After lettering in athletics his senior year at the University of Alabama for a Regional Championship in Water Skiing, Gene Ballard began his professional career in Atlanta, Georgia as a musician in 1990. He worked as a sound engineer for 'Seriously Sound, Inc.,' a large production company who hosts major musical acts touring through Atlanta. Mr. Ballard later partnered with long-time friend and professional drummer, Rin Vinson, in the founding of "Warehouse One, Inc.", an Atlanta Recording/Rehearsal Studio. Warehouse One, Inc. went on to host many major recording artists for the next decade.

In 1994 Mr. Ballard moved to Destin Florida and earned a Merchant Marine License from the New Orleans Coast Guard Office to work as a Merchant Marine Captain for Sailing South Charters.

After working with the Aspen Ski Company in Aspen Colorado in 1994-95, Mr. Ballard moved back to Montgomery, Alabama to work with his father, A. Bowen Ballard, at Ballard Companies overseeing the constructions of Multifamily Housing projects in Montgomery, Alabama and Greenville, South Carolina.

By chance, Gene Ballard met Shane Cannon in Destin, Florida and immediately introduced his father, A. Bowen Ballard, to Mr. Cannon with the intentions of collaborating in Destin real estate ventures which soon resulted in "Ballard-Cannon Development, LLC."

In 1998 he started his own Internet Publishing Company and, with great success, expanded into Linux Network Administration and Corporate web design with his company 360pro.com, which is still in operation today with customers spanning the nation and a member of the Destin Harbor Association.

Mr. Ballard resides in Destin, Florida with his wife and children. As a licensed Florida Realtor and licensed Alabama real estate agent he works closely with private investors who are looking for real estate opportunities in the Florida Panhandle.