Aaron Desrochers

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In 2008 I started working as a software developer/bookkeeper for Data Systems Inc., a Burlington-based software company that specializes in customized order fulfillment, accounting, and E-commerce solutions. The logical principles I acquired in my mathematics education helped greatly in the transition to programming logic in PROIV, a fourth generation rapid application development language. Accounting principles were easy to pick up on, especially after getting through Calc III and Real Analysis!

Data Systems is structured as a worker cooperative; I’ll admit before I began working at DSI I had never heard of a worker coop before. For those in the same boat as me, worker cooperatives are business entities that are owned and controlled by their members, the people who work in them. So after a year of satisfactory employment I was offered the opportunity to purchase an ownership share in the Data Systems coop. I accepted and became one of Data Systems worker-owners. A few years later I became Data Systems’s president after a vote by the board of directors. I wear a lot of hats currently as is common at many worker coops and am involved in software development, customer support, business administration and sales.

Working at DSI has truly been a blessing, as a worker owner I have to opportunity to be my own boss and have a say in the direction of our company, as well as a share in the profits. We are currently supporting clients using legacy software applications, but hope to work on some new web-based applications for the wider ‘Coop Economy’. Currently I am an organizer for a burgeoning network of worker coops in Northern VT, known as the Green Mountain Cooperative Alliance.

Most importantly for me, my work/life balance is excellent and I have the freedom to spend lots of quality time with my wife, our 5 year old son, and 2 year old daughter. I truly believe that my mathematics degree from Saint Michael’s has helped me stand out from the crowd at every job interview I have ever been on and has opened many doors for me so far. My thanks go out the fantastically dedicated teachers at Saint Mike’s who helped make this all possible!