnover rate and lack of in-depth knowledge of the systems, the client thought they would just have to live with. Alison was able to come in and clear up those issues, speed up the system from a processes perspective, and get the “dead weight” off the server.
When asked what advice she would give to consultants in her field, Alison says “Do quality work. Never stop wanting to learn. You’ve got to keep yourself current in order to keep yourself working. If you always set out wanting to do good work, the word of mouth will also keep you going.”
As a cutting-edge consultant with an emphasis on education, Alison focuses on building great relationships with her clients, colleagues, and recruiters, making her an embodiment of the Oxford values. We look forward to seeing the kind of achievements she brings to her future placements at Oxford.