When he was younger, Karl Crandall wanted to be an architect, professional skateboarder or truck driver. Ultimately, his journey led him to equipment finance, where instead of driving trucks, he helps those who want to lease them. As a senior consultant, Karl supports front-end development and delivery of technology. And he brings to that work more than 25 years of experience working with the lease and loan origination software platform.
What is your favorite thing about working at Tamarack
I love learning new things. The people at Tamarack are fun to engage and work with. I enjoy hearing the experiences of others, especially as we are in the same industry and can relate with similar stories.
What do you enjoy the most about your role at Tamarack?
I enjoy the diversity of assignments. There is always something new to experience, both in business process flows and applications. I enjoy meeting new people and learning about the business models they employ within their organizations.
What was your journey to Tamarack?
II began working at Wells Fargo in 1997 and made the move to their equipment finance business in 2000. In that role, I managed the front-end application, Rapport, for Wells Fargo Equipment Finance (WFEF) – from its 2003 preparation and delivery through its growth and life cycle to its eventual decommissioning in 2020. Over those years, I often used Tamarack and the extensive skillsets of their team members to assist in the creation of various interfaces to our other applications and data stores. In 2022, following the closure of Rapport at WFEF, Tamarack asked if I’d join the team. I was excited to be able to work with the platform again and have new opportunities to learn.
Tell us about your family.
I met my wife after being set up by my mother and have been happily married for 35 years. Our first date was a game of racquetball. We have three children: a daughter and two sons. Our daughter lives in northern Idaho with her family. One son lives with his family about 30 minutes south of us. Our younger son lives at home. My wife’s mother also lives with us.
Where do you call home?
I suppose my home is where I live with my family, here in Gilbert, Arizona (a suburb close to Phoenix). I enjoy not having to shovel snow or drive in it. I love the fresh citrus fruit in the backyards too. But I do miss the seasons.
When I was young, my parents were transferred often, and our family moved several times. I was born in New Jersey and have lived in Colorado, Arizona, Utah and Texas. I’ve returned to a few of those states more than once. I also lived in Venezuela for a couple years in the late ’80s.
What do you like to do outside of your work for Tamarack?
As a grandpa now, my favorite thing to do outside of work is to visit with my kids and their families. I also enjoy traveling with my wife, seeing history and scenery. I particularly like exploring and experiencing our nation’s history as well as histories of others as well. I could spend hours touring old castles, churches, forts, ships and things like that. I’d love to travel through Europe experiencing the older buildings, cultures, food and languages. If eventual retirement includes a relocation there, I’d be “all in” for that, as long as I could see the grandkids often. (The kids, well, meh…)
What is your favorite family vacation memory?
There are lots. Most of those memories, however, don’t include technology that had to be up and running as we traveled. (Instead, I remember the license-plate letter game, “I spy with my eye,” “How many mile-markers can you count?” and “Who will be the first to get dad to say, ‘so help me if I have to pull over…’”) Unfolding a $2 gas station road map across the car’s hood at a rest stop was always part of the adventure and the glove box was typically full of them. Folding up the map again was another adventure.
What are some of your hobbies?
I enjoy woodworking and road trips. I like trying different foods and am often found in “greasy spoons” off the regular paths. I also enjoy music concerts and loud music. While my favorite groups are probably Pink Floyd, Rush, Van Halen and most rock groups, I also enjoy all music genres – R&B, jazz, blues, swing, punk, funk, disco, country, hip-hop, salsa and classical music. Having graduated from high school in 1985, I tend to gravitate to music from the ’80s but listen to most things, depending on the mood.
What outdoor activities do you enjoy?
These days, I enjoy mostly peaceful activities. I used to really enjoy camping, hiking, and biking, but sleeping on rocks has become noticeably less comfortable than a bed at a nearby Holiday Inn. I also enjoy golf and look forward to the drink and hot dog cart that magically appears every few holes.
What is your favorite season?
I enjoy springtime the most. I like the sound of rustling aspen trees in the early spring and the freshwater creeks and rivers from the mountain winter runoff. But I also like the smell of forest rain in the summer and fall too. And I do like to watch the winter snow fall as long as I’m inside.
What is something that we’d be surprised to know about you?
I have a list of “things” that most people would be surprised to find out about me including that I had my appendix removed in a small operating room above a bread shop in Venezuela and that I used to teach racquetball in college for “date money.”