Lisa Wessinger, Point of Rental’s new Data Analyst and Reporting Engineer, grew up wanting to work with computers, then spent her career falling in love with the rental industry.
“I was very good at math, and my sister said, ‘You can be a math teacher, or you can go into computer science,” Wessinger explained. So when she went to Louisiana State University in Shreveport, she prepared for a career in computer science and information technology. While attending college, though, she encountered the rental industry for the first time with Shreveport’s Mango Equipment as an office manager, executive assistant, and IT expert.
When she finished her degree, she moved to Dallas and pursued a career in the retail industry, doing IT work. It was enjoyable, but she found herself missing rental. When Mango Equipment opened up a place in the Dallas area and asked her to re-join the team, she jumped at the opportunity.
From there, she began building her career in rental. She continued developing software for Mango before moving to NES Rentals, where she trained new employees and customers and traveled throughout the country to ensure everyone was using their software properly. When NES cut back travel budgets due to the recession in 2008, Wessinger began working from home thanks to webinar technology. That allowed her to spend more time with her new daughter, Katelynn.
At work, she focused on integrating acquisitions’ databases. She consolidated 24 databases into one while providing documentation, doing testing, and troubleshooting for customers. Away from the computer, she was integrating herself into her daughter’s hobbies – swimming, art, music, and violin. She also is an active participant in Katelynn’s school, organizing parties for her and her friends.
When United Rentals acquired NES Rentals earlier in 2017, Wessinger found herself looking for a new job. After an entire career in the rental industry, she discovered Point of Rental for the first time.
“I looked at the website and read the newsletters and thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I want to work there so bad,’” Wessinger said. She applied for a bilingual trainer position, despite speaking only English, just to get her resume in the building. When CEO Wayne Harris saw her resume, he realized her second language was rental, and knew she’d be a perfect fit at Point of Rental.
After a decade working from home, the Point of Rental office is an exciting new place for Wessinger. In between helping customers and wrangling reports, she enjoys office traditions like Nerf Wars and Candy Friday. At the end of the day, though, it’s all about the customer for Wessinger.
As a Data Analyst and Reporting Engineer, she’ll be providing customized reports, allowing customers who want even more than the hundreds of available reports in Rental Expert to see exactly what they’re looking for. What’s the best part of working at Point of Rental? According to Wessinger, “I like being able to make customers happy.”
