Brittany Matthews, a partner in our Chicago office, knows the importance of supportive and collaborative spaces for Black communities in the workforce, especially for our Black leaders. Launching the Black Leaders Forum (BLF) in 2020, Brittany and Black executives from various industries come together throughout the year to provide that space with their colleagues and friends. In this episode, Brittany shares how her journey to Bain inspired the creation of BLF and why spaces like it are so important.
Alex Noether, an expert partner in our New York office, is passionate about our Blacks at Bain network, his tattoos, and addressing unconscious bias in the workplace. In this encore episode of Beyond the Bio, Alex and Keith discuss the concepts of unconscious bias and the ways Bain is building and scaling best practices to ensure our processes are equitable for everyone.
Adrienne King, executive VP of Bain’s Americas Talent Management, and Modupe Akinola, Bain alum and associate professor of management at Columbia Business School, built the framework for Bain to recruit and retain our Blacks at Bain community (BABs). On this encore episode of Beyond the Bio, they share their journey of pioneering and implementing ExperienceBain, a pre-MBA program for Black recruits attending business school, as well as organizing an annual conference for our Black community and developing our firm’s infrastructure to support underrepresented individuals.
Rebecca Burack, a partner in our Boston office, transitioned from an industrial engineering career to consulting after learning about Bain through her manager who was pursuing a career at the firm. Once joining Bain, Rebecca did everything to avoid private equity cases, but as she accelerated within her career, she learned why it's important to jump on these cases early to succeed in the consulting world. Now as a leader in our private equity group (PEG), Rebecca shares the origins of private equity consulting, the importance of PEG and how consultants can navigate within this practice for career success.
Christophe De Vusser, a partner in our Brussels office and the head of our EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) private equity practice, joined Bain after leaving his purchasing and strategic sourcing career at Proctor and Gamble (P&G). Seeking more opportunity that Bain could offer, Christophe found himself enjoying work in the private equity practice, strongly focusing on environmental, social and governance work (ESG). Christophe shares why investors are being more thoughtful about ESG and how Bain is a leader in incorporating sustainability within the private equity space.
Kelly Boone Swaintek, a partner in our Austin office, transitioned to a career in consulting after serving in the U.S. Army. Knowing firsthand the challenges veterans face reentering civilian life and the workforce, Kelly has made it her mission to support veteran Bainies transition from one career to the next as well as advocate recruiting them and their talents to Bain.
Anita Cohen and Andrew Kunkel, partners in our Chicago office, didn’t plan on specializing in private equity, but once they were exposed to the world of fast-paced cases and non-standard approaches to problem-solving, they fell in love with the work. Anita and Andrew share their journeys into private equity and PEG, our private equity group, and explain why Bain is the leader in this industry.
João Soares, a partner in our London office and the global head of BGLAD, Bain’s LGBTQ network, shares how he not only transformed his career, but Bain’s approach on creating inclusive communities. *This episode was recorded in June 2021 during PRIDE month.
Pete Forsberg, Chief Operating Officer of our digital marketing agency, FRWD (pronounced “forward”), discusses his journey into disruptive technology and bringing his experience at Uber back to Bain through the FRWD acquisition in 2018 to lead operations in the digital marketing space.
Guest host Sharad Apte, a senior partner and head of APAC recruiting, speaks with Kate Liu, a senior manager in our Shanghai office, to discuss her journey from getting her PhD in applied economics to eventually becoming a consultant at Bain. They dive deeper into her fascinating PhD dissertation on using pitching in baseball as a way to gain insights on global warming, why consulting is a particularly good route for advanced degree candidates, and her exciting casework within Bain’s private equity, consumer product, and digital delivery practices
Guest host Sharad Apte, a senior partner and head of APAC recruiting, speaks with Willy Chang, an associate partner based in Southeast Asia, to discuss his fascinating career path from academia to consulting. They dive deeper into his PhD on quantum computing at Harvard, how he ended up in consulting, his work at Bain in private equity and digital delivery practices, and his most recent role publishing an internet economy report with Google and Temasek.
Guest host Sharad Apte, a senior partner and head of APAC recruiting, speaks with Annabel Chew, a manager in our Singapore office, to discuss her journey from getting her PhD in materials science to eventually becoming a consultant at Bain. They dive deeper into her love of science from a young age, how she handled Bain’s recruiting and interview process, her exciting casework, and how her PhD helped her with Bain’s ‘answer first’ approach.
Todd Sangster, an expert associate partner in our San Francisco office, and Erin Ney, an expert senior manager in our Boston office, spent part of their careers immersed in science and healthcare – Todd with a PhD in genetics and Erin as an MD and practicing physician. Before becoming experts in our healthcare practice, they spent time working across different industries and clients as general management hires at Bain. They discuss their backgrounds in science and medicine, their paths to and within Bain, and how experts at Bain add extraordinary value to both our clients and our case teams.
Michael Schallehn, a partner in our Silicon Valley office, and Jackie Flanagan, an associate partner in our Washington, D.C. office, both joined Bain after completing PhDs – Michael in materials science and Jackie in biophysics. They discuss their journeys away from academia and into consulting, how their backgrounds have contributed to their long-term success at Bain, and how our Advanced Degree recruiting and program efforts have evolved to bring in record-high numbers of Advanced Degree hires and provide tailored support for their professional development.
In our last installment of our Black History Month mini-series, we’re joined by Bain partners, Jon Barfield in our NY office, and Darren Jackson in our LA office, both members and leaders within our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) practice and Blacks at Bain community. They discuss our investment in sustainable change through actions like launching a DEI practice area to support our corporate clients, the addition of our new social impact pillar focused on racial equity and social justice, hosting a Black Leaders Forum and more.
Bain alums, Ali Evans, a VP and technology investor at Francisco Partners, and Anjarae Hamilton, head of apparel at Faire, share their thoughts and experiences of creating a space at Bain to discuss the social and racial unrest in the US and its impact. You’ll also learn more about them—their experience working here, being part of the Blacks at Bain community, and their impressive career journeys.
Hernan Saenz, a partner in our Dallas office, is an advocate for taking the non-linear path and pursuing opportunities that will help you grow and give you energy. He discusses how Bain's culture was the perfect fit, his globetrotting years working at offices across the world, and his accomplishments throughout his career including important client work, stepping into leadership roles, and eventually getting a seat on Bain's board of directors.
Jennie Tung, a VP in our Palo Alto office, has played a critical role in the way we view training, both internally and with our clients. She discusses how she found full support in Bain when taking on a new role at a critical time in her career, and how that role eventually grew into her building out Bain Academy, a team that provides customized learning experiences led by Bain experts.
Stef Chavin, VP of recruiting in our Chicago office, spent her career at Bain pursuing her passions. She discusses some important pieces of her journey including utilizing our flexible working model, her entrepreneurship within the firm, and most recently, planning a successful virtual Summer Associate intern program.
Courtney della Cava, a partner in our San Francisco office, has returned to Bain twice after taking on exciting roles at various companies. She discusses what it’s like being a ‘boomerang Bainie,’ her role within the Bain Career Advisory and Bain Executive Network, and how we’re committed to helping our people succeed both inside and outside the firm.