Career Path of a Senior Associate Consultant at Top Audit Consulting Firm
Yannan's career path began with a performing arts and social justice degree, but after realizing "the job one is a lot of hours and two actually doesn't pay well," a pivot to the business side followed. This involved marketing, HR, and eventually launching their own consulting practice before pursuing an MBA and joining a large consulting firm, demonstrating adaptability and entrepreneurial initiative in navigating career transitions.
Career Pivoting, Entrepreneurship, Consulting, Career Exploration, Nonprofit to Corporate
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Yannan Colljns
Senior Associate Consultant
Top Audit Consulting Firm
University of San Francisco 2015
N/a
Anthropology, Sociology, Fine Arts, Music
Consulting & Related Professional Services
Business Strategy
International Student, Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans, Immigrant, Worked 20+ Hours in School, LGBTQ, First Generation College Student
Video Highlights
1. Yannan's career path demonstrates the value of pivoting. After initially pursuing a non-profit path, she transitioned to business, leveraging her skills to launch her own HR consulting practice.
2. Her experience in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors provides a unique perspective, highlighting the diverse skill sets applicable to consulting.
3. Her decision to pursue an MBA after experiencing economic downturn showcases adaptability and strategic career planning, demonstrating a commitment to professional growth and navigating challenges.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Did you have any internships or jobs before your current role?
Yes, absolutely. When I was in undergrad, my major was performing arts and social justice. For the whole time, I thought I would be working in nonprofits.
After my undergrad, I actually worked in nonprofits for a couple of months and realized that the job involved a lot of hours, didn't pay well, and there wasn't much about career advancement. So, I quickly jumped onto the business side.
I joined a marketing firm and then moved into HR. I did pretty well over there, to the point where whenever we were about to launch a new company, I was always the one handling the recruiting and HR work for it. I did that many times.
I felt so comfortable helping businesses with their HR and recruiting efforts that I launched my own business. I had my own practice helping small businesses and nonprofits with hiring, recruiting, HR, and all that.
Then COVID hit. I lost all my clients and saw how the economic downturn could have a big impact on small businesses and nonprofits. That's why I decided to go to business school. I see business school as a stepping stone to join bigger consulting firms, focusing on mergers and acquisitions.
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