40 under 40 — Forrest Zeisler

Mu Theta, 2007 — Recognized in: 2018

Forrest’s business journey began much like that of many tech start-ups: with an idea and the recognition of a gap in the marketplace. There was a lack of affordable and user friendly software to fulfill the billing, route planning, and service tracking needs of small to medium sized service enterprises (e.g. lawncare, maid services, window washing, etc.). What ensued for Forrest was many late nights, stealing wifi from local coffee shops, even sleeping on a yoga mat at the office to save commuting time. But Forrest did more than just work hard. He tapped the expertise of others when he needed it and morphed his idea into a well-structured and successful business: Jobber (https://getjobber.com/).

As Jobber grew, so did Forrest. Being Chief Technical Officer and co-founder is a whole different ball game with 5 employees than it is with 40, or 100. As his daily routine involved less and less coding, he became an excellent manager. If one were to have the pleasure of attending a Jobber holiday party, they would surely notice the young, smart, and dynamic team he and his business partner have put together. Moreover, his team seems to genuinely enjoy working at Jobber and clearly has tremendous respect for Forrest. This is unsurprising, as his integrity, work ethic, and humility are infectious and he makes all those around him better.

It has been a pleasure to see his tech “start-up” become a successful business in a city (Edmonton AB, Canada) which does not necessarily have a reputation for being a tech hub. All the while, Forrest has remained committed to his brothers in Zeta Psi and to his local community. His business has recently made a donation to Hurricane Harvey victims and Forrest’s generosity with both his money and his time has truly benefited others in our community. In addition, he remains active as a Zete Elder and keeps busy raising a beautiful young family.

“Jobber’s first mentor and advisor was Dave Hardy, one of Zeta Psi’s elders. Our first developer was Chris Proulx, an active of the Mu Theta chapter whom we hired as a summer student. Our first customer was an intro from Kevin Currie, a Zete brother whom I had the pleasure of being active with for years. And I’ll never forget the support and encouragement from all my fraternity brothers during the tough years of starting a business. Zeta Psi has been instrumental in the development of my business, and I hope to pay it forward to the next generation of fraternity entrepreneurs.”