Four years ago, Elizabeth Egge started out as a Lake Superior College intern at Duluth’s ARI Network Services. The tech company provides website hosting and building services and digital marketing services for the power sports, marine, tire and wheel, outdoor power, home medical equipment, appliances, and recreational vehicles industries.
Fast forward to today, where she now supervises ARI’s website development build team of six people which includes managing team workloads. “I make sure that everything runs smoothly for our domestic team as well as our international team,” she said. “I also work with other departments on platform development.”
Egge loves the challenges of her job. “Website development is much more than building websites,” she said. “My favorite part of the job is troubleshooting site issues. Every day is different since we provide support to sales representatives and dealers who represent more than 7,500 web sites.”
Egge graduated from Lake Superior College in 2011 with an AA degree, and earned her AS in Business and Technology and AS in Business Administration in 2014. “Graduating high school at 17, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to study. I knew I wanted to stay in Duluth. I was lucky to find my niche at LSC. I felt comfortable in my classes and I got the attention I needed from my teachers.”
On a whim, she decided to take a computer class at Lake Superior College. “I stumbled into taking some web development classes. I found the problem-solving aspects of website design and management both challenging and fun.” Anup Parajuli, her Computer Information Systems teacher, encouraged her to look at web development as a career. “Anup used his connections at ARI to set up interviews for an internship that ultimately led me to where I am today. I resisted the internship suggestion due to my employment at the time, but thankfully he was able to get through to me!”
She has advice for someone who is thinking of computer careers. “Technology is a versatile career path that can take you anywhere. Web development changes constantly. It keeps me on my toes, learning new tools of the trade.”
Egge also applies her creativity to her own handcraft business. “I love anything to do with creating from art to food to websites, ” she said. “When I’m not working for ARI, I run Littlebitzstore, an Etsy shop filled with my handmade craft items. She also enjoys hiking, boating, and spending time with her dog and her family. “I own a house with my boyfriend and dog in the Woodland neighborhood of Duluth.”
Egge is optimistic about her personal and professional direction. “My life is in a completely different place than I imagined it would be four years ago. I have a job I love, I have received two promotions, I own a car and a house. These were all things I felt were unobtainable given I did not have a four-year degree. I am also thankful to LSC for providing me with an affordable education since I am debt-free after a few years of loans.”