PPB March 2021

Er ic Shonebarger Forever Learning Florida-based supplier Hit Promotional Products promoted Eric Shonebarger to chief operating officer in January 2021. In this interview, Shonebarger shares how he’s overcoming his newest challenge and the greatest lessons he’s learned in his career. By Kristina Valdez E ric Shonebarger began working at Hit Promotional Products as a network administrator 16 years ago. Before joining the family-owned, Largo, Florida-based supplier, he was implementing electronic medical records for an urgent care company and was ready for a change. “There was a whole lot of regulation and I couldn’t get a whole lot done,” says Shonebarger, about his former job. “It wasn’t really built for my personality type. So, I thought, ‘Okay, let’s get into the promotional products industry.’” He found the job at Hit by responding to a phone call. “The caller said, ‘Hey, we are looking for someone to be a network administrator.’ I drove across the bridge in Tampa, interviewed with the family and I was hired on the spot. I started the next day.” From network administrator, he was promoted to senior network administrator 78 | MARCH 2021 | CONNECT