GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) - Many people use a map on their phone when it comes to finding where they’re going. One Gulfport company plays a major part in that, mapping nearly every corner of the globe.
“I guarantee you without even knowing it, you’ve seen something GEO Jobe has been involved in,” said David Hansen, CEO of GEO Jobe.
Hansen’s company is a leader in one of the most influential and least known industries in existence.
“GEO Jobe is an organization that is made up of a group of people that want to change the world through geospatial technology.”
Using and creating the latest in mapping technology, GEO Jobe serves 12,000 organizations around the world and is partnered with Esri, one of the biggest suppliers of GIS software.
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“Map-making is still a real career that exists, and the demand for maps has increased. Everyone has access to GIS on their phones and in the field to work with it. When I started working in GIS, that was a dream at best, and now we’re watching the rapid advancement of technology.”
Hansen believes most people would be surprised to learn how influential the technology he deals with impacts their lives.
“People would be surprised by how much it’s related to the supply chain for our food. I guarantee you if you’ve eaten a cheeseburger somewhere, there’s been some level of GIS involved that also involved GEO Jobe.”
Hansen first discovered the possibilities of mapping while he was a student at Gulfport High School. He quickly turned his curiosity into ingenuity.
“I got a special achievement award in GIS at the age of 19 and got hooked on building everything that I could to help the world.”
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More than two decades later in his company headquarters on Courthouse Road, Hansen leans on the creativity of 50 employees to stay ahead in the ever-changing world of technology.
“This environment creates comfort, which allows for creativity, and that’s important for us to compete on that global scale.”
Hansen has made a commitment to keep GEO Jobe in his hometown.
“We’re seen as the fattest, dumbest, poorest state in the union. However, we must understand that we have to take control of what’s going on in that narrative. We have to, when we go out nationally and internationally, represent ourselves in a way that challenges that narrative.”
Hansen’s motivation to change the perception of his home state includes a commitment to equipping a future workforce with skills needed to stay ahead in a changing landscape.
“When we invest in someone learning computer science, learning AI, they have a job in the community. We don’t have to have that brain drain where we train them and then leave the community. They can stay here and work at GEO Jobe.”
He has big aspirations for GEO Jobe going forward.
“My goal is $126 million in tech jobs over a ten-year period here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. That’s what matters to me. It might seem like a crazy goal, but you’ve got to be crazy to do big things in life.”
GEO Jobe is part of an initiative called “Map This,” working to keep geography education in schools.
According to Hansen, the company also partners with multiple charity organizations on the Coast including Lynn Meadows Discovery Center, Back Bay Mission, Mississippi Heroes and local schools.
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For more information on GEO Jobe, visit geo-jobe.com.
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