World of variety
In just my first two years at McKinsey, I have truly experienced a world of variety: I developed a digital marketing strategy for a diaper manufacturer in China. I also worked with a social sector organization to help women in emerging countries establish and grow businesses. I was also able help define the global growth strategy for a top telecommunications company.
I even got to go to Korea and Hong Kong for a study with a top consumer goods company. This was early in my time at McKinsey, and I was looking for the opportunity to own a project, end to end. Initially, a more senior associate was supposed to travel to Asia for the second phase of the work, but I talked to the leadership on this project, and they agreed that this would fulfill my ownership goals. So I was able to travel to Asia, and, in total, spent almost 10 weeks over there.
I love international travel and learning about new cultures, so it was a fantastic experience, and was made even more so because I was fulfilling my professional development goals at the same time. I was just a year out of college, but I was in China and Korea taking charge of a relationship with senior-level executives at a well respected company. I was on the other side of the world, giving advice to people who had been in the industry for years, and yet they still found my advice valuable.
Global Network of Support
When I joined McKinsey, I knew it was a large company with a lot of consultants, but I didn't realize what that would mean to me in my day-to-day work. Now, I understand the strength of the McKinsey network. When I was working on the global growth study for a telecommunications company, I was looking at 20 countries that our client was considering entering. For every single one of those countries, I could call someone within the McKinsey network -- the expert on telecom in that country -- and speak to them for an hour. Every one of them was very willing to help.That's the culture at McKinsey.
Personal connections - HLCSS
I was exposed to McKinsey's Hispanic and Latino consultants’ community (HLCSS) at a diversity event I attended during my recruitment process. It showed me that McKinsey cared about diversity and cared about making sure that people from all different communities had a place at McKinsey, and that they had a support network in place.
Through the HLCSS community, I've been able to connect with a wide group of people, on both a professional and personal level. For example, one of the partners I met is from Colombia, where my dad was born. We never had the opportunity to work together, but we kept in touch. Recently, he asked me to join him on a project focused on developing a set of tools to help teams build better relationships with their clients. It has been a really great experience and it is one that I don't think I would have been involved in were it not for the HLCSS community.
Growing Confidence
When I first came to McKinsey, it was a little overwhelming. To come into organizations and to work with clients who have so much experience when I had very limited work experience was a little intimidating. Now, I'm confident that the skills I have developed will allow me to make an impact with my clients, regardless of how long I've spent working in the industry. I know that I can use my knowledge and my analytic ability, and that I can leverage the McKinsey network, to really bring impact to the client.
A lot of this stems from the fact that there is really no hierarchy within McKinsey. I'm able to, and, in fact, expected to interact with colleagues at all levels and to share my opinion, even if I disagree. Now, it is something that has become second nature: I don't even think twice if a Director who's been at McKinsey for decades says something I don't agree with; I naturally speak up and share my perspective.
What I do in my free time
I was a competitive figure skater growing up, and whilst I don't compete any longer, I still try to skate as often as possible. I also spend a lot of time with the other McKinsey business analysts, trying to take advantage of all that Atlanta has to offer. We are going tubing on the Chattahoochee River, and we recently had a whirly ball event.
Offices
Education
| Duke University |
BA, Economics |
2009 |