Adam Shapiro is a rising MBA2 interning at IBM. Adam is specializing in Strategy, Finance, and Entrepreneurship.
NYU Stern’s “Summer Internship Series” sheds light into Sternies’ internship experiences. Posts are written by rising MBA2s who are currently working at their summer internship.
As I first began considering an MBA, my professional goals and ambitions were very clear: I wanted to transition into the strategy consulting industry. I wanted to pursue a career in consulting so that I could continue to work with clients to solve their most complex questions, issues, and problems. Prior to beginning my MBA at Stern, I worked for Bloomberg in an Internal Strategy capacity. During my five years there, I worked with financial clients ranging from CEOs to members of HR to manage and solve sophisticated and demanding problems firms face. In doing so, I came to value and embody certain qualities that I believe make the best business leaders: the ability to take initiative, to lead others successfully, to follow through on commitments, and to achieve objectives in a timely fashion. Equally important, I also gained an innate curiosity, a desire and need to learn, and an ability to ask thoughtful questions, listen to and respect others, and understand the complexity of challenges facing businesses. All of these qualities are personified by people working on consulting engagements. I believed that the consulting industry would advance my personal and career development by working with clients to create a lasting business impact, to craft actionable business plans, and to target opportunities for growth.
When I actually began my MBA a little over one year ago, I began recruiting for a summer internship in consulting as early as Stern’s Office of Career Development (OCD) allowed the firms to come to campus. As I listened to corporate presentations and engaged with practitioners at the different firms, I began to have a better understanding of the differences amongst the firms and, if given the choice, the type of client engagements I wanted to work on during the summer. The combination of my past work experience in Fintech at Bloomberg, countless conversations with current students, Stern alumni, and consultants, and classes I was taking allowed me to realize I actually wanted to work at a firm with a significant digital presence.
It is hard to believe, but I am, now, over halfway through my summer internship at IBM in the Digital Strategy and iX consulting group. IBM DS appealed to me because of the group’s unique value proposition. IBM combines traditional strategic analysis with creative ideation to uncover non-linear opportunities and direct opportunities for clients. By designing progressive digital strategies through innovation and data analytics, creating future-shaping experience through design, and putting customer platforms to work, I have been able to learn important skills and add value on client engagements throughout the entire summer internship. I could not have imagined a better summer experience as I have already been able to work on projects such as: reinventing the customer experience journey for a large travel and leisure company, infusing digital into multiple portfolio companies of a large private equity firm, and creating a roadmap for increased data utilization and monetization at a large asset management firm.
My time at IBM this summer has taught me a lot and I’m thrilled that I am exploring this career path. If you’re considering making a change to enter consulting, from where I sit, Stern is a great place for you to make it happen.