Alumni Update from Tommy Smith (class of 2010)
I completed
an internship at an investment bank called Piper Jaffray in San Francisco
during my junior year summer, and subsequently accepted a job in investment
banking at Greenhill & Co. in New York City. Greenhill has a great culture
and I have enjoyed my time. I apply concepts from the strategy program
virtually every day at my job. I recently accepted an associate position at a
tech-focused private equity fund in San Francisco called Vector Capital which I
will start in August 2013 after finishing my second year at Greenhill.
Finance is a
very interesting field, and as a strategy student, I feel I have an advantage
over my colleagues, since strategy is so critical to finance. Examples of the
strategy-related work I do are:
1. Creating
financial models in excel that analyze the merger of two companies, including
estimating the dollar-value of annual synergies
2. Creating
~100-page informational memos used to “market” a company we are selling, which
involves defining the corporate strategy
3. Holding
daily calls and working personally with the executives of our clients, discussing
corporate planning and acquisition strategies
After a few
years in their careers, several BYU students have approached me, wondering how
they can get into finance. They often say “I wish I would not have been
hesitant to work long hours at the beginning of my career because I could now
be where I want to be, but I’m not.”
The main
piece of advice I would give to strategy students is to not make your career
decision based on the number of hours you will work in the first two to four
years of your career. Make your career decision about where you want to end up
in several years, and then take the path to arrive there, even if it requires
some sacrifice in the beginning years.
Once on the job, I would reiterate advice one of my Managing
Directors at Greenhill gave me: Act like the level above you. In other words,
as an analyst, I should act like the level above me, which is an associate.
This concept has led me to do more than just my own responsibilities, but also
consider what my associate or vice president would do with my work when I hand
it off to them, and try to do it myself (e.g., meticulously checking my work).
This attitude will earn you the trust of your superiors, and you will be given
more responsibility than may be normal for your position.
I would be happy to talk to any alumni or current students
about investment banking and/or private equity and how it fits in with the
strategy program. Contact me at thomasm.smith@yahoo.com.
Spiritual Thoughts from LaDon Linde (class of 2009):
Asking Questions
In Dr. Dyer's class we talked about questions and how
critical it is to become good at asking the right ones. I've found that this is
important in work but also super helpful when trying to understand the scriptures
better and gain a deeper testimony. This quote from Clayton Christensen sums it
up perfectly, “Questions are places in your mind where answers fit. If you
haven’t asked the question, the answer has nowhere to go.”
Right now I'm reading the Book of Mormon along with the
Gospel Doctrine lessons. It has been terrific. When reading I try to ask myself
a couple of questions, often including the following:
- Why did
this story make it into the Book of Mormon?
- What is
going on right now in the context of the story? How does that affect what is
being written, done, or taught?
- How is the
message different in this chapter vs. other chapters? Is it due to the context?
Here are a few things I've learned recently as a result of
asking questions:
- Captain Moroni was very young when chosen to lead the
armies. Why was he chosen? Likely because of how smart and innovative he was.
He brought new ideas to their fighting, and that would get you noticed in
business, or an organization, or when fighting a war. The Book of Mormon spends
a lot of time on his ideas; that's what he was best at - being a good thinker.
That actually gives me hope to be successful as I believe God is interested in
helping us have good ideas and the Spirit helps sharpen our mind - D.C. 33:17
(Spirit "quickeneth" all things). In fact, it appears that Moroni was
terrific at asking questions himself. For instance, consider Alma 49. It sounds
like he asked the question, "where are the Nephite dissenters who know our
cities well most likely to attack?" Answer = Ammonihah. So they fortified
that city. Then he asked, "what will they do when they see the city is
fortified?" They will look for places of retreat - so he "altered the
management of the affairs of the Nephites". I think that means he moved
walls, cut down trees, repositioned part of the city, etc so the Lamanites
wouldn't have a place to retreat. Then he asked, "when they find this city
protected and no place to retreat, where will they attack next?" Answer =
Noah. So they fortified that city. He was so great at asking questions.
- Alma teaches his sons in Alma 36-42. He shares his own
wickedness and conversion story with only 2 of his sons, the more righteous
two. I find that interesting. It is reasonable to think that sharing his own
wickedness with his disobedient son would help that son know that Alma
understands him. Alma takes the opposite approach though. Maybe it's unwise to
share sins of the now repented one with the sinner as they may put off change
but wise to share sins in some circumstances with the righteous as it helps
them understand that people can change and not to be harsh judges of those have
not yet repented.
Keep asking questions. It helps you think of things you
wouldn't otherwise consider.
Book Review by Andrew Woo (class of 2011): A Whole New Mind (Daniel Pink)
I read Daniel Pink's book, A Whole New Mind, last summer, and am still busy applying things I
learned from it. According to Pink, "the
era of 'left brain' dominance, and the Information Age that it engendered, are
giving way to a new world in which 'right brain' qualities - inventiveness,
empathy, meaning - predominate." The future belongs to companies like
Apple, IDEO, and Nike, that can bring design and fun together in a way that
inspires and excites us.
For those of us with a quantitative, analytical background,
this book is especially helpful. Pink provides a roadmap for us to develop six
specific qualities - inventiveness, empathy, meaning, design, play, and
symphony - that will help us succeed in the economy of the future. The book is
completely original and very readable, and I recommend it
.
Articles and Websites
Article from NY Times on raising successful children: http://nyti.ms/OIdkls
New asset class from MIT Sloan student, sports gambling
(note: I am not promoting doing this, but was
impressed with the innovative
thinking): ow.ly/d5XhF
What do business schools look for applicants and mistakes to
avoid from WSJ: on.wsj.com/xoQRZ6
10 Tricks to for a fabulous work day: ow.ly/dthbm
Way too in depth college football statistics: http://knowhuddle.com/
Want to memorize something or sharpen up language skills: www.memrise.com
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