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Today’s ACE spotlight is @Kenda! Keep reading to learn more about Kenda and what makes her a unique Alteryx super user.
Tell us a bit about your professional background
I started working part-time as an intern at MedPro Group in 2015 while attending college full-time. Once I graduated with my degree in Mathematics in 2017, I began my full-time career with the company. My current role is as an Actuarial Analyst on the Specialty team. In this position, I assist the team in analyzing data and setting the rates that we charge hospitals and facilities across the country for Medical Malpractice insurance. This involves lots of data collection and cleansing, so I get to use Alteryx almost daily. As an actuary, I also continue to self-study and take grueling professional exams to help further my education and career. At this time, I only have 3 to go!
What is one fun thing about you that community members might not know?
My family somehow conjured me into signing up for a Spartan Stadium Race with them this summer. If you aren’t familiar with what these are, basically it’s a 5km, 20 obstacle race through a pro sports stadium. I work out regularly, but this is sure to be a challenge!
What is your favorite Alteryx tool, and why?
I tend to go to the Formula tool when asked this question. It just gives you the power to do so much within one tool, and you can find it in essentially every workflow. The Formula tool also allows you to do the same things that other standalone tools do which makes it even more powerful. It’s like the food court of Alteryx tools. You can either drive to each restaurant individually to get food for the family or you can get everything you need in one stop at the food court (Formula tool).
What has been your favorite Alteryx project?
The customers we serve at MedPro were obviously greatly affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic the past couple years. One project that I helped work on was to aggregate data from multiple sources and put together information packets that our team could use to track the spread of the virus and help determine how best to conduct business. I learned a lot with this project, not only about Alteryx, but also how to work quickly, as we wanted to get this information out to the team in a timely manner so they would have the necessary tools to stay informed. The reports generated from this project helped us to underwrite better and continue serve our customers during a difficult time.
What is your favorite Alteryx memory?
My favorite Alteryx memory was probably Inspire Nashville in 2019. That was my first Inspire conference and my first time visiting the city, and I loved it. The Gaylord Opryland Resort also seemed like the perfect venue for Inspire. Of course, the Grand Prix was an unforgettable experience as well. My coworker and fellow ACE @patrick_digan was on my pit crew, and even though we didn’t win, it was all around a great memory.
A close second would be stealing the mic from @MaddieJ and hosting a couple episodes of the Alter-Everything podcast in early 2021. This was such a fun experience because I was able to interview a couple of my close friends and coworkers about topics that interested us. Hosting a podcast is much different than a live webinar, and I would recommend it to anyone if you get the chance.
What advice do you have for new community members?
My advice for new community members about the community specifically would be to explore the space and get to know what’s available. There are so many resources located in different places across the site, and being familiar with them comes in handy for the rest of your Alteryx days (when learning something new, when helping others, when taking certification exams, etc.)
On the other hand, my advice for community members about Alteryx itself would be to find what excites you the most and do that. There are so many different ways to learn Alteryx (weekly challenge being my personal favorite), get to know other community members (User Group meetings), and share your insights (Blogs). With all of the opportunities available, you’re sure to find something that sparks your fire.
What is your favorite way to engage as an ACE? Also, what area of the online community do you spend the most time in?
Some of my favorite ways to engage as an ACE are to help others learn, whether that be on the community through solutions, knowledge base articles, or locally in our Indianapolis Alteryx User group. I love helping to show others all that Alteryx can do and empowering them to do it themselves.
Silly question... if you were a kitchen appliance/utensil, what would you be and why?
Probably the refrigerator because I'm always cold.
Ok, now finally, let’s do a quick “This or That” to get to know your Alteryx preferences!
Tune in next week to meet another amazing ACE!
Want to learn more about what ACEs do and how to become one? Check out this page to see details about the program.
