When requests come flying in like circus balls. When the entire troupe of salespeople needs her assistance at once. No one questions Jamie Hughes’ juggling abilities.

She knows the circus well. Literally.

Jamie, the Administrative Support Specialist for Hot Springs, Texarkana, and El Dorado, grew up in the town of Hugo, OK (aka Circus Town USA). It’s a small southeastern Oklahoma town that for more than a half-century has served as winter quarters for numerous circus companies and performers. Roll through Hugo and you’ll find circus wagons stored in fields, elephants in barns along roadsides, and any order of circus memorabilia in and around town.

So, as it is, after earning a degree in Computer Programming, Jamie joined the circus.

“Fun fact: I worked for two different circuses on the administrative side of things (before coming to Datamax),” Jamie said. “I designed circus posters sold tickets, and made arrangements for performers coming to various towns. I guess when you’re surrounded by it growing up, it just comes naturally.”

The sales process can become a circus if administrative tasks aren’t routinely handled with speed, accuracy, and with a spirit of care for coworkers. Jamie never drops the ball. In fact, she keeps the ball rolling.

In internal customer service (just like copier service!), fast response is essential. Essentially, Jamie handles all sales requests from Hot springs, Texarkana, and Area Sales Manager Lee Wheelington's own. This includes (but is not limited to) Partnership Review requests, current billing, paperwork processing, equipment info requests, and being the official greeter in Hot Springs. It’s A LOT.

“I have a little ADHD, honestly,” Jamie says. “I work better if I have more than one thing going on at a time.

But there’s much more to it than attention deficit. Talk to Jamie and you’ll come to recognize her own sense of urgency that she works on her coworkers’ behalf. Their success is directly tied to her performance… and vice versa. How does she prevent a circus? How does Jamie roll?

She rolls with speed.

“Sales people are impatient. We move fast and expect everyone around us to move at our pace,” Wheelington said. “Jamie keeps up! She knows the pressure of our role, therefore she knows her performance is just as important as ours… Our pace is never slowed down waiting on her.”

She rolls with patience.

Lee admits… with a salesperson’s DNA, he can be a little impatient.

"I can be a handful all by myself. Jamie smiles and provides everything I ask for and I am demanding,” Lee says. “If she catches our mistake, she walks us through where it went wrong so we can be more accurate next time. She is patient. Her performance allows my team, and me to focus on our A time- being in front of customers, moving deals forward.”

Even if she has to “get back with” a sales rep, that rep knows the ball has not stopped. Jamie says she methodically takes each request in both order and level of priority, patiently (and meticulously) fulfilling whatever needs are there on a given day.

“Jamie takes pride in her role and performance, so when she provides information, I know it is something we can bank on,” Lee says. “We’ve been a team for a few years now, and her history shows we can have faith in her future performance.”

She rolls with teammates in mind.

The metaphor “life is a circus” usually points to chaos. But those on the inside know that a well-run circus is built on team building, comradery, and awareness of all the moving parts. Jamie knows this circus well, too.

“If I’m not doing my job, they can’t do theirs,” Jamie said. “If they’re not doing theirs, I don’t have a job. If I can’t answer a question for you, what good am I? If I’m not helping them, they can’t help customers and nobody is getting anything done. Internal customer service is crucial.”