After nearly 10 years working in the Port of Long Beach’s Information Management Division, Office Automation Analyst Claudia Garcia has become known as the “go-to person” for the 500-plus employees at the port when they need help with an IT issue. Garcia handles work order requests sent to the service desk, assists in software and cybersecurity training exercises, and even manages local high school interns during summer months. Garcia said she had always wanted to work for the government at some level and was excited when she saw an opening she qualified for at the port. “I was a Long Beach resident. I actually did not know anything about the port; I just knew the port was somewhere by the ocean,” she said with a laugh. When a port employee has a technical question or experiences a problem such as a hard drive crash, they submit a work request to Garcia’s department. She then ensures that the work orders are filled. But Garcia has been around long enough that she knows most employees, so they often just call her directly. “We’re really busy. In a typical day, I manage I would say 40 or 50 calls with different work orders,” Garcia said. Her department is also responsible for taking computers off the network that have been compromised by viruses. She estimated that there are more than one million attempted cyber intrusions made on the port each day. “It’s never boring,” she said. Garcia’s favorite aspect of her job is that it enables her to interact with every division within the port.