Professional Experience
ARMtech Insurance Services Inc. | Business Analyst
August 2013 – Present
Act as liaison between internal and external stakeholders and developers on software issues in regard to MPCI and private-product crop insurance products. In this, I work both on problems as they arise and managing ongoing improvement projects. Projects managed in JIRA.
This position has given me great insight into the world of IT in general, and project management in particular. I better know, what I don’t know.
Blue Hat Trading. | Founder
July 2014 – January 2017
I started Blue Hat Trading as a DBA to trade liquid futures contracts for profit.
I did not like my ratio of capital/risk. And in 2017, I stopped trading and invested most of the capital in various oil and bond investments.
Ocho Gin Co. | Cotton Trader
April 2011 – July 2013
I assisted, educated, and executed transactions with producers in implementing cotton marketing strategies – including cash sales, forward contracting, futures, and options. Kept gin’s employees and customers up to date on developments and changes in the cotton market through both primary and secondary sources. Responsible for cotton being ginned on correct account, and shipped and invoiced to the buyer. Operated parent company’s FOB cotton buying firm for a short time. Designed break-even analysis for the gin to run forecasting models of profit and loss. And started IB branch office in the gin.
This was a position I enjoyed immensely. Particularly rewarding were the relationships with growers. We talked about cotton prices, put option spreads, the weather, and football.
Tru Trading Co. | Commodity Broker
April 2011 – July 2013
As a full-service commodity broker, I managed customers in their entry and exit from both hedged and speculative positions. Most of my business dealt with the hedging of physical cotton. Tru Trading Co. merged with Lone Star Portfolio Advisors, Inc. – where I originally started working – in November of 2012. I worked with Tru Trading Co. during my position at Ocho Gin. One day I simply asked: “If we are doing forward contracts and cash sales for customers, why can’t we allow them the option of hedging with futures and options too?” “Go do it,” was the response. And that is how I started as a commodity broker.
As a futures broker, this job allowed me to get my Series-3, which I still maintain as a CTA. I learned the ends and outs of the basic Introducing Broker world and what servicing a small book of customers entails.
Education
Texas Tech University | M.S., Agricultural and Applied Economics
2007 – 2009
After completing undergrad, and my first graduate degree, I spent almost two years unemployed being told I was either overqualified or didn’t have any experience. So what did I do? I went back to school and got another degree. I should have started this website that year.
The University of Texas at San Antonio | M.A., Economics
2003 – 2005
Towards the end of undergrad, I knew I wanted to go to grad school before I set out to conquer the world. I have fond memories of these two years as a carefree student and Teaching Assistant.
Texas Tech University | B.B.A, Economics
1999 – 2003
What is there to say about your undergraduate days? Wish I knew then what I knew now. But I doubt that kid would have even listened.
