A Minute With...
It takes all kinds of people with all kinds of skills to provide our professional services. Here’s how some of our employees spend their days at Bartlett & West.
Dustin Kaiser
Survey Manager
Q. Who are your clients?
A. The clients I have are general contractors, who may need construction staking for various types of construction activities which may include streets, stormwater, sanitary sewer and waterline locations. Other clients include engineering firms who may not have survey capabilities, as well as rural and regional water districts, and local and state governments.
Q. What is unique about your job?
A. My position allows me to have the flexibility of working outside or in the office. I also get to be a part of projects from beginning to end, which is very satisfying.
Q. What do you do in your job?
A. My job can range from being in the office or out in the field. While in the office I may be getting copies of deeds and surveys from the County Recorders Office, writing easements or property descriptions for rural and regional water districts, local and state governments, property boundary calculations, downloading survey data that was acquired while in the field and giving it to our techs to begin working on and meeting with project managers.
The work I do in the field for projects can range from setting survey control for aerial mapping, topographic surveys, property boundary surveys and construction staking.
Q. What's your day like?
A. I usually begin my work day loading the survey truck with survey equipment. Some of the survey equipment costs more than the survey truck we take to the project site!
I will then drive to the project site which sometimes can take a few minutes to a few hours. The project site can range from a wide open pasture to a heavily wooded area or can be a construction site with heavy construction equipment moving around the site. Once at the site we determine what survey equipment would be best to use for that particular project. Usually we will be in the field all day, except for rain days and that is when we do our office work.
Q. Why do you like working at Bartlett & West?
A. I really enjoy working with my fellow employees and the clients we serve. The size of our office is great because we are big, but not too big. Bartlett & West makes you feel you are a valued asset to the company and that you're not just another employee.
Jason Fetch
GIS Project Manager 
Q. Why do you like working at Bartlett & West?
A. I like our culture and the opportunity it offers. I have had the support I need to excel in my job and advance as a professional. I always feel I am a valued member of the Bartlett & West team and enjoy the people I work with. I also love the interaction I have with our clients. It makes all of your efforts feel worthwhile when you see our clients actively using the applications we have developed for them. To witness their reaction upon the successful completion of a project is a great feeling.
Q. What do you do in your job?
A. In my job I develop solutions. I work with many types of Information Systems including Geographic Information Systems and Management Information Systems. I try to leverage our GIS and MIS capabilities to build better efficiency and effectiveness into our clients, and our internal, business processes. To accomplish this I need to have a very close relationship with the people I work with on projects so I can get a thorough understanding of their needs.
Q. Who are your clients?
A. I am very fortunate to have a wide variety of both internal and external clients. My external clients include rural and regional water systems, federal and local government agencies, municipalities, and most recently I have started working with several energy companies. Internally, I help support engineers, technicians and administors by incorporating advancing technologies into their daily work, which allows them to complete their duties more quickly and effectively.
Q. What is unique about your job?
A. The most unique thing about my job is it has no boundaries. You often hear the phrase “think outside the box” as a mantra to inspire innovative thinking. In the case of the technologies we are developing, there really is no “box.” We are only bound by the limitations of our creativeness. It seems every conversion I have with our GeoInfo Division spurs new innovation. This aspect of my job always keeps me focused on future possibilities and motivated to continually move forward.
Q. What’s your day like?
A. My day goes by pretty fast. Because of the work I do with Information Systems, I have some level of involvement on almost every project my office is working on. On some projects I function as the project manager, on others I provide technical support, and on others I develop custom applications to make people's jobs easier. The best part of my job is that it is constantly changing and it seems each day brings a new challenge and an opportunity to be innovative. This keeps my days interesting and rewarding.
 Chris Cobb
Information Systems Manager
Q. Why do you like working at Bartlett & West?
A. Bartlett & West is a great fit for me. The company is large enough that it needs to invest heavily in Information Technology. It’s progressive enough to understand the value of a strong internal Information Systems team. And it’s small enough that it still feels like a family.
Q. What do you do in your job?
A. Manage the Information Systems team's day-to-day activities and projects, and act as a liaison between the team and senior company leadership. In the course of any given day, this can mean just about anything from addressing helpdesk tickets, to company-wide initiatives. I like to get involved at the technical level wherever possible, but also enjoy people management and working with business leaders.
Q. Who are your clients?
A. I consider everyone that depends upon Bartlett & West a customer. This would include employees, clients, business partners, and our community.
Q. What is unique about your job?
A. I’m lucky enough to work in a field that most people can only consider a hobby and I really love what I do. No two days are ever the same—the variety really keeps me interested and challenged. Working in Information Systems requires a willingness to continually adapt and change to new things. Our customers rely upon us in so many ways. We have to have the ability to learn and support literally hundreds of applications, some of which we have never seen before. I really enjoy the challenge.
Q. What’s your day like?
A. I start each day with a list of goals I want to accomplish that leaves some time for the inevitable support calls and inquiries that come along. I never seem to leave enough time for the unforeseen things that I encounter. Luckily, I really thrive in a fast-paced environment with multiple balls in the air. I try to end each day by closing out my goals and thinking about what I will be working on tomorrow.
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