The Mapping Specialist

Vol VIII, No. 1 - Spring/Summer 2000

Contents | In Focus | Mapmaking | Geonews | Profile | Names

PROFILE
Seniors clean up for MSL team & clients

There is an adage that "a manager is only as good as the people around them." The senior cartographers at Mapping Specialists would be the first to agree with this saying.

In the last issue of "The Mapping Specialist" PROFILE introduced you to our management staff and corporate philosophy.  In this issue we introduce you to another segment of our staff, the senior cartographers.

Senior cartographers are an integral part of the Mapping Specialist team.  In order to be named a senior cartographer, the individual must have at least three years of service with MSL and exhibit superior technical and interpersonal skills. A senior's primary duty is to assist their project manager.  This includes helping with project and map set up, project tracking, staff training, and ensuring Mapping Specialists' quality standards are met.  They are also the staff members who provide direct contact for our clients in the project manager's absence.  When filling in for their manager, they attend our morning managers' meetings, schedule daily work within their production teams, and contact our clients with any questions.  They are the staff that "keep the ball rolling" in a project manager's absence.  Many of you will recognize their names as people with whom you have had contact (see picture above).

We currently have 13 senior cartographers on our staff of 42 employees.  This equates to approximately two senior cartographers per project manager.  We feel that by having more than one senior cartographer per project manager we are better able to meet our client needs.  Many of our project managers have multiple clients with varying cartographic needs.  Having two senior cartographers permits the manager to assign each of them specific duties.  For example, we have managers that handle both street level mapping and thematic map programs.  With two senior cartographers, these managers are able to assign each to different client groups.

One of Mapping Specialists' corporate philosophies is to promote from within.  We look at the senior cartographers as the "training pool" for our next project manager.  So don't be surprised if someday in the future you are dealing with one of these people as your project manager.

- Dave Knipfer

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