Director, Program Manager
Telesciences Inc.
Class of 1999 (EMTM 6)
What was the nature of your job before you decided to join the EMTM program?
Prior to joining the EMTM program, I was a project manager and systems engineer in Telcordia Technologies' Professional Services organization. My job entailed leading consulting projects relating to "core networks" (network interconnection, billing, etc.) and developing generic industry requirements.
What made you decide to go back to grad school? Why the EMTM program at Stevens?
The primary driver was to further my career. Prior to undertaking the EMTM program, I had earned a BA degree, which was clearly not sufficient to enable me to fulfill my career objectives. Specifically, I had an interest in pursuing management positions; the EMTM curriculum provided the opportunity to further my knowledge and skills in those areas (e.g., project management, strategic planning).
My decision was primarily driven by what would be possible to undertake while balancing a full time job and a family. The proximity of class and the ability to complete the program in less than two years made this possible. I was also familiar with the program from co-workers at Bellcore (now Telcordia), so I knew the program had a good reputation and was supported by company management.
What value did you derive from the program?
The combination of the challenging academics infused with real-world experience from both professors and classmates provided an outstanding foundation of knowledge. In addition to the "credentials" of having completed the program, it strengthened my overall management skills, particularly with regard to my project management career path in a technology-based organization. There were also countless "pearls" I took back (e.g., the value of an effective one-page memo) to the workplace.
What changes have occurred in your professional life since taking the program?
Like many others in the past five years, my professional life has taken profound turns since completion of the EMTM program. Within Telcordia, where I remained for two years after graduation, the program influenced me to focus on project management as a career path. Shortly after completing the EMTM program, I decided to pursue project management certification, which I completed in 2001. Soon thereafter, I was caught in the tidal wave of telecom downsizing, and was laid off from Telcordia that summer. Despite being thrust into a highly unsettled and anxious time as a result of losing my job, I was fortunate to hook on with Telesciences, Inc. within a few months - in no small part to my EMTM degree and PMI certification.
Telesciences is a small but well-established company that has been providing "billing mediation" solutions to the telecom industry since the late 1960s. I was hired to fill a project management opening in the company, but my job has evolved and expanded - and my career has blossomed - throughout my 2 ½ years here. In addition to acting as a project manager to oversee customer delivery projects, I've had the opportunity to tap into learnings from virtually all my EMTM classes. Probably the most gratifying opportunity I've had has been to drive a new strategic plan for Telesciences, which has been recently endorsed and implemented by senior management. (Peter Koen take note - the plan opens with a quote about alignment from Built to Last.) My contribution to Telesciences has resulted in a recent promotion to Director of Program Management, a capacity in which I continue to use my EMTM education every day.
