Podcast Episode 88: Episode 60: Special Edition with Robyn Hazen

Description

In this special edition of ROCKCast, we'll interview Robyn Hazen, our new Community Experience Facilitator.

Transcribed Content

This episode of Rockcast is brought to you by Rock partner Triumph Tech, a full service specialist partner. Rock partners provide crucial support for Spark Development Network and important services for the Rock community. Connect with Triumph Tech today at rockrms.com/partners. Welcome to this special edition of the Rockcast podcast. We have a special guest with us today. We'd to welcome Robin Hazen. Welcome, Robin. Thank you. I'm happy to be here. Robin is a fairly new member of the Spark staff, and we are so happy to have her on staff and to have her here with us today. We also have Jon Edmiston. Hello. Hello. Now we have to be very clear here. We have two robins now, so Yes. Don't get confused. This is not the same robin that we've talked about in the past. Correct. And that robin is still here. We have two robins. They spell their names differently. How do you spell yours? I'm r o b y n. K. And we've been discussing nicknames. , what should we call the original Robin? Should we call her Batman? I mean, that's been discussed internally. I don't think that went over too well. For Robin Hazen was Emily to clear things up. That was funny. Yeah. Yeah. That was a bad idea. Don't know a junior, maybe. Right. It's not great. Yeah. Yeah. Keep polishing. This has been a source of great fun in the in the office. It has. But I'm Robin Hasen, r o b y n. So when people see emails or messages in the community, they'll know who they're speaking with. I'm the new Robin. That's right. And what is your role here, Robin? So I'm the community experience facilitator. I am assisting Emily with social media, communications, marketing, planning for the conference, which I'm getting really excited about. It's been wonderful to dive in and start talking with people. Everybody's been so welcoming. This is a great community, isn't it? It's fantastic. I think every day I've been saying, wow, everybody's so nice and they're just welcoming me on board, and everybody's been helpful. It's fantastic. That's great. And also the Rock partners in our space probably will hear from you as well regarding some Rock partnerships and churches related to fundraising and and the financial commitments that they make may come in contact with you as well too. Great. Sounds good to me. You'll be running the place in three weeks. Pretty much. Three weeks? That's the timeline? Yeah. Oh, okay. Well, three weeks from the start date. Oh, dear. You've got, , one left. It's been a week left. It's a it's a quick ramp up, but I'm sure you've got it. That's great. So before you came to join the Rock team, tell us a little bit about some of the things that you were doing previously. Well, I I have a degree in journalism, but shortly after college, I got into marketing. And that's what I've been doing, primarily over the last, several years. For fifteen of those years, I worked at a company in Scottsdale that is an expert in reverse supply chain logistics. So I know all these things about items in various industries, everything from aerospace parts and machine tools all the way to military vehicles and camo gear and and things that. We had contracts with big names Walmart, but then also contracts with US Department of Defense, which was always really interesting. And if you're gonna be a good marketer, you gotta learn about the item and the product and the community. And so, for fifteen years, I was really swimming around in all these different, industrial style, things. So I'm not unfamiliar with being at a tech company. At that particular organization, one of their big selling points was their online auction marketplaces. And it was a technology that they created, the power of the back end that they used to assist these companies that contracted with them. So I'm really, as I've been here over, , just the last couple weeks, it's been really interesting to hear everybody talking about the technology side of it, and I find all that really interesting. Well, you have some very interesting niche information too. I always love to hear your stories. Lots of military surplus knowledge is kind of what I've gleaned from a little bit. Yes. I am a member of the Military Vehicle Preservation Association. Wait. What? Oh, that's new. They they grandfathered me in pretty much. I went to their trade shows on a regular basis for that company I worked for. And just really nice people in that group. A lot of gentlemen, , kind of adopted me as another granddaughter or niece or something. And so I got grandfathered into the club, which was kinda fun. I had no idea that was a thing. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Next time there's a show in town, we'll have to go. That'd be fun. Definitely. I would to go. That sounds fascinating. I always wanted to start a military surplus store. You kind of did online, didn't you? I did online. It was I my wife has no interest in this, just for the record, but I called it online Heidi's Military Surplus just because I thought that that was kind of an ironic name. And then so we'd sell these, , backpacks on Amazon, and I'd have her, , write write her name because she writes, girly, and then I'd have her put a little heart on it so that it would just kinda be the here's this rugged military backpack, and it was warm and friendly. I love it. Yeah. That's great. So Robin, how was it that you came to run across this position in our company? So I had come to a point in my career where I I'm motivated to help people. And I didn't feel that I was getting to do that in corporate I really wanted to. And when I ran across his job description, I got really excited because you explained so well, the mission of the company, your goal to help churches and expand the kingdom. And you're doing it in such an innovative way, I found that really interesting. And then getting to meet you in person and hearing more about the vision, I was just really drawn to that. And just within the short time I've been here, I