Jeff Parker's Digital Resume

A Little Bit About Me

I really love being active in the outdoors and doing things with my hands. I am a passionate snowboarder and skier. In fact, I met my wife because we were both ski instructors (albeit at different resorts). I also like to fix up old bicycles and restore furniture. We purchased a cute 1930s house in Salt Lake that we have fixed up to rent. I love listening to Podcasts (Planet Money is my favorite). I am an 8th generation Utahn and love the everything my state has to offer.*
*I am willing to relocate (but I do love Utah)

Current Masters Student in a Premier Analytics Program

I have been very pleased with the phenomenal experience I have had while attending Northwestern’s Masters of Analytics program. There has been a recent influx of data science programs, however, I am thrilled to be part of one of the oldest and most mature masters program. Check out my cameo in the program's video advert here. In addition to excellent practicum, extra-curricular, and capstone projects, the program holds weekly socials with top employers, regular info sessions and polished employment events. The cohort is a refined mix of computer programmers and industry expertise. My noteworthy classes to date include Advanced Predictive Analytics, Data Mining, Optimization, Big Data, Data Visualization and Deep Learning.

See My NU Projects

Data-Driven Strategy Consultant

Before attending Northwestern, I was a business analyst at Cicero Group, a premier strategy consulting firm in Utah. I conducted applied data science for a variety of industries, delivering impactful results to clients. Often, we worked with clients to implement recommendations and conduct real world tests of our analyses. Since Cicero was a smaller, boutique firm, I also wore many hats including managing the firms IT vendor. Additionally, I led the development of a scalable dashboarding web portal with a virtual team of off-site developers.

See My Cicero Projects

Industry verticals and project aspects:

Fortune 100 and 500 Companies
Energy - Six Sigma
Waste Services – Customer Satisfaction and Product Design
Higher Ed – Alumni Tracking
Leadership Training - Segmentation
Healthcare – Product Marketing
Politics – Polling and Strategy
Banking – Data Warehousing Value
Online Lending – Customer Optimization

Account Manager and Reporting Analyst

After my undergraduate education, I joined a somewhat new “fin-tech” company in Boise, Idaho called Clearwater Analytics. The company provided a financial dashboard tool, similar to mint.com, but for large corporations. Here I cut my teeth on big data, backing into key and complex financial calculations displayed in clients’ dashboards. I worked closely with client's accountants and investors to set up regulatory reports and compliance rules. I built a reputation of being my teams go-to SQL expert.

While the client mix for Clearwater included a number of notable public companies and investment firms, I specialized in managing banking clients:

Wells Fargo
Goldman Sachs
Zion’s Bank
Bank of Oklahoma
Oppenheimer Investments

Proactively Involved Undergraduate Student

I am very glad I decided to attend Utah State and study economics. As an undergraduate, I heeded the council of the deans and “owned my education.” I took advantage of every opportunity available, both in and out of the classroom, to further my education. Through my proactive involvement, my tenure became “education” instead of just a “degree.” I am very proud of my time and accomplishments at Utah State.

See My USU Involvement

Cool Jobs I’ve Worked and Lessons Learned

Alaska Canopy Adventures

For 2 summers, I worked as a zip-line guide serving cruise ship passengers in Alaska. I learned how to multitask balancing tour entertainment while simultaneously moving the group through a potentially risky set of motor maneuvers. Confined space, group dynamics, and weather often complicated this. I was involved in a few high ropes rescues.

Park City Mountain Resort

For 1 winter, I taught children and adults to snowboard at a popular Utah ski resort. One of the perks of the jobs was complementary lessons from true professionals. Although I considered myself an expert, I learned from masters that there was a dedicated science to ski technique and studying fundamentals can improve even veterans' abilities.

Bar-T-5 Ranch

For 1 summer, I labored at a working ranch in Wyoming helping with all aspects of upkeep and a nightly dinner show. The owners western philosophy to business was different that I had ever encountered. I was surprised when what I took as junk was recycled and used to keep the ranch in shape. Hard work and grit were key. “Make hay while the sun shines.”

Local Small Businesses

Additionally, I have worked in manufacturing for a awning and boat cover manufacturer, as well as for a battery retail franchise and a small law firm. My relationship with the owners has taught me that it is really hard to be an entrepreneur and run a small business. However, with the hard work comes great satisfaction. The best rewards may not always be monetary.

I Would Love to Hear From You!

	jparker@u.northwestern.edu
	801-699-4700
	Jeff Parker
	jeffreyxparker Repositories are school and side projects as work projects are protected
	jeffreyxparker Consistent user of Stack Overflow

	jeffrey.x.parker@gmail.com
	jeffreyxparker I like posting pictures of old, classic vans and my wife
	Jeff Parker Not maintained - mostly college pictures
	Jeff Parker I enjoy home restoration, futurism art and baby clothes pins
	@jeffreyxparker Not used at all, same with Google+ and MySpace