Summary: I sat down with Ally Gonthier the first time I visited Acquia's then-new downtown Boston headquarters in mid-2015. At the time, she was preparing to leave her job as Support Coordinator at Acquia to enter Acquia's Drupal/tech bootcamp, known as Acquia U. When I returned to Boston in the spring of 2016, I took the chance to talk with her again about her experiences at Acquia U and what had become of her in the meantime. Below is a transcript of our before and after conversations. Before and after on video More with Ally For a nice introduction to one of my happiest colleagues in her own words, read Ally's Acquia U profile, "Always Smiling." Check out Ally's alter-ego as Acquia "Support Goddess" with Lanette Miller Blog:"Who Ya Gonna Call? Tips and Tricks for Troubleshooting Drupal Websites." Presentation: Drupal 101: Tips and Tricks for Troubleshooting Drupal Before Acquia U: Mid 2015 jam: Hey. We are at Acquia’s brand-spanking-new headquarters. It’s been barely any time. This is only my third day here ever and we’re in downtown Boston, and it’s kind of exciting. I am with a current and future colleague, right? Why don’t you introduce yourself and tell us something about you. Ally Gonthier: Something? jam: Yes, whatever you like. Maybe something non-Drupaly. Ally Gonthier: Okay. My name is Ally. My last name is pronounced differently depending on where you are in the world. In America, it’s Gonthier [read in American accent]. In France, it’s Gonthier [read in beautiful French accent], which is way better. jam: Way better, okay. So I’m with Ally Gonthier. What’s your job at Acquia right now? Ally Gonthier: I am a senior customer support coordinator, which is sort of a complicated-ish but not really. jam: Interestingly, you’re about to be a "Ubie". So you’re changing from this job and going into Acquia’s Drupal training program. Ally Gonthier: Yes. jam: Why are you doing that? Ally Gonthier: So I’m in support right now and it’s a very entry level position. There’s a lot to do, a lot of tasks to be done. To get me to the next level, I need to learn a lot more about Drupal and as intensely as I can, so ... jam: And you’re excited about Drupal and you want ... ? Ally Gonthier: Yes. jam: You’re all about the Drupal now? Ally Gonthier: That’s why I’m here. jam: Okay. So this sounds kind of silly in context, but how did you hear about the Acquia U program? Ally Gonthier: I literally met Amy who’s running the program at a Drupal camp last September and I bumped into her. We worked together but I didn’t even know who she was and we – she introduced herself to me and I was like fly paper. I didn’t leave her alone. jam: Wow! Okay, okay. And had you heard of Drupal before you came to Acquia? Ally Gonthier: Yes, yes. So I have been ... a “Supportian” for a while now. I had other jobs in life but when I went into sort of a technical land I found support really fit my personality well because not only do I enjoy learning and doing technical things, but I’m also really empathetic for customers. I really want to help people, and help them understand and ... I’m not necessarily a people person but I care if that makes sense, you know? jam: No, it does. I think support, it’s actually such a great fit for people steeped in the open source mentality because you really do help people succeed and it’s all about transparency and sharing, right? And then I’ve also been told by other people from Acquia support that the difference between working in a support role and working in some company building website ... Ally Gonthier: Like a help desk, right? jam: Right. Well, you get to look at a different code base every day. Ally Gonthier: Yes, absolutely. jam: You’re not just working on the one thing for...
