Spencer Hockman
Current Role/Title:
I am currently a Commercial Loan Officer with Central Bank of Boone County. In this role, I get to help the community I grew up in expand by helping our business community with their various financing needs. My day-to-day is never the same, which keeps me on my toes, but a normal day consists of prospecting or meeting with customers, underwriting loans, maintaining my portfolio, and a variety of other tasks.
How did you end up in your current position?
In the fall of 2019, I went to the career fair and talked with Pete Langston, now an SVP and head of Loan Review, about internships. After a phone interview and lunch with other officers of the bank, I accepted a Loan Review Analyst position in Jefferson City for the summer of 2020. Thankfully, Central Bank was able to keep my internship open during COVID, while so many of my peers lost theirs. It was a great experience that led to another internship within the Boone County Market during the ’21 spring semester.
In my new role, I worked on the Credit Administration side helping with the processing of the PPP loan applications and PPP loan forgiveness applications. It was around April when the job posting for a Commercial Loan Officer role opened in the Boone County market, and I applied as soon as I saw it. After formal interviews, I accepted the position and have been in this role since June 1st, 2021.
In what ways has your Mizzou education/affiliation impacted your life since graduation?
Post graduation, a Mizzou affiliation is the gift that keeps on giving. I have been able to stay involved and give back to the Mizzou community. My favorite part has been mentoring and talking with graduating seniors within Trulaske about what their options are and helping them navigate that next chapter of life. I also try to wear Mizzou gear when I am traveling, and it amazes me how that gets conversations started with Alums across the world. Regarding a Mizzou education specifically, it equipped me with the general business knowledge and critical thinking skills to be a resource to business owners in many different sectors.
Why Mizzou—what makes Mizzou special?
The education at Mizzou is top notch. We have world class professors, faculty, and community. When you combine those three things, it is hard to not have a special experience at Mizzou.
Fondest memories while a student or faculty member here?
Mizzou has a knack for bringing people together from all walks of life. My favorite memory was the bus ride to our AB-InBev site visit during the MBA orientation. On the way, I struck up a conversation with the person sitting next to me, Josh Buchel. We talked about everything from his home country and their rich history to how we ended up at Mizzou. Over the two-year program, despite COVID, we ended up becoming close friends and remain good friends to this day.
In your spare time, what do you like to do?
My spare time consists of exercising with my wife before work and training/walking our dogs in the evenings. On the weekends, we will go for hikes and explore more rural parts of Missouri. Otherwise, we try to travel as much as we can and read on our back porch.