Tom Keefer is the Analytics Solution Architect at Celebrus. Based in Lynchburg, Virginia, Tom is part of the Managed Services team and has been with the company for more than five years. Celebrus caught up with him to learn more about his experiences, hear his thoughts about Celebrus and its offerings, and shine light on a secret not many people know about him.

Why did you join Celebrus?

I was at one of our largest clients and I really enjoyed working with Jim and Pete at the time. The client was pushing folks to move to headquarters locations and that was not in our family plan as we moved to Lynchburg, VA to help with my wife’s Mom.

What is your favorite part about working at our company?

I like the people I work with on the Celebrus team that cover our client. It’s a strong team, tough environment, but I feel tight with all the folks I work with day to day.

How would you describe our company culture and what makes it unique?

I like the UK tie in. I know that sounds strange, but its nice to step out of the “American” way sometimes and get a broader insight on tech and how things are done in business. I like working for a global company.

What does your role entail and what do you focus on at Celebrus?

I am one of the lead technical folks here on the team that supports the SAS/Citi contract. I spend my time working performance improvement, overall architecture, future purchases and how they integrate with the existing platform. I also help with pre-sales of the next expansions on the project. Honestly, whatever is needed by our client, and it varies a bit depending on the time of the year.

What has surprised you most about your current role?

How much it can change day to day. That is a good thing though. I get bored if I’m doing the same thing every day.

What is one thing that you wish people knew about your position at the company?

I think people would be surprised at how much I spend talking to SAS, Celebrus and our client resources and bridging the gaps between knowledge and personalities. I’ve worked for all three companies and I know where everyone’s bodies are buried. I spend a lot of time helping folks see all sides of a problem and what goals are and how it affects peoples behavior.

What excites you most about the data-driven solutions that Celebrus offers to customers and provides to customers?

I’m very proud of the environment we have built for our largest client. There is a large project coming down the pipe for them and it will likely be a very large addition of users and workload to the environment. I am very confidient of how well our architecture will step up to handle that workload. We are an important part of building a strong infrastructure to hetlpn oeuri cl handle this large regulatory work.

Describe the most random object sitting on your desk (what’s the story behind it?)

A solar powered Chinese kitty cat. I believe it is called a lucky cat. You see it a lot in Chinese restaurants and especially in London and NYC and San Fran China Towns. I believe a business is “supposed to” have one of these as its good luck for business.

What is one thing on your bucket list?

Go back to Nepal and hike more. Himalayas are absolutely beautiful and so are the Sherpa people.

If you could pick one destination for a spontaneous vacation, where would it be and why?

 Wow… that list is SUPER long. My wife and I love to travel. I would like to go work for 2 to 4 weeks at a vineyard in Italy or France.

What is something surprising that not many people know about you?

My wife and I planted 500 grapevines early this year in Bedford County Virginia (Appalachian Mountains). Albarino and Gamay grapes.