Brandon Bolen joined Premier Insights in 2018 after completing his Ph.D. in Economics from Mississippi State University. He is an applied microeconomist who specializes in fair lending and econometrics as well as consumer credit policy and risk. In his role with Premier, he designs and implements analytics for fair lending monitoring that mitigate risks, and he assists institutions with navigating regulatory examinations and inquiries from both regulatory and enforcement agencies.

Dr. Bolen is published in academic journals, including Economic Inquiry, Southern Economic Journal, Public Choice, Kyklos, the Journal of Institutional Economics, and the Journal of Sports Economics. He received the Pittman Young Faculty of the Year Award at Mississippi College in 2020 where he also serves as an economics faculty member.

Brandon also works with the Mississippi Council on Economic Education to promote economic and financial literacy in Mississippi. As an undergraduate, Brandon played basketball at Mississippi State University from 2007-2011 where he was named to the Southeastern Conference Men’s Basketball Community Service Team (2011) and the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll (2007-2011).

Premier Insights is pleased to have Darrin Webb, the former State Economist for the state of Mississippi, as a key member of our analytical team.

As State Economist and Director of the University Research Center for the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning, Dr. Webb’s primary focus was revenue forecasting, upon which all state budgeting and funds allocations were based. He also oversaw all research projects conducted by the University Research Center. As such, his work has appeared in numerous journals, and he has become a recognized expert in macroeconomics, forecasting, and the accurate measurement of the dramatic impact that economic forces and financial conditions have on businesses and consumers alike. In addition, his experience has given him a keen understanding of state economies in the U.S., particularly in Mississippi and surrounding states.

Darrin joined Premier Insights in 2020, and has enabled the company to expand its approach to address more comprehensively and precisely the qualitative component of CECL, and will continue to do so as financial industries evolve and the U.S. economy continues to grow and change.

Prior to being named State Economist, Darrin began his professional career as Assistant Professor of Agricultural Economics for the Department of Agriculture at Northeast Louisiana University. He went on to join the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning as a Senior Economist.

Dr. Webb earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Agribusiness and Masters Degree in Agricultural Economics from Mississippi State University, and his Doctorate Degree in Applied Economics from Clemson University.