John Haight

Background

About John Haight

My main work experience comes from my time working at the City of Cocoa. This experience exposed me to a lot of the different aspects that go into the operation of and management of such an organization. I assisted the city manager and other department directors with various assignments and projects that tied into the daily operations of the city government. From sitting in on meetings with both internal and external agents, to assisting in research regarding specific ordinances and other information that would influence management decisions, as well as helping compile documents allowing for a more concise city plan. These are some of the experiences which showed me a side of organizational function, be it a government or other type of organization, I previously did not truly appreciate, and that was all the different people and aspects required to achieve a common goal.My previous experience with leadership and management comes from my time in the Boy Scouts of America, particularly the process of planning, organizing, and executing my Eagle Scout project. I earned this award in the fall of 2018 after months of effort. It required 7 months of coordinating fund raising, labor and materials totaling a final project cost of $5,800 to cordon off a parking area to allow secure community events. A big part of my project was jointly planned in coordination with the trustee of the church, from organizing project plans, managing costs, and gaining approval for the project from local government authorities. Organizing and funding of this project was a project in itself. It required several fundraising efforts, solicitation of donations, as well as receiving grants from two local nonprofit organizations. Donations included some freely given material and other instances required negotiation of discounted material from local businesses wishing to support the project. In addition, I also coordinated the donation of services from a professional mason and fence installer including the donation of additional material cost to the project. Another aspect of organization and leadership included the management of 26 volunteers, which included other scouts and their parents. It took a total of three scheduled workdays to complete the project. Each day involved assigning volunteers to tasks and time management. Overall, the project took an investment of 240 volunteer man hours.I learned a lot about the effort behind projects such as these, from all aspects including fundraising to managing people. Watching the project come to fruition was a truly satisfying experience.