Meet the New Hires, Part 2
We love meeting new co-workers! In 2023, NCMIC has hired 24 new faces including Kaci Wiegand, Loren Lorentzen, Joe Stacy, Michael Tuttle, Hattie Hupke and Kena Bonner. Let’s get to know them!
Kaci Wiegand
Lead IT Audit Analyst
Tell us about yourself: I have two children – my son Remy is 6 and my daughter Halen is 4.
What convinced you to apply for a job at NCMIC? Ultimately, I was recruited! But after researching the company, I knew I had to go for it.
What’s been the best thing about working here? The people.
What do you like to do in your spare time? Run/exercise, play golf, try new restaurants, travel – all with my family.
What’s one fact about you that would surprise your coworkers? Prior to taking this role, I was headed to the Netherlands to attend law school. Ultimately, that did not work out for my family, but I had been admitted to study International and European Union Law with an apprenticeship in the Hague. I had even started learning Dutch!
This or That?
Email or phone call? Email. I’m an introvert by nature.
Early bird or night owl? Definitely an early bird. I can’t stay awake later than 9! Haha.
WFH or in the office? Both. I came from a role that was fully remote. I enjoy the flexibility of being home, but also enjoy in-person collaboration and conversation, when needed.
Organized or messy desk? Oh, absolutely organized.
Ability to fly or ability to read minds? Fly. I am actually terrified of airplanes and flying, so maybe this would help curb that fear. Also, it would be a huge perk to go anywhere in the world that I wanted to!
End war or end world hunger? War never changes.
See into the future or change the past? Neither.
Lauren Lorentzen
Systems Administrator III
Tell us about yourself: I have been married to my husband Jess for 19 years. We have 2 kids, Cedric (11) and Brynn (3), and a cat named Mocha.
What convinced you to apply for a job at NCMIC? A recruiter sent me a message over LinkedIn and the description of the position and company culture caught my interest. Both professionally and personally it was a perfect fit. I never respond to cold call type situations, but I made an exception this time because it was too good to pass up, even for an introvert like me.
What’s been the best thing about working here? The genuine support of and interest in me as a person. My family suffered a major loss this summer when my younger sister, and only sibling, passed away in tragic circumstances. I am so thankful for understanding, help, and support I received, and continue to receive, from my managers and coworkers. I can’t overstate how significant that has been in helping me heal and move forward.
What do you like to do in your spare time? Reading, gardening, and extremely casual computer gaming.
What’s one fact about you that would surprise your coworkers? I go through books like potato chips, and I am (slowly) relandscaping a part of my backyard into a food forest. Basically, layering all kinds of perennial plants like large and small trees, shrubs, vines, ground cover, and root crops in ways to complement and support each other.
This or That?
Email or phone call? Email
Early bird or night owl? Early bird
WFH or in the office? WFH, but only because I dislike driving and will avoid it if I can. This one is hard because I really like the balance of hybrid.
Organized or messy desk? Organized
Ability to fly or ability to read minds? Fly (I’m so short you guys, this would be extremely helpful. 😅)
End war or end world hunger? World hunger
See into the future or change the past? See the future.
Joe Stacy
Sr. System Administrator
Tell us about yourself: I was recently married to my wife Jamie. We had a small private family wedding in April, followed by a large public ceremony on RAGBRAI outside of Carroll.
We have four children ranging in age from 11 to 23. My two daughters are Karma (23) who works for Waukee Schools, and Charysma (11) who attends Waukee middle school. Jamie's daughters are Sydney (18) who is in food science at ISU and Savannah (15) who attends Ankeny Junior High.
What convinced you to apply for a job at NCMIC? The job opportunity was brought to me by my recruiter Sarah from Palmer group. I was looking to move into a company that shared my core values, and NCMIC hit many of those. Additionally, whenever I mentioned the NCMIC opportunity to others many people responded by saying that is a REALLY good company... That made the decision very easy.
What’s been the best thing about working here? I love the intangible benefits, primarily the staff. Working with good people makes all the difference in the world.
What do you like to do in your spare time? I love to ride bicycles. Additionally, I am in to camping and running.
What’s one fact about you that would surprise your coworkers? I used to be into running ultramarathons. I have competed in foot races up to 100 miles and last greater than 24 hours.
This or That?
Email or phone call? Both! I love email for concise messages however, I love phone call for more personal responses.
Early bird or night owl? I am more of a night owl, but I do enjoy waking up early to go running.
WFH or in the office? I am an office person. In the past I have spent many years working from home. The office provides separation that I like.
Organized or messy desk? I like my desk neat and uncluttered.
Ability to fly or ability to read minds? Read minds by far.
End war or end world hunger? World hunger.
See into the future or change the past? See into the future. I would be afraid of what changing the past would do!
Michael Tuttle
Lead Data Analyst.
Tell us about yourself: I have a wonderful wife Jessica, a 2-and-a-half-year-old son Owen, and a cairn terrier named Darla.
What convinced you to apply for a job at NCMIC? I already knew the kind of company NCMIC was, and this analyst role was one that I could really get into what I love about data and use it to drive the business.
What’s been the best thing about working here? Being with humans in the office again. I loved working from home with my dog, but I need people.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I enjoy spending time with my family the most, but I also really enjoy cooking, golf, and movies.
What’s one fact about you that would surprise your coworkers? I am left-handed and own a pair of lefty scissors
This or That?
Email or phone call? Phone call
Early bird or night owl? Early bird
WFH or in the office? Office
Organized or messy desk? Messy desk
Ability to fly or ability to read minds? Ability to fly
End war or end world hunger? World hunger
See into the future or change the past? See into the future
Hattie Hupke
Finance Contract Associate
Tell us about yourself: I am engaged to my fiancé Edin, and have a dog, Dexter. I have plans to get married in 2024, I love to travel and am big on sports!
What convinced you to apply for a job at NCMIC? The environment and all I had heard about how true it is that NCMIC does take care of their own.
What’s been the best thing about working here? Super helpful co-workers and an amazing supervisor; connecting with people and having fun moments. Being trusted to be taken care of if I work hard at what I do!
What do you like to do in your spare time? I love spending time with my friends and family. I like to go for walks or hikes, finding a new park or traveling far for one with my fiancé. I also like to play video games and watch crime in my spare time.
What’s one fact about you that would surprise your coworkers? I had my thumb shut in a van door when I was 3 so my left thumb’s growth was stunted and it’s a toe-thumb, to be honest! 😃
This or That?
Email or phone call? Email
Early bird or night owl? Early bird
WFH or in the office? WFH
Organized or messy desk? Organized
Ability to fly or ability to read minds? Ability to fly
End war or end world hunger? World hunger
See into the future or change the past? Change the past
Kena Bonner
Merchant Service Representative
Tell us about yourself: I’m a single mom of two boys, ages 16 and 4. I was born in Chicago, but I grew up in Des Moines. Some of my hobbies are music and sports.
What convinced you to apply for a job at NCMIC? I found the description of the job to be very interesting. I was able to picture myself doing the work being described and enjoy the work that I would be doing.
What’s been the best thing about working here? Being able to work with wonderful people who has made me feel more than welcome and encouraged.
What do you like to do in your spare time? In my spare time I’m usually doing some sort of family activity with my boys, and spending time with family.
This or That?
Email or phone call? Phone call
Early bird or night owl? Early bird
WFH or in the office? Both
Organized or messy desk? Organized desk
Ability to fly or ability to read minds? Ability to fly
End war or end world hunger? End war
See into the future or change the past? See into the future