Between Two Firms is an interview series accompanying Economics@Work. We ask alumni speakers the candid questions students can’t ask in person. This week’s guest is Rachel Pietrangelo, the Head of Business Development at One Rockwell. Rachel discusses the importance of a good network and developing soft skills or “the human part” of your professional skillset.
Q: What are some of the biggest challenges that you face in your job?
A: One of them definitely is managing my time between the three capacities that I am responsible for. (1) New business, bringing in new deals, new leads and filling out our pipeline and (2) our partnership program, which is what we build upon, the tech stack that we offer to our clients. We have a high price point so we need to constantly challenge what we think is the best possible product and mix of service providers and applications. That just takes time, strategy, involvement, and investment to educate ourselves. And then lastly (3) I oversee the marketing of the agency. The agency has been around for about ten years. We are currently going through a rebranding; we are trying to move upstream. We’ve started to speak to clients that are doing larger revenues online, and we have to also evolve and grow. You know, a toddler speaks a different kind of language than a high schooler, so we need to change how we talk about ourselves, how we present ourselves, who we’re aligned with. That comes back to the partnerships piece, and the hope is that those two things continue to power and push the business forward. So, although they’re all interconnected, I have to give capacity the time and attention it deserves and it can be difficult to juggle. You know, new business is always my number-one goal and it can be difficult to take time away from that to devote it to the two other things, even though, conceptually I understand that it’s all feeding the same stream at the end of the day.
Q: It seems like you’re pretty busy. How do you manage a work-life balance?
A: I used to be pretty bad at that. Especially in my first two jobs, I just wanted people to know that I was game, that I was devoted, that I cared about the company, that I was willing to go above and beyond and do anything for the team at the end of the day. There is a tipping point with that. I think sometimes people feel like the more they give, the more respect they’ll be given, and it’s not always as one-for-one. You can end up putting yourself in a situation to get taken advantage, to be a doormat, and people will push you as far as they can. It’s about figuring out where your personal parameters are, standing up, and pushing back. I found that, since I started prioritizing myself and my own time, finding ways to devote to self-care, and also personal and professional growth, I find that I am doing better at work, getting more respect, getting paid better, moving up the ladder. Part of self-care for me is time with my family, time with my friends, doing things like cooking, having time for my hobbies, being physical, but also I really do carve out time for professional development. That’s part of the reason I’m here today. I’ve also asked for a budget at work and I take part in a leadership training program. I asked work to pay for that and they agreed. One more thing that I just want to note here: part of the reason business development speaks to me is that it is by nature an open and free kind of role. You know, if you’re working on the floor, you have to be there during trading hours, period. That type of strict, confined structure is not something that ever appealed to me, that lifestyle just didn’t appeal to me. I wanted to take a walk around the block if I needed a breather, go to the grocery store, run to the dentist. When I’m at work I am focused and drilled down and paying 100% attention to work. And when I’m not, I leave it behind.
Q: What are some disadvantages of having an economics degree as opposed to having a business degree?
A: For me there’s one. It’s the network. I think there is more networking built into the business school here, business schools in general, it’s baked into the process, it’s drilled into you, you’re amongst other people who really value networking, self-marketing and self-promotion from day one. But I feel like econ attracts a different kind of personality, and it’s a different currency. It’s about knowledge, foundation, building from the ground up. Sometimes the personal connection piece is missing in econ. Building a network is absolutely critical to success and I think you have to carve out time for it yourself, and you also have to encourage people in the community around you to do the same.
Q: When you first started out, did you have a steep learning curve, especially not coming from business school?
A: Yeah, definitely. And I don’t think it had anything to do with business school. I think it’s because I grew up in a small town in Michigan and then I went here. I just underestimated the industry that I was going into, the people and the network that my peers were already absorbed into. These were people that, if they were from that area [New York City], had internships every single summer. Or, if they didn’t do that they had friends that did it. All these people had all these hook-ups and connections and I didn’t have that. And just the influx of information was a steep learning curve: in my jobs in PR we would seat shows up to 1,200 people, which means that you need to invite double that, and then you’re getting emails from people that are not invited, and then coordinating with other involved teams. It ended up being one person managing thousands of emails per day. The biggest learning curve was self-organization. You can be really, really intelligent and be able to solve very complex problems, but if you can’t get things done when they need to get done and deliver by a deadline, it doesn’t matter. It was really about figuring out a system that worked for me, trying to learn from people, and giving myself the flexibility and forgiveness when I failed, but really pushing forward the goal of self-organization. Not everyone’s going to organize in the same way. Whether it’s a to-do list, or folders in your email, or if you have a way of visually mapping things out in your mind, whatever the methodology, you definitely need to figure out a personal system for how to remain on-task and on-time. The second thing I want to say about learning entering the workforce right out of school, and especially in this cultural climate, is the learning curve of upholding professional standards all the time. When you’re out of college and you’re young and your work is your social life, still be a professional. A lot of times you meet people at work, you guys go out together, not to say that you can’t have fun, but just be super respectful and conscious of where you are and who you’re. Make sure that you’re bringing a professional attitude to your work environment, even outside of the office.
