Aug. 21, 2023

This paid piece is sponsored by Novak Sanitary Service.

Dee Murray said yes to Sioux Falls despite never having set foot in the city because a move meant two things: a job with a company she’d fallen in love with and a better fit for her 10-year-old son than they had in Oklahoma.

“My main caveat to moving was the school system has to be good,” she said. “And we’ve had the best experience. As much as I like my home state, I want the best for my kid, and the schools here are miles ahead.”

For her supervisor, Chase Werwinski, a move to Sioux Falls held equal appeal. The Wisconsin native had been working in New Mexico and knew it wasn’t the right fit for him and his new wife, Jordan.

“I love it,” he said. “I’m very much a Midwest guy, and Sioux Falls is great.”

Both Werwinski and Murray were able to make moves and continue growing their careers thanks to Waste Connections, where they put their finance backgrounds to work in new roles at Novak Sanitary Service.

For Murray, it was an industry change after years of working in accounting for the oil and gas industry. She wanted to work for a utility provider and immediately connected with her interview team when applying as an assistant controller.

“When you’re in a room with a group of people from Waste Connections, you don’t know who is in what position. You can’t tell. Everyone treats everyone very much the same,” she said. “I fell in love with the company. It’s not fake. That’s the thing I really appreciate about this company – everyone is super nice and super approachable.”

The same goes for Sioux Falls, she said.

In one of her early experiences driving in winter weather, her car veered off the road, she recalled.

“And before I could even get roadside assistance, someone had pulled over and asked if I was stuck and said not to worry and they’d get me out,” she said. “It was butter on toast — they had me out of that ditch so quickly. It’s very nice how helpful people here are. I haven’t met a person I dislike.”

For Werwinski, Waste Connections became a second job out of college as his first one as a financial representative at a large corporation didn’t prove a fit.

He also began as an assistant controller and then was promoted to controller when he moved from Minnesota to New Mexico. When the company learned he preferred a Midwest location, he was offered the chance earlier this year to apply for a move to Sioux Falls that gave him further responsibility.

“I always enjoyed accounting, and here I had probably one of the best mentors and bosses I could have hoped for,” Werwinski said. “He was very good at figuring out how I learned best, and he helped me a lot.”

He and his wife, a speech language pathologist, also are loving Sioux Falls, he said.

“Whenever someone asks how I like my job, I always say I love it because I really do,” he said. “I can’t see myself working for any other company because of how well they treat me. They ask how my wife is doing and always make sure I like where I’m at and have what I need. I feel really cared about.”

Both Murray and Werwinski are examples of professionals able to put their financial skills to use supporting the industry, said Pat Draisey, Sioux Falls district manager.

“It’s a good fit for someone who wants to understand the whole business and not just the numbers side of things,” he said. “We look for recent college grads with an accounting or finance degree or those with accounting experience who might be looking to use it in a new industry.”

It’s common, even expected, that new hires in the area will move around, he said.

“That’s how you gain experience and ultimately take on your own location,” he said. “We have some people who enjoy seeing various areas of the country and others who ultimately settle in happily in one city – there’s just some movement along the way.”

His own career included time as a controller before he moved into operational leadership.

“It’s a strong path for someone who sees that as a potential future role,” he said. “The biggest thing for us is that we want to hire good people and train them. That’s why we’re so happy Chase and Dee have moved to our community. It’s always great to see good people coming into the area, and they’re both really good fits for our team.”

To learn more about career opportunities at Novak, click here.