By The Protech Team
Protech Associates is a tech company. It’s in the name. And behind the scenes at any innovative technology operation is a group of folks who quietly and diligently steady the ship.
Among them is Jason Palmisano, a Senior Systems Administrator who the entire Protech team relies upon day in and day out, whether we realize it or not. And there’s no one better suited for the role than Jason.
“I’m a practitioner of my craft,” Jason said. “I use all sorts of technology extensively in my free time — always trying to improve the quality of life at home — to make things easier and more efficient.”
Since joining Protech in August 2010, Jason has settled into a unique, but critical role at the Columbia, Maryland-based association management software company — a role he fills in both his work and personal lives. When he’s not at Protech, Jason works on management teams at local churches, and even implemented the same network technologies at home as he has at Protech, albeit on a smaller scale.
“The skills I’ve learned to navigate vendor and staff relationships, and find answers and fixes for complex technical situations, I use every day at Protech,” Jason said. “I’m grateful that the skills I’m honing overlap both at Protech and in work outside of Protech.”
Becoming One of Protech’s Go-to Tech Experts
From spinning up servers and rebuilding the network, to setting up technology at Protech’s Fusion customer conference or serving as a liaison between Protech and Microsoft, Jason really does it all.
“If it involves technology — and many times, even if it doesn’t — I do it,” Jason said. “I really do touch just about everything related to internal-facing technology that makes Protech run.”
But how does one become the go-to tech resource at a software company? For Jason, it all started when he noticed a friend’s brother had set up a custom-built network of computers and servers in their family basement. Jason was instantly captivated by the flurry of blinking network activity lights and the ease at which files could move from computer to computer.
Fast forward to high school, when Jason outpaced the curriculum of a computer science course so much that he and a classmate were given free rein to set up a network of their own. That experience led to a server rack in his parents’ basement, and ever since, Jason has built out a network of systems everywhere he’s lived.
With nearly a decade in the books at Protech, Jason’s passion for technology has never wavered, and he’s proud to be able to use his tech talents to help associations and nonprofits that are making the world a better place.
“Two incredibly important professions that are close to my heart are teaching and nursing,” Jason said, noting that Protech partners with associations in both fields. “So it’s neat that, as an IT person at Protech, I can contribute in some small and roundabout way to support teachers and nurses.”
When he’s not at the office, you can find the Baltimore-area native exploring the region with his wife, Ariel, or watching his pet hedgehog, Harvey, “Hoping to one day figure out what Harvey thinks about his life.” Jason can also be found shooting aerial photographs and video with a drone, turning his 1960s-era home into an automated smart home, or biking through the woods.
