Industrial and systems alumnus says communication key to career success

Chris Scott is a problem solver.

Whether it’s providing optimal network performance across five data centers in Latin America, or that ensuring equipment and servers are up-to-date, the 2016 Auburn industrial and systems engineering graduate thrives on customer satisfaction.

“I love identifying a problem, creating a plan and implementing that plan with engineering teams to create a resolution,” said Scott, AT&T’s Network Program Manager who oversees data centers across Peru, Costa Rica, Guatemala and El Salvador. “It’s a passion of mine to design processes and build solutions to fix inefficiencies.

“Without a dependable network, our customers wouldn’t be able to run their businesses efficiently. It’s imperative for me and my team to ensure that we can provide what is needed from a networking standpoint.”

What's the key to solving problems? Communication, Scott said. 

“When working with several different teams, it’s incredibly important to effectively communicate the problems I see, and the solutions that I feel are best for all stakeholders involved,” Scott said. “We work with multiple vendors to help solve hands-on issues. I must successfully communicate the issues we see on our end, develop the best solution, and inform them on how to solve the problem. It’s the same thing with equipment installations. We must ensure everything's up to code by company and industry standards. When we're making these installations, we must find the best solution and the best route to take to complete the projects on the customer's behalf.”

Scott credited course work at the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering and ‘long nights of studying’ toward career success.

“My Auburn education taught me the discipline to figure things out and apply them to real-life scenarios,” he said.

“I also believe that industrial and systems engineering degrees are the most diverse engineering degrees anyone can obtain. This is one of the main reasons I decided to pursue this degree – it’s a perfect mix of technical and business. Having these skill sets has been very beneficial. I have the ability to understand the technical aspect of problems and also communicate them in a business manner that non-technical people can understand. This is probably one of the most important skills to have when, for example, I’m communicating with leadership. Because many times leadership is very busy, especially to get up to the C-suite level, they'll have time to hear the deep, technical background of an issue, but more importantly, what the impact would be to the business.”

Scott, who is actively involved in community service in metro Atlanta, including the United Way of Greater Atlanta, the Emerging 100 of Atlanta, and as a Meals on Wheels Young Professional board member, also helped establish a STEM-related GeNiUS Scholarship with Auburn alums Patryce Patton-Turner, Shari Scott-Robinson, Joshua Hale and Ron Spidell at his hometown Sylacauga High School.

“One of my main aspirations in life is to inspire and support others who look like me,” Scott said. “Since graduation, I’ve been very intentional about this through my actions and involvement. Supporting these community groups align directly with my personal passion.

"I’ve also taken time to speak directly with college students in Alabama and Georgia over the past three years about what it means to be a young professional, how to navigate life, balance life and the steps one needs to take to set them up for personal success. I had mentors growing up, and for me, it’s about paying it forward.”