Randall White enlisted in the Air Force after high school in 1980. He was initially stationed at Barksdale AFB before being reassigned to Dyess AFB in his hometown of Abilene, Texas. While on active duty working in finance for the Air force, White pursued a BBA in Computer Information Systems by taking night classes at McMurry.
“My major has helped me tremendously,” White began. “Even though when I was learning computers that were all the size of your living room couch and you could only program them on cardboard punch cards. My degree laid a great foundation for me to continue to learn how to apply computers to the finance field.”
When White completed his degree and got his commission from the Air Force, he decided to continue in the finance sector in the Air Force since he’d enjoyed it so much.
White moved to 12 different assignments in the Air Force, including being a Squadron Commander twice, the director of financial management at the US Air Force Academy, the director of financial management at the Air Armament Center at Eglin AFB, and finally as the director of budget operations integration at the Pentagon. On his last assignment, White was in charge of a budget execution for all Air Force operation and maintenance funds—about $46 billion.
Since retiring from the Air Force, White has been CFO at two different community colleges.
“Working for a community college is a huge challenge,” White explained. “Funding is always less than what is needed, and it takes a significant amount of skill to make it all work out.”
For those wanting to pursue a career in finance, White explains that to be successful, you need to be knowledgeable in many areas of a business, administration, etc. He advises students to pay attention in all your business classes, not just the ones that you think will be important.
“Communication is especially important,” White emphasized. “Learn as much as you can about both effective written and spoken communication. After college, continue to learn, especially about leadership skills—you will need them.”