Audio Transcription
Ben Aston:
Thank you for tuning in. I’m Ben Aston and this is the Digital Project Manager podcast from thedigitalprojectmanager.com.
Lina Calin joins me today. Today we’ll be discussing remote project management, and the challenges of building strong teams. How is it possible to build a strong, dynamic team and a team that enjoys working together, even if you are spread across the country or the globe? Surely, it’s impossible. Or maybe it’s possible. Keep listening to find out. Lina, tell us a little bit about you first. What are you doing?
Lina Calin
I’m located in Richmond, Virginia in the United States. Foster Made in Richmond is my digital project manager.
Ben Aston:
Cool. Let me know a little about Foster Made. What types of projects do your work on?
Lina Calin
We are primarily a web development company. We create complex websites. We do CMS projects, custom maps. We started in ExpressionEngine a few years ago. Since then, we have grown our team with many skillsets. We have been able build applications and other things for clients, on some very complex projects.
Ben Aston:
Cool. Do you have any exciting projects you can share with us right now? Or, tell us about the coolest project that you have worked on in the past year.
Lina Calin
Screening for Mental Health is a great job. They are a great team. They are a great client. They do amazing work. But, I appreciate the fact that our work actually makes a difference. The client is aware. They are very open-minded, friendly, and understand the value of what we do. This makes it a pleasure to work with them. It’s a great feeling to know that the work they do is making a real difference in the world.
Ben Aston:
That’s awesome. You do a lot of website building, technical stuff. ExpressionEngine is ExpressionEngine still a popular CMS. This CMS is one I don’t often hear mentioned. Is it a conscious decision to concentrate on that CMS or do you also work on other platforms?
Lina Calin
We have actually started to do a lot of Craft work. We support a lot of clients who have ExpressionEngine sites and websites built for them. We might recommend it to clients occasionally, but for the most part we have been using Craft lately for our CMS builds. It is a great platform.
Ben Aston:
Cool. Craft is not something I’ve used. I have played with Craft, but never actually completed a project. It is a great tool.
Lina Calin
It’s really cool.
Ben Aston:
That’s cool. Tell us about your story. How did you become a digital project manager.
Lina Calin
I went to school in Williamsburg (Virginia). I attended William and Mary and majored in psychology. I didn’t intend to pursue a career in psychology. I was drawn to the study of people because I love it so much that I knew it would be useful to whatever I did professionally. And, as you will soon discover, psychology is the foundation of most of my interests. I am probably like most people who are digital project managers. I was just a lucky person to get into this job.
I arrived in Richmond many years ago to take a job as a manager of a new restaurant. However, I soon realized that I wasn’t going to be in the restaurant business after college. I left the restaurant when I received a call from the marketing team and asked if I would like to work for them. I worked as his account manager for a few years, helping with operations and marketing.