Director, Data and Analytics - FTI Consulting — College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
After graduating from SEMO, I joined a client analytics team at a population health management company. This company partners with health systems to help them transition to and succeed in value-based care models. In this role, I supported a social care network by providing their clinical teams with key metrics and reports, offering insights into the health of their population.
After a couple of years, I transitioned to a forensic and litigation consulting firm, where I have grown into a Director role on their Data & Analytics team. This position has provided me with a wide range of experiences. A key highlight is my focus on crypto-related matters that involve attribution analyses and asset tracing using blockchain analytics tools. More recently, I've been involved in BSA/AML investigations for the regulatory compliance of crypto products.
I received a B.S. in Applied Mathematics at SEMO. This program was led by an incredibly intelligent and dedicated staff who successfully taught our cohort complex concepts and helped us work through challenging math problems in an engaging way.
The Mathematics Department at Southeast is a tight-knit group of staff and students that collaborated effectively and made themselves available to anyone who needed assistance. By providing relevant course material, interesting examples, and resources like office hours and math tutors, this program has enabled my fellow graduates and me the ability to become successful across various industries.
I chose to attend Southeast primarily due to my first campus tour, during which it became evident that the classroom experience felt more personal and that the professors were directly accessible if needed. This fact, paired with the generous scholarships, made it an easy decision.
During my time at Southeast, I was most influenced by Dr. Singh, who served as both my academic advisor and my professor for statistics-related courses. Aside from all the help and guidance he provided related to course material, we would often discuss how I could leverage my education for a successful and fruitful career. I graduated in 2020, which was a challenging time to join the workforce, and Dr. Singh always made himself available if I needed advice or just wanted to catch up.
My best college memory is driving out to Cape Rock Park during the spring months with my buddies and enjoying all that the Mississippi River has to offer.
The most important thing I learned at Southeast, besides time series analysis, is how to work with and find common ground with individuals from diverse backgrounds. College courses will inevitably force you to collaborate with a wide variety of individuals, each of whom brings a unique perspective and set of skills to the table. Learning to recognize and appreciate this diversity enables you to be a more well-rounded individual and impactful team member.
Brick by Brick
Analytics and consulting, in general, are "brand-based" professions. From day one, you are building your personal brand, which encompasses your work ethic, skills, and personality. It is crucial to build this brand on a solid foundation so that your peers associate you with reliable, quality work paired with a positive attitude. I also cannot stress enough how impactful it is to introduce yourself to members outside of your immediate team and say yes to every opportunity early in your career. These conversations and ad-hoc tasks, even those that might be outside of your wheelhouse, will introduce you to concepts that you might find genuinely interesting and could ultimately develop into a career that is more fruitful and better tailored to you.