Dan Sepulveda
Name: Dan Sepulveda
Newspaper: All Arizona publications (Apache Junction, East Mesa, North Scottsdale, Queen Creek, Peoria, Sun Cities, Surprise, and Town of Paradise Valley).
Position: My official position is “National Accounts Coordinator” but I spend most of my time lately helping our Tech Team and providing support.
Number of years in the newspaper or printing business: Just over 10 years. It all started in a little publishing company in Ravena, NY where I was hired to help in the transition from wax “paste-up” to an all-digital environment using a Macintosh Quadra & a Centris running Mac OS 7.
Job description: My main responsibilities are providing support to our majors department here in Arizona. But I provide customer service to outside customers and co-workers. I handle the production side and pre-flight all ads submitted through majors to ensure no problems arise when they go through our layout and pagination process or at the press when being printed. I also coordinate with the many agencies involved ensuring communication flows in all directions with all those involved (inside and outside of INI) regarding scheduling, billing, specs for production, and answering any questions regarding our rates or our company.
As a side job, I help with the local technical problems and production issues. I’m responsible for every AZ user’s computer when they first receive it, ensuring they have everything they need to perform their jobs. I see it kind of like that guy at the tail of the airplane making sure all parachuting soldiers’ equipment is OK before they make the jump into the battlefield. Lately, since our local production teams are transitioning from a Mac environment, I’m also helping with coaching and support so they can do what they do daily with newer professional graphics applications and Windows XP. If needed, I also back-up our production folks during vacations, days-off or when they need graphics-related support.
What I like best (about my job): I love the fact that I get to meet most of my co-workers doing the things I enjoy. Because of my tech team responsibilities I get to travel to the different offices here in Arizona and spend some time with everyone. And, because I carry a laptop, I take my work with me and can multi-task sometimes even with several computers. So far, working on three computers at a time is my limit, but I love challenges. It’s also great to learn how everything works.
Most memorable moment with INI: There’s definitely a few, but the one that stands out is the summer of 2004. Back then, I worked in our Classifieds Center at Valley as a graphic artist. That summer our servers were stolen one weekend, bringing our production to a screeching halt after losing databases with all kinds of information and every single ad. It was scary while going through it, but it brought our teams closer together (locally and across the different states) and it was awesome getting back on our feet. Teamwork at its best!
Hobbies/Interests: I get pleasure from mountain-biking & keeping up with technology, since I’ve always enjoyed tinkering with stuff. If I had the time, I’d get back to painting and playing guitar, but I’d rather spend more time with my daughter. We’re working on her painting skills and who knows, maybe one of these days we can start guitar lessons too. Of course, I also love to read. My favorite topics lately are graphics or computing/tech magazines, and some books on Aztec & Maya civilizations. It’s hard to imagine life without computers or most of the technology we now take for granted, but back in their day these people could accomplish great feats. I find it fascinating! Plus I get to practice my Spanish.
Fun fact (about myself): I used to be part of an all-boys choir with my four brothers. We all played classic guitar and actually travelled to other near-by churches to perform. We started singing at a young age since that was the only way our parents could keep us still for a few minutes (if you can imagine, five boys one year apart). We’d always perform when visiting our relatives in Mexico.
