Cprime Employee Spotlight – Getting to Know Andrea DeFrates, Managing Consultant

Our Employee highlight of the month is Andrea DeFrates, Managing Consultant! See what she’s up to outside of work, and what motivated her to join Cprime.

Q: What attracted you to Cprime?

Cprime has a well-known reputation for empowering employees to reach their potential. Coming into this role, I was at a weird middle ground in my career, where I felt I had hit a ceiling in roles that suited my prior experience, but I hadn’t yet found an opportunity to show that I can do more. I was looking for an opportunity to reach beyond what I already knew, show off some of my potential, and step out of my comfort zone, but in a fun way. This role with Cprime very much checked all of those boxes for me.

Q: What led to your decision to join?

After meeting the Product Agility team in my interviews, it was a no-brainer. Aside from what I described that attracted me to Cprime, I learned in my interviews that the team was made up of incredibly kind, funny, sarcastic, flexible, empathetic, hard-working, and simply brilliant people. They were (are) the ideal group to work alongside each day. I also appreciated that to they were willing to take a chance on me being the only remote employee on the team (at that time). I have worked remotely for most of my career, they trusted me to be able to handle my responsibilities independently, and I very much value that trust.

Q: Describe your job in 25 words or less.

I manage the operation of Product Agility client engagements, ensuring the client, coach and Cprime reap as much success as possible with each engagement.

Q: What’s your favorite part of the job?

Without a doubt, my favorite part is our team in Product Agility. Everyone is solutions-oriented, eager to help our clients, and pragmatic in how we approach being as successful as possible. Our two fearless leaders also happen to be among the most affable, brilliant, and empathetic personalities you’ll ever come across. Between having a phenomenal team and being led by people who inspire me to put out my best effort each day, I couldn’t ask for a better job.

Q: How would you describe your approach to leadership?

As an introvert, I’m most comfortable leading by example, and being available as a source of support when people need me. By the same token, I’m a sponge when it comes to learning from people who inspire me. It’s important to me to take cues from their leadership skills, and I try to apply what they do to my approach.

Q: Three things that many people don’t know about me:

• I’m a Colorado native who didn’t learn to ski until the age of 29, and I still haven’t tried snowboarding. I prefer the other half of what makes Colorado so awesome: the warm- weather activities.
• My husband and I are such avid cyclists that we have bikes for every type of cycling interest, for all seasons, even a hand bike for riding if one of us breaks a leg
• As a kid, I dreamed about becoming the first female Major League Baseball player, and I was the only girl on my little league teams from the age of 8 to 14.

Q: If you were a superhero, what superpower would you want to have?

I would have the power of manipulating time. I would go back in time to change the bad things that happened in the world, speed up time when it seems necessary; and, selfishly, I would give myself more time to accomplish things that I never feel like I have enough time to do, and slow down time to relive the good memories.

Q: If you were to write a self-help book, what would the topic be?

It would be titled, ‘You’re Stronger Than You Think,’ and it would discuss how it just takes the necessary type of motivation to do what you think you’re incapable of accomplishing.