Davis Hart [Borrowed a lot from Steve Jobs commencement speech of ...] * Life is nonlinear. There's a huge expectation that as a 21 year old you're about to launch on a linear career track. (And it's likely to be in your major field.) * It's what he felt when he was graduating. * It's natural for his two majors (Econ and CS) * But he's found that his path has not been linear * IT'S OKAY THAT YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP! * You need to push boundaries * If you're going to have a nonlinear career, you're going to have to push yourself. [He'll tell us what that's meant so far.] * "You only get so many do-overs or so many mulligans" * Started thinking he'd be a software engineer. Has made career switches. Each time gets harder and harder. People wonder why you're making that switch. (Eventually there's expectation that you gather experience in one area.) * Live a life in which you don't have regrets * At each point in time, make the best decision you can at the time with the information you have at that time. * Think critically * Be self-critical - think about what you see as your obstacles * Have someone who can help you see those pieces of information * Have the conviction to stick with your decisions. * "Life is a portfolio, not just a collection of things." * Your job shouldn't be separate from your friends or your home life or ... * It's more rewarding if your job relates to your interests * E.g., he's intellectual curious in all that he does * Personal history * Grew up thinking he'd be a software engineer * Came to Grinnell with that in mind. (Kind of surprising, given that desire.) But really liked the people. * Took all the compsci and math courses he could. * But found an interest in econ. * Note: The MAP program was a good opportunity. (Try it - you may find that you really like it, you may find that you don't, but you'll know more about yourself.) * "The more experience you can collect, the better." * Spring of 2005 took a semester off and worked at the open source technology group at Intel. (Trying to make Linux Kernel work better on their hardware then on other hardware.) * First time he spent working 9-10 hours a day in a field he'd been interested in. * Accepts that working there was different than it would be at a startup or at other kinds of companies. * Self reflection - Is that really what I want to be? Possibly not. * So in the fall, he started to explore more options. (Used CDO.) * Found litigation consulting - allowed him to use both backgrounds * Requires technology * Requires economics and finance * Used SLAC consortium. [*** Yet another recommendation for SLAC. ***] * Got position at Charles River associates. Looked at employee stock options. Needed to do a valuation of portfolio - had to build a simulation. * "Even if you're not in a technology industry, knowing some technology is useful." * Rewarding - Got to work at a higher level than many of the other analysts. *** Useful goal: Approach a job with a little bit of a different skill set. * How do the things outside my core major help built that complementary skill set? * You get credit in the world for having depth in a few areas, rather than a breadth in a lot of areas. * Exciting to be part of an important case. * But afterwards got stuck on somewhat rote cases * "At the point that I ceased being intellectually stimulated, I lost the motivation to what I was doing." * Time to move on * Moved to an industrial asset management firm. * Got help looking from headhunter * Focused on taking on more responsibility - Things that were unusual for an analyst - E.g., found out about selling side and not just the investing side. * After six months, realized that he was bored again. [At many financial industries, you get a box to sit in each year, so if you grow quickly, you find yourself bumping up against the walls.] * Asked to work on reporting software - For folks invested in mulitiple funds, build better summaries * Define the problem * Define potential solution * Shop the solution around to various teams - Investment, sales, tech. * Being able to get into the weeds with tech. folks was useful. * But being able to communicate with folks was his most important skill. * Teamwork and communication skills are harder to teach later on, so work on them here. * Three years in, revisited life portfolio with his partner. * Realized that the east coast was not where they wanted to be * Issue: There aren't a lot of opportunities in finance outside of Boston and NYC. * Serendipity: Someone he worked with lived down the street from the person who works at the company he works with now. *** The more that you can reach out to people, the better it is. Even things like "I'm thinking about doing this, what do you think about that?" [Use alums for this. Talking to people reveals possibilites you might not have thought of.] * Came out to Colorado and set up lots of meetings in advance. Called alums. Called funds. Used other contacts. * While his skills didn't fit, they actually worked with him on creating a job as a sales analyst, but were worried that he'd get bored and wouldn't stick around. *** Remember: Success is being in the right place at the right time, PLUS PREPARATION. *** It's good to embrace unpredictability. (You don't have to, there are places you can get predictability.) Know that it may not work out, but it's worth trying things. * "On the books, I'm not qualified for this job. I don't have the five years of experience, the CPA, etc. But I have a Grinnell education, and