Board Highlight: Ryan Esparza
“I remember as a kid when I was given my first cheap CD burner. It was the early days of consumer cd burning - I had to figure out how it all worked by reading the manual and through trial and error.”
Q. As a Inspiredu board member, what are you most excited about?
Great organizations are very clear on why they exist and focus on that core in everything they do. Inspiredu is one of those great organizations; their mission of “...helping underserved youth develop the skills needed for education and career success…”, vision of “...being a key connector that drives digital inclusion and literacy…” and commitment to equity all resonate with me personally and are the reasons why I’m proud to be a part of the board. Inspiredu has done a phenomenal job of bringing together an incredibly talented group of people all focused on the mission at hand; from the staff and volunteers to donors and board members, I’m most excited about seeing the continued impact this team can have on our community.
Q. What is your current job and what does it involve?
I’m currently the CTO of EspriGas where we’re focused on simplifying the (atmospheric) gas industry, largely through insights and technology. We exist to “make the complex simple” so that our suppliers can connect with customers to deliver life-improving and often life-saving gases. I get to spend every day focusing on the needs of our customers and suppliers and building products that enable them to focus on their core businesses. As a small organization we all wear multiple hats, so cybersecurity, infrastructure, product management, analytics and anything else tangentially related to tech are all part of my small but mighty team’s responsibility.
Q. What is a day like in the life of Ryan?
My day typically starts with a focus on physical health and wellbeing (gotta start the day right) - I’m up and out of the house around 5:45 to head to the gym. I’m back home by 7:15 where I grab a quick bite to eat, get ready and head to work, either driving to the office or making the long commute to the guest room / office upstairs (we have a flexible remote work policy). I try to focus each work day based on “My Ideal Week” where I’ve scripted out different focal points for each day (ex. Meetings Mondays where I have my 1on1s or Future Fridays where I focus on forward looking, strategic planning) in order to make sure I’m spending time on the most important things and my calendar doesn’t monopolize my time. I’m a firm believer in work / life harmony so when it’s time to ‘clock out’, I try to leave work at work whenever possible and head home for dinner with my family before walking the dog or hopefully getting outside if the weather is nice.
Q. How do you relate to Inspiredu’s mission, values, and/or work.
I remember as a kid when I was given my first cheap CD burner. It was the early days of consumer cd burning - I had to figure out how it all worked by reading the manual and through trial and error. I learned things like how to open the computer and install the burner (master/slave jumper settings), how to find and download music and ultimately convert .mp3 files to .wav files in order for them to play on a CD player (before the software did that itself). That process of learning and the remarkable feeling of creating something valuable really jump started my interest in tech and the rest is history, as they say. Through that experience, I saw first hand the power of little moments that can change life’s trajectory. I love Inspiredu because they have the potential of providing those life-changing, trajectory altering moments for under-privileged kids across Atlanta and throughout Georgia.
