There are plenty of reasons Austin is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country: a wealth of outdoor activities, a flourishing restaurant scene, lively nightlife, a diverse population, affordable homes, and more.
But any list of the reasons people are drawn to the city would be incomplete without including its thriving job market. In 2022, the Wall Street Journal chose Austin as the number one job market in the United States.
As a job seeker in this top-ranked market, it can take a lot of research to navigate the city’s many opportunities and identify their ideal position. Postings and company websites can provide helpful information, but it’s even better to hear directly from employees about the qualities, details and perks that led them to lay down roots.
For John Kollus, director of North America sales at Enverus, culture and trust are key draws. “I’ve always felt a very strong level of support within the company, especially with senior leadership. It’s nice to be able to reach out to any executive at the company, and they will take your call and help come up with a solution to a problem.”
For Alejandro Moreno-Paz and April Gentry, having the team unified around their companies’ missions — conserving water, which is the fastest-growing utility, for Banyan Water and modernizing the real estate industry for ClosingLock — has been the biggest factor in their engagement and retention.
Built In Austin interviewed these three leaders to hear firsthand what makes their organizations noteworthy.
Enverus is a SaaS company solely focused on the energy industry, transforming the decision-making process via insightful data and cloud technology.
As a tenured employee, what has been the biggest reason you’ve stayed at your company so long?
I started with Enverus about four years ago and it has been an exciting experience overall. The reason I’ve stayed with Enverus for so long comes down to a couple of key factors: culture and trust.
I’ll start with culture. I absolutely love our company’s culture: it is incredibly collaborative, we have fun, we work hard as one team and we’re known to have some friendly competition internally to strive to meet our objectives. There is never a dull moment.
Next is trust. I’ve always felt a very strong level of support within the company, especially with senior leadership. It’s nice to be able to reach out to any executive at the company, they will take your call and help come up with a solution to a problem. The communication across the company from executive leadership all the way across our internal teams really adds to my trust in the company’s goals, objectives and vision for where we’re going now and in the future.
To have the breadth and depth that we do when it comes to data, analytics and technology to help our customers pave the way in this space is what excites me the most.”
What excites you most about where your company is headed or, more specifically, the work you’ll do to help your company get there?
Enverus is such a well-diversified SaaS company serving the entire energy market. Whether it is upstream, midstream, downstream, trading or power and renewables. Personally, I’m excited about the quickly evolving and growing market in the power and renewables space. To have the breadth and depth that we do when it comes to data, analytics and technology to be able to help our customers make big time decisions to pave the way in this space is what excites me the most. We’re only in the first or second inning and the next 3 to 5 years should be an incredible ride.
Businesses of all sizes use Banyan Water’s software to track and analyze water usage for optimized preservation and savings.
As a tenured employee, what has been the biggest reason you’ve stayed at your company so long?
What keeps me at Banyan Water is the tight-knit group that we have cultivated here. We are all hardworking and dedicated to the company mission of using technology and data to save water and do good. As a small but growing company, we all have a seat at the table when it comes to ideas, feedback and new initiatives.
The cost of water continues to rise — it’s one of the fastest growing utilities — and so the need for technology continues to be more and more important.”
What excites you most about where your company is headed or, more specifically, the work you’ll do to help your company get there?
Looking into the future, the company is at an inflection point. The cost of water continues to rise — it’s one of the fastest growing utilities — and so the need for technology for both current and future customers continues to be more and more important. We have put a lot of work into new product features that will give our customers better insight into their water savings and management.
Real estate tech company ClosingLock created software used by industry professionals to securely exchange sensitive documents and information and streamline transactions.
What was the deciding factor for you when you accepted your job at your current company, and why?
I had been with my previous company for 3 years and watched their success and headcount skyrocket over the course of that time. While I enjoyed everyone I worked with — colleagues and industry contacts — I felt as though I’d hit a ceiling with growth and experimentation. Getting back to the energetic startup world really appealed to me. I love to build teams and processes and wear many hats, so the transition felt like the perfect next step in my career.
I personally thrive in an autonomous environment because, for me, it allows for more creativity and that will always beat out the alternative. But meeting the team and experiencing the energy around their mission was the cherry on top!
There’s a real sense of curiosity and open-mindedness here that is hard to find.”
Looking to the future, what excites you most about where your company is headed or, more specifically, the work you’ll do to help your company get there?
There’s a real sense of curiosity and open-mindedness here that is hard to find in general. The real estate industry is such a complex field to work in that it takes clarity to see what’s needed and then develop solutions to improve the process. The team here is always looking for ways to create a better, more modern experience for the consumer and I think within the next few months, as our product suite evolves, it will showcase our resolve to provide advanced solutions.
I’m thrilled to partner with other like-minded individuals within the real estate space to create unique ways to better serve our mutual title partners. I genuinely enjoy learning from title experts, as well — and there’s no better way to learn than endless curiosity. As a performer at heart, creating meaningful relationships is an invaluable resource and I cannot wait to see how together we can solve some of the prominent issues facing real estate today.