that makes a big difference." * Does financial analysis and planning of his division * Helped work on integration of new company * Continues to find it useful to be someone who can talk to financial people, and technology people, and ops people, and ... * COMMUNICATION IS AN IMPORTANT SKILL. IT'S NOT SOMETHING YOU CAN NECESSARILY TAKE A CLASS IN, BUT WORK ON IT. * But he keeps moving on. He's been applying to Business Schools. * A number of places effectively require the MBA if you want to move up * But until he saw the point of the MBA in his future career, he didn't think it was worthwhile to apply. * Took patience to say "I don't really see myself doing that right now." * Will be a difficult decision if he gets accepted. He finds it interesting and challenging where he is, but knows that over the long term he'll probably need the degree. * Lessons * You should learn something from each thing you do * Don't be afraid to move on * "Life is a portfolio" - Things he does in each phase of his life inform everything else * "I may not be formally qualified for what I do, but I can learn anything I need to." Questions * What do you think about actuary? * Remember that there are a lot of things out there * Consulting is a great starting point, actuary is less so * But actuarial requires you to take a fairly narrow path * CALL ALUMS AND FIND OUT ABOUT IT * Some who do the job * Some who were math/stats majors and clearly decided not to * What do you do when you review resumes? * Often everyone who is applying looks great - great schools, great internship, etc. So, how do you differentiate? * People who are clearly interested in the things that they do. * For example, a second major * Skills or interests that are kind of unique * Demonstrate a kind of dedication. A really deep interest in something, perhaps something outside from academics * In interviews, see a spark or fire about something else - someone who is interested. * Anything you spend 8-10-12 hours a week on can go on your resume. * "In the US, if you're one in a million, there are still 349 people just like you." * How do you contact alums (or whoever) to talk to them? * "It may feel awkward to call up an alum and ask for advice. But when students call me up and say 'I don't know much about this industry, can you tell me a bit about it', I'll talk their ear off." * So, "I see you work in this field / at this company, I'd like to know more about it." * Have good questions. Even something as simple as "What it's like to work at your company." * More specific questions tend to lead to more fruitful conversations. * Also feel free to say things about yourself. * "The answer's always 'no' if you don't ask." * What kinds of things do you do for your resume? * WHAT'S MOST APPLICABLE FOR THE KIND OF JOB YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. Think about the kind of firm. For example, if it's a research-oriented firm, show your research in CS and in Econ. * WHAT GENERAL SKILLS ARE APPLICABLE. Communication skills are good. * And you can ask alums to review your resume. * How do you put yourself out there? * When facing a point in which you're uncomfortable or scared. * Do the best to prepare for it. Then just push off and go. * For connecting to alums, the first step can be to send an email. It's impersonal, but it's often the best way to get things started. * Get your list. Write the emails and send them. * And you'll gain comfort doing it. * Alums only want to hope; they know what it's like to look for that first job. * And you have this connection of Grinnell. * What are the signs when it's not working? * Remember that your first job is a trial run in being an adult. (Almost no one looks at their first job and says 'This is what I want to do the rest of my life.') * Sign for him: Ends up doing the same thing again and again, and so had to think less and less. * And at some point, said "Is this a career path that will be intellectually stimulating for me for 20-30 years?" * At his current job, he still feels challenged every day. * Yes, there's still some paperwork and such he has to do that's not challenging. * But he has the lattitude to ask any question he wants. E.g., asking VP of operations how something works. * Doesn't feel like there's a limit to high he can go. * More about the company/firm than the industry. * How would you like to be used more by the College? * There's been a lot more outreach lately. * Take advantage of alums for advice. - And that's how he'd like to give back. * Is there anything you might change from your path? * I like where I am now, and I don't think there was a way to get here faster. * Understand how dedicated you are to that first step, and if you're not that dedicated, make sure to look at broader opportunities. * Reminder that smaller firms are more likely to give you a broader set of opportunities. * Broader options SamR's Comment for Students * Davis said that communication skills are important. TC and Mentor are both useful training for communication. SamR's Standard Questions for Students * What important things did you hear repeated? * Talk to alums * You can be underprepared for your job * Unique skills that you can talk about * Some graduate degrees seem to be for apparances, not for concrete learning * What new important things did you hear? * Look at jobs that can lead to many different things * Market yourself - What's your unique combination of skills - Find ways to show that they need you * Don't limit yourself early on * Push the boundaries