In the past four years, Port of Long Beach Administrative Analyst Marcella Tutson has quickly worked her way up in the port’s security division. After leaving a position as a catering manager, the now 26-year-old mother of two started her career with the port as a clerk-typist in 2015. Today, Tutson is responsible for procuring equipment and services for the division, while keeping an eye on existing contracts. Her personal and professional growth, at least in part, has been facilitated by the supportive work environment at the port, Tutson said. “I’ve had great mentors here, great managers here. It’s just been a really great experience for me,” she told the Business Journal. “The security division is a gem.” Working in the ever-changing field of security can be challenging, she admitted, but that hasn’t made her job less enjoyable. “It’s funny, because I would probably say the toughest thing is the thing that I enjoy the most, and it’s the fact that priorities change from moment to moment,” Tutson explained. Security threats change constantly, and the steps her division has to take to protect the port evolve with them. “Planning for something that you know is going to change tomorrow or a week from now can be difficult. But it makes you really think and anticipate and plan,” Tutson said, noting cyber security and drones as two emerging focus areas. In August, Tutson is starting her MBA at California State University, Long Beach.