Diversity & Inclusion

Pride and Dedication: Meet Daniel Shafer

Aug 31, 2023 10:00 AM ET
Campaign: GoDaddy | Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
Daniel Shafer
Daniel Shafer
computer monitor and keyboard with colorful lights

Originally published on GoDaddy Life

What’s your story? Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do here at GoDaddy.

My name is Daniel Shafer and I am currently residing in Boise, Idaho. I have a strong passion for computers, and I am also a single dad to a sixteen year old, daughter. I have three cats, and one grand-pup. I started at GoDaddy on July 13th, 2020. I am currently a Site Reliability Engineer Supervisor for the DRI (Domains Registrar and Investors) organization. I manage a team of SREs that support the infrastructure for almost all of the domains organization. I bought myself a 2022 Chevrolet Camaro 2SS Convertible when I got promoted to Supervisor as a gift for myself!

You’ve wanted to work at GoDaddy since you were sixteen! How did this dream originate?

I have been interested in computers since I was about eight years old. In 2002, I took a web design course in high school which sparked my interested in web hosting companies. I was only sixteen at the time. This led me down a path of learning Unix based operating systems, web languages, and different domain and hosting providers. My first order on my personal GoDaddy account shows 7/22/2004, which is when I was just eighteen. Before then, my orders were with a parent owned account! Over time, I learned to idolize the company. I loved the brand, the mission, and the technology used. I just felt it would be a fun company to work for. I never imagined I’d actually work for GoDaddy, let alone be a Supervisor to a team!

What’s the most challenging yet rewarding thing that you’ve worked on at GoDaddy?

My current project has been the most challenging and rewarding, honestly. I am currently working on standing up a whole new monitoring system for all of DRI’s services and infrastructure. I’ve had to present to senior leadership, write a lot of automation and code, and delegate and plan tasks for my team related to it. It’s been a few months in the making, but we are getting to the point of wrapping things up. I am very proud of myself for this project, as it has challenged me to think different than I normally would and find better solutions for problems we were facing.

Do you have any advise for someone who is interested in a career at GoDaddy?

Being someone who has interviewed a lot of people, don’t try and pretend — just be who are you. Continue to grow your experiences. Whatever you do, do not doubt yourself. I suffer from strong imposter syndrome. I doubt myself all the time. However, with everything I’ve done for the company and my team, I do hold a lot of pride for my work. I got hired as a contractor after a single fifteen minute interview, and one a half years later, was converted to a full-time employee. Recently, I celebrated three years with the company.

What’s your personal mantra?

I believe in choosing a career that you have a passion in. This allows you to really take pride, dedication, and care for the work that you do.

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