Here is a short Q & A with Brennan Ladner, Accounting Analyst. Brennan joined the GEO Jobe team in January of 2020 and is based out of Gulfport, MS.
Q: What is your job at GEO Jobe, and what does that entail?
A: My official job title is Accounting Analyst. I am responsible for a variety of in-house financial and accounting tasks, which include managing accounts receivable, accounts payable, and payroll, as well as collecting and analyzing financial data for the CEO and Directors.
Q: What attracted you to joining the GEO Jobe team?
A: GEO Jobe is a fast-growing company with a solid foundation, a bright future, and all the perks of a smaller business. The team consists of highly-skilled professionals whose dedication to their work and their own self-improvement is the driving force behind the company’s constant evolution. Immersing myself into such a team reinforces my own drive for lifelong learning and growth.
Q: What are you currently working on/learning about?
A: I have been working on learning the advanced features of our billing system, especially as it pertains to detailed financial reporting. I am taking an online course and working toward certification in that software. I am also working on learning more about accounting and finance in general, as well as developing a better understanding of the GIS industry as a whole.
Q: What would you like to learn more about?
A: I look forward to learning more about the GIS industry, the products and services that GEO Jobe contributes to the industry, and the amazing things that our customers are able to accomplish. I would like to learn more about business data analytics and how GIS analysts are able to generate value for the organizations they support.
Brennan in his free time enjoys chainsaw milling
Q: Any advice for students entering the job market?
A: Use college as an opportunity to learn. In the long term, grades are less important than knowledge. Soak up as much as you can. Never assume that the minimum curriculum plan is enough. Ask great questions of your educators. You are building a foundation that will support your future career, make it solid.
Use college as an opportunity to practice. Join active clubs; volunteer for research; earn assistantships and internships that put you doing work in your field of study. Build a resume full of accomplishments–these are much more impressive than a list of position titles and their regular responsibilities.
Use college as an opportunity to network. Build professional relationships with the educators in your area of study, as well as anyone else whose research interests overlap with yours. Get to know their friends. Get close with your upperclassmen and keep in touch with them after they enter the job market. Go to conferences and trade shows. Collect business cards everywhere you go and use them to build relationships with your potential future employers and coworkers.
Q: On a more personal note, do you have a favorite newspaper, magazine, blog, or sources of inspiration?
A: As frequently as possible, I attend conferences of the International Organization of Social Sciences and Behavioral Research and conferences of the Academy of Business Research. These relatively small academic conferences offer opportunities to enjoy presentations by researchers from around the world in a setting that is highly conducive to conversation, networking, and professional relationship building.
Q: What kind of technology do you prefer and why? (Mac or PC, iOS or Android, and other cool tech)
A: Like most people, I tend to prefer the operating systems I first became accustomed to, which in my case is PC and Android. They both work great for what I do.
Q: What do you enjoy doing outside of the office?
A: Woodworking is a hobby that I find to be rewarding and productive. I recently built a monitor stand for my desk using ¾” white pine and pocket hole joinery, and plan to build additional storage solutions for my office space soon. To support this hobby, I am now getting into chainsaw milling. I look forward to processing trees that would otherwise be destined for waste or firewood into beautiful, workable lumber.
