Ben Cockrell
Director
Drive
Ben Cockrell
Director
Suite 300
Austin TX 78746
About
Ben, a native of Tallahassee, attended Florida State University for his undergraduate degree followed by Tulane University for his MBA. After college, he was commissioned as a Logistics Officer in the U.S. Army—an experience that empowered him with core values such as honor, integrity, leadership, and courage. He left the Army with the rank of Captain, and moved to his wife Lauren’s hometown of New Orleans.
Mr. Cockrell’s role at Benchmark International is to learn and understand business owners’ growth and exit strategies to create innovative solutions that can unlock their full business value. His experience working in procurement in a manufacturing organization provides him with a unique operational perspective of the pain points that small businesses face. As a former Army Captain, he applies a high sense of purpose, direction, and motivation to help business owners execute their mission and achieve their strategic goals.
Skills
Business Strategy, Capital Allocation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, Communication, Leadership, Team Building, Strategic Sourcing, Working Capital Management, Risk Management, Capital Allocation, Contract Negotiation, Accounting, Manufacturing
Candor
Loyal
experience
Ben was a purchasing and stores manager responsible for securing goods and services for a paper mill. He worked with a lot of small and local business negotiating the price, terms, and conditions for a plethora of things including facility HVAC services, maintenance agreements, construction projects, and repair parts. He was responsible for managing warehouse (Mill Store) of over $34 million dollars of repair and maintenance parts that supported the facilities operations. He understood the pain points with managing working capital cash flows. He negotiated with both small and large businesses and had a unique perspective of the competitive landscape those businesses faced. Being a key customer for these small businesses, he understood how their products were marketed and sold. Ben said what drew him to work at Benchmark International was to find a career that satisfied his intellectual curiosity, challenging him to grow every day, and allowing him to help people along the way. Benchmark International hits the mark on all of these for him, and he will receive great satisfaction from helping clients maximize their business goals.
education
Florida State University - Political Science
Tulane University - Master of Business Administration, concentration in Finance
Passion
Ben believes the American dream was founded on the backs of small business and the bedrock of the world economy lies within the middle to lower market. He is honored to work with business owners and assist them in achieving their strategic goals. He believes working with Benchmark International enables these business to achieve their dreams in ways no other firm can match.
charity
Ben is a volunteer of the United Way of South East Louisiana and has served on the International Paper John Willis golf tournament planning committee.