Employee Spotlight: Krissti Turpeau, Procurement Operations Manager

Name:  Krissti Turpeau  

Title: Manager, Procurement Operations

QTS location: Duluth

Years with QTS: 6-years (as of October)

What is your favorite part of working for QTS? 

The People.  We have created teams of people who truly care about others and their wellbeing.  The people who make up this company take pride in what we do and put forth great effort in moving the Company forward.

It feels wonderful to be a part of a company that works so diligently to ensure that the people employed here are as much a culture fit as they are knowledgeable about QTS and the services that we offer.  This has to be one of the most talented workforces of which I have ever been apart.

What is a day in the life of your position like?

In Procurement, no two days are the same.  Because we influence every area of the Company, I may interact with 2-3 different groups who need the same service or part and connect them to create a crossfunctional team to achieve the needed goal.  There may be days when I am heads down testing new functionalities and problem solving within Workday Procurement or working on the different components of Supplier Management.  Other days I may be working with the sites and the Legal team on Contracts. The main goal of my job in Procurement is to keep the business moving forward, while saving money and mitigating risk.

What passions do you have within and outside of work?   

Within work:  I’m passionate about having the ability to volunteer my time and talent while helping different organizations whose primary focus is children.  Children are innocent beings, so helping them become the best version of themselves is very important to me. 

Outside of work, I am a fulltime wife, mother, and business owner.  I am also a part-time student studying Cybersecurity (Conversations with Andrew Wild and Melissa Grant peaked my interest)! 

My husband (Michael) two children (Myles-James -12 and Teagan -10), keep me busy.  Both of my children are student-athletes so I’m either at the baseball/softball field or in the one of the many gyms around the state of Georgia being the loud mom and cheering for my son who plays travel basketball. 

When I was younger, I used to help both of my grandmothers bake cakes and pies.   As a stress reliever, I started baking cakes and cookies.  My stress-reliever morphed into a passion, and it is now my weekend business that I named Purple Sweet Spot!

What led you to sign up for the WIL mentoring program?

 I have had great mentors throughout my professional career.  Hearing about the mentorship program here and thinking of how it could broaden my reach, gain a different perspective on situations, and gain exposure within the company was especially appealing.  I wanted the opportunity to learn from and connect with people whose world had both similarities and differences than my own.

What do you feel was the biggest benefit of the WIL mentorship program, from your perspective as a mentee? 

In my opinion, the biggest benefit was knowing that I had a person with whom I could discuss many different elements of life, not just work.  I loved the idea that my name could and would be mentioned in rooms where I may not be physically present, but the conversation would still be positive due to the relationship that I had built with my mentor.

What advice do you have for future mentees going into the program? 

DO IT!  Be a willing participant in the mentorship program. Make the time, be open to their thoughts and ideas…. Soak up the knowledge and build a lasting relationship that exceeds the bounds of day-to-day work. 

What does a perfect day off work look like for you?

 A perfect day off would be a day of self-care and pampering at one of the local spas! Meeting a friend for lunch and returning home to relax on my deck and watch the dog run around the backyard…before the children and hubby return home. 😊