Behind the Scenes with Rob Tinney

7:34 a.m.: “Fueled by Launch, this is Rob. Can I start with your name, please?” Rob just signed on to his phone at 7:30 a.m., and he’s already busy taking his first support call of the day. “Oh, okay, I can definitely help you with this,” Rob says. 

7:57 a.m.: Rob explains what his first call was about as he walks back to get a cup of coffee. “That was a new student who was just logging on for the first time,” Rob says. “She didn’t know where to find her classes on Canvas, but I gave her a quick tutorial.” As one of Launch’s four support desk specialists, Rob and his team offer technical support to students, families and partner district liaisons from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. 

10 a.m.: Rob hasn’t answered the phones for a bit—instead, he’s busy providing tech support via chat. It’s the first day of the summer semester, so questions are coming in fast. In fact, Rob has five chat windows open at once! “The busiest times for us are the beginnings and ends of semesters, and I love it,” Rob says. “I love the hype of it all. The first day of the fall semester is like my personal Christmas.” 

12:30 p.m.: While most staffers are thinking about lunch, Rob heads back for another cup of coffee. “I usually drink about three cups a day,” he says. “It keeps me going.”

2 p.m.: Rob shifts gears again for the afternoon—now he’s cleaning Chromebooks and ensuring they are ready to be reissued. “Testing, 1, 2, 3,” Rob says, checking the device’s audio. “Our team also helps clean the Garmin heart rate monitors used in our PE courses,” Rob says. 

3:49 p.m.: After getting the day’s batch of Chromebooks prepared for shipment, Rob hops back on the phones for the remainder of the afternoon. “My favorite part of this job, by far, is talking to students,” Rob says. “I know tech issues can be really frustrating, and I’m so happy to help. Any chance I get to turn the Launch experience around for a student, I’m all about it.”