feel I'm just getting, know, not embroiled, that's not the right word, but, , woven into the fabric of what is happening and being part of the innovation and the vision, and it's it's wonderful. And is orange your new favorite color? Yes. Actually, this is a great or I'm particular about colors because I'm a graphic designer, and these colors, it's it's a warm orange. I love it. It's a it's a pretty fun wall color. Yes. It's hard to wear. Oh, yeah. I guess not everybody could pull this off. I can't. Is it hard to wear? You just put it on. Yeah. That's the literal tech guy over there saying, just put it on. I do really to have it on the walls. It's very cheery. I I agree. It's great. So do you have an average workday yet? What does that look for you? No. I don't think I do, and that's okay. I the I things being different, and I'm still learning so much. I'm still in learning mode. I think my so my number one priority is just checking with Emily, see what's up, what she needs me to do today. , that's I think that's always gonna be that, and I'm I'm good with that. It's kinda crazy sometimes around here. What the the great thing is we never run out of things to do, and they're always so interesting, and the the range of things that we work on is so diverse. It's pretty fascinating. I it. I to be busy. I all the people we get to interact with. Yes, me too. Yeah. So what would you say has been the most surprising thing about working here? Oh, wow. Wow, that's a good question. Well, I really liked some things you were saying in a staff meeting recently, about how part of the core of what you do here is about generosity and, , making this code and making Rock available and accessible. , I grew up all across The US. My dad was in the military. I've attended big churches, small churches. So I can see where, , part of what you built into this is that it needs to work for big and small, and it's gotta be accessible because there are just some churches who wouldn't be able to afford something this if it was for sale. So, I mean, I believed you when you told me that you act this way and you're generous, but then to really see it in action has just been amazing. It's definitely hardwired into the DNA of what we do around here. But you, I attended a small church growing up that I know wouldn't have been able to afford a technology what this would cost if you put a marketplace price tag on it. And I think a lot of us here have been in positions that and we have a real heart for the church. I can see that. I read a while ago Adam Grant's book Give and Take and I think that's really interesting. So for our listeners, if you haven't read that, I think it speaks very much to the heart of what we're doing and why we're doing it. It really resonated with me. And you loaned it to me. I can't wait to read it. It's really good. It might have a lot of markings in it. I hope you can still find the words under there. I'm sure it's fine. So the community will run into you at the Rock Conference, possibly on Rock Chat and probably through email. Right? If we're if our listeners are wondering where they might run into Robin Hazen. Yes. Robin H. Robin H. Yeah. And the really interesting thing, you have joined the team at a time where we'll talk more in a regular podcast about, but we're planning so far out now that we're not only planning for the conference this year in 2019, but we're looking ahead to Rx twenty twenty as well. So this is a really very interesting, great planning time for you to join the team. I'm very excited about what we're what is going to be possible in our conferences with your, help on the team this year and next. I can't wait to go. Oh, something. Talking to everybody about the conference and everybody is amped and excited. I can't wait to see it. Tell us a little bit about your family. To switch tracks totally. Well, I said, my dad was in the military. So I grew up all around The US and England. We lived in England for a time. I'm a Tottenham Hotspur fan, if anybody knows what that means. I'm really close to my family. My brother just got married a couple years ago. He's my only sibling. So now I joke I finally have a sister and I love her, so it's been fantastic. And I have two nephews who I adore. They're so fun. One is about to be 14, one is six months old, and he's just he's a fun kid. Oh my goodness. And he just learned to laugh. I guess that was about a month ago. So he's got this kind of frog laugh thing going on, which, , I'll probably tease him about forever. But Probably. It's been a lot of fun. Have you videoed it for later? Oh, yes. Oh, good. Yes. Definitely. So what what kinds of things do you do in your free time? Oh, I I enjoy photography and graphic design and, , the occasional military vehicle show. I to go hiking. There's some really good places here in Phoenix where we're located, where you can really, , get out in nature. It doesn't look the same as probably the bulk of our listeners are used to, but it's a lot of fun just to get out there and see what God's created and enjoy it. Definitely. We live in a beautiful state. Alright. Well, thank you very much for joining us as our special guest today. We've really enjoyed having you and are thrilled to have you on the team. Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. Until next time. Today's show was produced by Emily Forman. Nick was our recording engineer who turned the dials and pushed the buttons. Jim Michael handled all the audio post production mixing. And our amazing show notes, which you can find at rockrms.com/connect, were transcribed and written up by Michael Garrison. Do a church that loves the idea of using Rock but hasn't taken that leap yet? With managed hosting, churches of any size can get access to Rock's amazing technology, hassle free. With just one click, Rock's managed hosting removes the roadblocks that might stop a church from switching to Rock by making the process simple. Churches get the ease of a SaaS church management system without losing any of Rock's powerful features. Are you ready to take the next step or share with another local church? Visit rockrms.com/hosting today.