Well, hello there, welcome to my first blog post! My name is Andrew Marks, and I am majoring in Business Management with a focus on Management and Marketing. After having attended Alvernia University from 2008-2011, I unfortunately had to walk away from my first bachelor’s degree in political science due to personal family reasons. In the Fall of 2022, I finally made the decision to finish what I had started, but this time in business. Penn State is a staple in my family, with a majority of my in-laws being alumni. Being a Pennsylvania native myself, it was an easy choice for me to decide where I should complete my degree. I am excited for this journey to close one chapter of my life and open a whole new one.
I reside in the keystone state with my wife, Sarah and our 7-year-old daughter, Michaela. We have 2 dogs, 3 cats, a snake and a turtle (we are huge animal lovers!). We love to spend our time as a family, doing arts and crafts, going for walks with our dogs, watching movies, etc. Some of my interests include, investing, card collecting, playing video games and learning. I currently work full-time at Barry Callebaut, the world’s largest chocolate supplier, as a Sr. Financial Analyst and Controller for the North American Region. My company supplies the cocoa powder to large candy making corporations such as, Hershey, Godiva, Lindt, etc. I am in charge of advising everyone on where to best allocate their funds. Some of my accomplishments are, Black Belt Certification in Lean Six Sigma, member of the National Eagle Scout Association, and member of the World Campus Student Advisory Board.
I am taking this class as it is a requirement for my major. But being a Sr. Financial Analyst, I heavily rely on many of the systems that are being discussed in this class and have also always wanted to learn the ins-and outs of all these programs. I am familiar with Tableau, Minitab, Data Studio, and many of the other programs that Microsoft uses. I have been in manufacturing for over 13 years, climbing from operator to senior level Financial Analyst. I use every opportunity I can as a chance to learn something new. I love my current career and what I do, but my ultimate goal is to open a business with my wife. That is why finishing my degree and absorbing everything that I learn is very important to me.
I have wanted to do this for myself and for my family for a very long time. Now that I have finally taken the leap, I am going to give it 110%. I feel like I am finally at a place in my life to commit to this and set an example for my daughter. I know she is watching me, and I hope that she follows in my footsteps one day. The world of business is fascinating and opens doors to so many diverse career paths for everyone. I look forward to putting the knowledge that I learn in this class toward not only into my current position, but all future endeavors as well. Here’s to accomplishing my goals!
Thank you, dear readers, for stopping by. I wish you all nothing but the best of luck as you navigate through your own journeys.
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- My family
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- My little girl
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- Merlin & Elliot
Hey Andrew,
I think it is really neat that you are trying to better yourself and learn more about business in order to put yourself in the best position to reach your goals. I think it is awesome that you have both cats and dogs, because I had always assumed they wouldn’t get along most of the time. I also enjoy playing some video games from time to time and was wondering what some of your favorites are? I wish you the best of luck this semester and I hope you are able to make it to the position of VP, CEO, or Director of a company one day.
Hello pbm.
My we used to have two older cats named Isabella, (Bells or Bella for short), she is still alive and kicking after 14 years and Smidgen who recently passed last year. Sadly, Smidgen had liver failure and was not given long to live so we had to call the vet to put her at peace. We still have Bella and gained two new kittens this year. Zues and Luna. Since the dogs were familiar with the older cats, they had no issues. Now that we have two new kittens, we are careful not to leave the two alone with the dogs. Elliot, my pit bull would love to tear them apart. We had a dog trainer out to help mitigate and traverse the waters and he has been better, but we still do not trust them alone with one another.
Some of my current favorite games if I have time are League of Legends on the desktop. I love the classics like Toejam and Earl for Sega, Mario Kart for N64 and various others. I have a Steam account that has a couple hundred games not to mention every system since the dawn of time. How about you?
As for the career ambitions, the sky is the limit. We have to continue to strive to better ourselves.
Good luck this semester and if you need anything feel free to reach out!
Andrew
Hi Andrew,
First, I wanted to express my appreciation for the lovely scenery on your blog. It’s breathtaking.
Secondly, I want to acknowledge your dedication to your career path goals of pursuing higher education concerning furthering your advancement in the financial world. I am impressed that you presently have over 13 years of experience in your field. I was pleasantly surprised when I explored the percentage rates of financial analysts who complete their degree and successfully make it into the corporate arena. I can see that you are well on your way to achieving your goal, as it has a high success rate. The field seemed marketable with a qualified individual with a bachelor’s degree and three to five years of experience, but I also saw how competitive it could be. I recently read that this market is growing exponentially and turning toward those who obtained their MBA. I periodically go to the following financial media website, Investopedia, for up-to-date information. I thought you might be interested in reading the following online article, “Financial Analyst: Career Path and Qualifications.” Here is the link; I hope you find it useful: https://www.investopedia.com/articles/financial-advisors/121815/financial-analyst-career-path-qualifications.asp.
Let me know what you think.
Best,
Keena
Hello Keena,
Thank you for such lovely comments about my background. Being an Eagle scout, I figured it was a good correlation between my career ambitions and nature. The mountain to me represents the highest peak that we can achieve. Even then, the sky is the limit, and we can go further into the atmosphere should we set minds to the impossible.
My experiences were not always within a Financial Analyst. After hard work and determination, I have moved within various roles over the years. I had recently been turned down for the lack of the degree for a job within a previous employer. This was one of the reasons why I am pursing my degree more passionately within the last year. I never want to be turned down for a job due to “the lack of education” required to do the job. With that sad, once I complete my Bachelors, I intend on continue education until I get a Master’s or Ph. D.
The field is indeed growing, my job title is complicated because back in the early stages it was called a Site Controller. I basically control all the financial aspects for the entire North American sites. I have 3 sites that I am currently managing. Some responsibilities in my area are, Supply Chain Management, Logistics between the facilities, payroll, and CAPEX (Captial Expense) projects such as acquiring new buildings. Over the next few months, we are finalizing a contract to purchase a new warehouse. With this move, we are internalizing our entire Logistics Operation from start to finish.
Tonight, I will look over the link you provided.
All the best,
Andrew Marks