The phone rings at OED, and for six years, Sharon Hipkins has been the person that greets the business community and assists with their questions. Sharon has been with Frederick County Government for over 16 years, providing administrative support throughout that time.
If you run into Sharon on a visit to Economic Development @ ROOT, you’ll find someone who can guide you to the best resource for your business needs. She’s your connection to OED’s Director, Helen Propheter’s calendar, to conference rooms and getting your questions answered. Whether she’s managing multiple calendars, balancing the budget, or working as the lead on the next Business Appreciation Week, she’s always ready to assist. Keeping the office running smoothly is a top priority and Sharon is always looking for new opportunities to make it run seamlessly.
She provides program and administrative support for various programs and projects for OED. In addition, Sharon is the detailed proofer of the office and if you’re meeting at ROOT before the first floor opens, she’s probably the one running the stairs to open the side door for you. According to Sharon, “I’m actually going to miss getting all those accolades from my Fitbit for my flights of stairs each day.”
Sharon also has been the coordinator for OED’s annual Business Appreciation Week for the past several years, the largest business retention program for the office that culminates in visits to over 120 businesses in a one week. She also ensures your press release gets out promptly through PRFrederick, a free online press release tool available to all county businesses. As the administrative assistant, she ensures that the Business and Industry Cabinet (BIC) meetings are scheduled and agendas provided to the business leaders who come together as an advisory board to share ideas, solutions and creative approaches to business development concerns and issues facing Frederick County.
Sharon is the liaison to the County-wide Infor project for Finance, Procurement, and Human Resources best practices. She also works closely with the County Executive’s staff, accounting, budget and procurement staff in her day-to-day responsibilities. “Each day provides new opportunities and a variety of projects and tasks, so no day is ever the same. It’s a privilege to work with such a great group of professionals in the OED office, and our partners,” stated Sharon.
Sharon grew up in Frederick County and has lived most of her adult life in the northern part of the county. When she’s not in the office you might find her spending time with her two grandchildren.