Q: The field of business in general tends to male-dominated. What are some dynamics you have noticed as a woman in business?
A: It’s actually been shocking: the gender discrepancy is worse than I thought and I feel like it’s worse than what is publicized in the media. It’s difficult. You will encounter people who do not want you to succeed from both genders and for different reasons. And it’s really about making sure that you constantly remember what your ultimate goal is, that you are uncompromising in it, but it’s not necessarily about always winning. You need people on your side, you need people on your team, you need to figure out a way to change their minds. I talked a lot in the lecture about the human part of professional life. We’re dealing with something that’s very analytical: numbers don’t lie, they’re very straightforward. The people part is the hardest part to navigate for sure. Make sure that you’re constantly flexing that muscle; that you’re trying to be authentic, that you’re learning how to self-navigate, that you’re getting comfortable with getting uncomfortable, and you’re letting work know what your specific value is. Also, any time that you can make an organization money, either by closing a new deal, bringing in new partners, updating the terms of existing contracts, taking a product and making it more efficient, figuring out a loophole or an area where the business isn’t really set up for efficiency or success. If you can show a dollar amount that you’ve made, people will over time usually forget your gender. I would say that that’s the biggest thing for me and another reason why I’m drawn to business development, because if you’re making a company money you gender becomes much less relevant.
Q: Have you thought about getting an MBA?
A: I have, and I used to think about it more. I really don’t think that I will at this point in time. I have a lot of respect for people that have them; I think that it’s a different environment than it was ten years ago. I’ve heard from a lot of people that I know that have gone through really prestigious and rigorous programs that, although it was a great learning experience, the number-one value is the people that they met and the networks that they built. And I think it’s possible to get that in other ways. There are obviously executive MBA programs, but for pursuing a fulltime MBA, I’ve never really wanted to step away from work. I really love working, love learning on the job, and try to supplement my past education and on-the-job education with continued learning. So I’ve gotten certificates taking courses at NYU, done online trainings: I’m currently in this leadership management training course. So I’m trying to subsidize in other ways. I don’t think I will go back from an MBA, but I’m not definitely saying no.
Q: Do you have any new directions in which you’d like to take your career?
A: What I’ve been finding really recently, that I’m a little shocked that I find this as interesting as I do, is the financial services aspect of retail. My whole career has been in retail, and it’s changed rapidly. I think it’s going to continue to change; I think it’s going to look very different from what we can even imagine in ten years from now, but the one thing that will not change is that at the end of the day there ultimately has to be a transaction. And I think the way that we do that in the future is going to be really cool and different. There are financial services companies out there right now that are just doing some really interesting stuff. I’m shocked by how late the adoption has been in that area, but I think that it is an area where we’re going to see rapid change over the next ten years.
Q: What’s your favorite Michigan memory?
A: I have a lot; I really loved Michigan. But my favorite Michigan memory is this. Sophomore year I had a roommate; we lived in South Quad together, and we were taking a walk. We decided to just walk down to the Big House; we were just doing a walk-talk, just getting some exercise. It was during the week at dusk. And the gates were open to the Big House. We were able to get in. We weren’t trying to break in or anything but we were able to get in and go in. We went down, we ran on the field, we did cartwheels, laughed, faked plays, ran down the tunnel. And we were probably in their for about 30 minutes. We had been to so many games and, there’s so much energy and history in that stadium, to have a different perspective in a place that’s such an important part of the Michigan culture and the nucleus that the school is built around just felt really, really special. My other memory is from senior year: I lived with four other girls, and it was just a very special time in my life, to be here, to have found those friends. One was from growing up and then three we met here, and the five of us lived together and just had the greatest time. We have so many stories. I have a group of friends from Michigan and we live all over, and usually we do a trip together about once per year. Overall, my favorite thing about Michigan is the people that I’ve met here and the relationships that have carried me through my life. It’s the ‘Michigan difference.’