Meet Sherif: the Savior of Support
This post is part of a weekly series in which we get to know Sifties.
Sherif Elzarka is a Support Engineer who has been with Sift Science for four months. During the week you can find him answering tickets sent into our support center, and on the weekends he’ll either be exploring the great outdoors or eating any form of Haribo gummies (his top two are sour snakes, followed by sour cokes).
What three traits define you?
- Enthusiasm – which helps me to navigate through client services. I believe that just showing people that you’re interested and dedicated to finding a solution is an integral part to ultimately building that solution.
- Open mindedness – growing up, my parents had one world view, but being in the Bay Area and being surrounded by so many different people has exposed me to a variety of situations and expanded my viewpoints.
- Generous with my time and thoughts – I’m always willing to have debates and conversations with people with varying opinions.
What skill would you love to learn?
I would love to learn how to sail, because I think there will be opportunities to do that during my life and it’s a great skill to have. Plus I know that I don’t get seasick.
What was your first job?
I worked retail at my uncle’s men’s clothing shop when I was 15 years old. That’s when I was first exposed to chargebacks, which is why Sift Science really resonated for me.
Where is your favorite place to be?
My favorite place is any national park. I would love to live at a park like Yosemite or Zion! Every time I meet a park ranger I think of how nice it would be to live in solitude in the forest.
What’s the best vacation you ever had?
I spent a month in Southeast Asia – I went to Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia and we met up with people along the way. In Thailand we got to stay in a 5-bedroom, 4-bathroom penthouse in a high-rise building! This year I’m trying to go to Portugal.
