Geno Gardner isn’t your typical Community Manager at JP Morgan Chase. While he clocks in every weekday, his focus extends far beyond personal or corporate gain. Gardner builds trust and teaches financial education in underserved communities to show up for Birmingham. And while most workforce traits are developed within a company, Gardner got his start at an early age when he enlisted in the Army.
Gardner attended Proviso West High School in Illinois, and while he took his education seriously, he had no idea what he would do after he graduated.
“I knew by my junior year that I didn’t want to go to college,” Gardner said. “We had a career day at my high school, and you bet your bottom dollar I was there. The Army was there, and they were dressed in greens. I saw them in their uniform, and I loved how [the recruiter] looked in that uniform. I love the discipline, poise. I said, ‘I want to do that,’”…