Strategy

I Earned My BASI: Christi Moses

Christi Moses is an IT marketing coordinator for The Magnet Group. An enthusiastic supporter of the promotional products industry for over a decade, she has acted as an industry representative in the PPAI Lead program for the past four years. She was recently honored with an invitation to join Delta Mu Delta, the Honor Society in Business, for her academic achievements, and she earned her MASI in July 2016.

Who in the business world do you admire most or strive to emulate?
I have such an incredible group of people that I work with that picking one person would be really difficult. I really don’t have one person that I strive to emulate the most. I like to pick individual traits that I admire among my coworkers and management team and then work on improving those traits within myself. Bill Korowitz treats everyone he meets with respect no matter what position they hold. Rene Whitcraft maintains a strong positive mentorship with everyone on her team. Jonas Temple is a thoughtful manager who’s excellent at prioritizing the many requests he gets. Brent Nissen has a great poker face and Michelle Lightfoot always keeps her sense of humor.

If they made a movie about your life, what would it be about and what actor would play you?
I think a movie about my life would be about a woman who starts over at 30+ with a firm resolve to “bloom where you’re planted” and an oddball sense of humor. I’d love Melissa McCarthy to play me because she’s so funny and sweet.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
It’s the same advice most of us hear from our parents, teachers and bosses on a regular basis starting shortly after we’re born: “Listen.” Listening to your parents and teachers helps you become a better person. Listening to your boss helps you become a better employee. Listening to your friend helps you become a better friend. Listening to your customer helps you become a better business partner and solution provider.

What’s one thing you’d do to improve the ad specialty industry?
I’d encourage more industry professionals, no matter what position they hold, to go through the educational programs offered by ASI to earn their certifications. We should treat our industry and our professionals like so many other professional industries do. Carpenters, plumbers and realtors all place a high value on training or education and on the service they provide to their customers. We should all take great pride in the valuable service we provide.

What’s on your business and personal bucket list?
On my personal bucket list, I’m excited to say I’ll have one item checked off by the end of October; finishing my last class for my bachelor of science in business with a concentration in marketing degree. One of the next items on my bucket list is to take my daughter on a vacation to the ocean and on a plane ride (but not necessarily on the same trip). On my business bucket list, I want to reach a point where I promote out of the “marketing coordinator” title. I’ve had this title for a while, and I’d be excited to find that next step in my career.

What’s one sentence you’d like to hear from your boss?
“Now that you’ve won the lottery and are set for your life (and your daughter’s), you’ll still come in to work tomorrow, right? We really need you.” Every worker wants to feel like they’re an important contributor to the overall good of the company. Promotional products can certainly convey that message, which is why I’m a passionate supporter of our industry.

If you could choose an age to remain forever, which age would you choose? Why?
I don’t think I would want to remain one age forever. There’s too much life experience and so many adventures involved in getting older. I’m not the same person now that I was 10 or 15 years ago and I’m glad of it. Now, if your question had been, “What age would you like to look like forever?” Well that, my friend, would have required an entirely different answer. I was hot as a young 19 year old!

What would you do with your “15 minutes” of fame?
I would probably do what I usually do when I’m singled out for any reason, which is blush furiously and smile. Then I’d tearfully thank my God, my family and coworkers for all they’ve done to help me along the way.

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The free ASI Certification Program offers two certification levels for our members: BASI (Bachelor of Advertising Specialty Information) and MASI (Master of Advertising Specialty Information). To learn more and start working toward your own certification, visit www.asicentral.com/education.