At Ambit, we recognize that team members are a company’s greatest asset. We create and support a culture that cultivates lifelong learning, teamwork, and leadership development. Every member of our team offers a unique and valuable perspective and set of skills.
This month we wanted to spotlight Claudia Klaus, Ambit’s Senior CAD Tech. Claudia is celebrating seven years with Ambit this year and has been an integral part of Ambit’s growth and success. Matt Ford, Ambit President, shared:
“One of Claudia’s many talents, that I believe is relatively unknown, is that she’s an amazing writer. She’s even had a book called “The Darkness” published which you can buy on Amazon. It will blow your mind! That kind of creativity combined with vast technical knowledge results in one of the best survey technicians in the business.
Although feared almost as much as she is loved by our team, we count our blessings every day to have had Claudia (AKA The Spider Monkey) as a part of the Ambit Family for the past 7 years. When she retires in 2041, she will truly be missed!”
We asked Claudia to give us more insight into her professional and personal life, and here is a look at our conversation.
Claudia Klaus Team Spotlight
Q: When you were young, what did you imagine doing when you grew up?
I imagined being supreme overlord of the world – I had aspirations.
Q: Why did you decide to join the Ambit team?
I saw a Craigslist ad for drafters and when I saw the description of it, I was like “that’s me! That’s perfect. I am the perfect person for this job”. So, I sent my resume in and I didn’t hear anything for like four weeks. I assumed they didn’t love me…but I sent my resume again anyways (which is supposedly a cardinal sin in job hunts – but I didn’t care). I was perfect for the job and they needed me, damnit! And then Matt finally called, and the rest is history.
Q: What do you enjoy most about being a part of the Ambit team?
It’s definitely a small family feel to the company which is nice (although we bicker a bit like siblings sometimes, it’s a good place to work).
There’s a lot of communication with everybody, not just talking to certain people who don’t talk with other people in different departments…
Matt knows what he wants and wants from his team but he’s flexible. A couple years ago I was taking care of my father-in-law who was dying from cancer, and Matt never even batted an eye about me needing to take time off. You don’t get that with a lot of companies.
Q: As a predominantly male industry, what have you found to be challenging as a woman in your field of work? How have you overcome this?
I definitely feel the difference but I’m older and I’ve been in this industry longer. Women like me paved the way and whipped all these men into shape! The first boss I had when I moved to Arizona actually told me that women don’t go out into the field as surveyors, and that’s what I had been doing when I moved out here.
With my first surveyor job I worked for an ex-Marine whose motto was ‘if you want to do the job, do the job – if you can’t do the job then get the hell out of the way’ and that’s kind of the attitude I’ve had since then. I like the people around me to have the same attitude.
I enjoyed my time in the field, but in the office, there’s a kitchen and a nice clean bathroom and that really appealed to me. The older I got the less I wanted to be slugging around swamps carrying a transit.
Q: What’s your favorite way to spend your free time?
I don’t have a lot of free time, but I do fiber art and I have a spinning wheel for yarn. I’ve been doing this for the last 18 years. My husband and I have a little herd of alpacas so we do stuff with the fleece from the alpacas. Lately, we’ve been working on and designing cinches for western saddles. I can actually map a functional cinch in about an hour.
Q: What is the last show you watched on Netflix?
My husband and I are watching Shadow and Bone. It’s different, kind of like a steam-punk meets fantasy series. We like that sort of stuff so…
Q: Where is your favorite place to vacation?
Every single vacation I’ve taken has been back East to visit family in Connecticut. Still, after all my years in Arizona, there is no place on this planet more beautiful than New England in the fall.
Q: What is your drink of choice?
Coffee with half and half…I’ve become a teetotaler in my old age.
Q: What is something only those closest to you know about you?
Nothing – I’m a pretty open book! My life has thoroughly entertained me for many, many years and I just assume everyone else will be as equally entertained by it.
Q: What’s your favorite quote/book/life lesson?
Don’t sweat the small stuff – get over it!
To learn more about the Ambit team, or to apply for an open position, visit our About page here: https://ambitconsulting.us/about.