As I enter my fourth month living in San Francisco, I’m starting to realize the truth in the quote “San Francisco has only one drawback, tis’ hard to leave”. San Francisco has it all: beautiful scenery, interesting people, a unique culture and amazing food. It’s also a place where I never expected to end up. So, how did I get here?
I started with Coleman Research in late 2014 in the Raleigh, NC office. I had just graduated from the University of Richmond that May and was wrapping up working on a Virginia Senate campaign organizing volunteers. After that experience, I was looking for a position where I would be able to put some of the people-facing skills I learned to use, and the Analyst position at Coleman was a perfect fit. Essentially, my role was to proactively contact experts across all sectors to join the Coleman Research network.
After about six months in the Analyst role, I was promoted to an Associate and shifted over to Coleman’s Technology, Media and Telecom team. In this role, I focused on matching up Coleman experts with projects for consulting and investment management clients. I was soon promoted to a Senior Associate and took on greater client management responsibility.
In late 2016, based on my interest in moving to a more client-facing role, I was given the opportunity to take on the role of Client Manager, managing a small team and a book of clients based in the San Francisco Bay Area. As I started to settle into this new role, my manager at the time suggested that I consider relocating to Coleman’s recently opened San Francisco office. The prospect of moving to a new city across the country was nerve-racking, but the opportunity to move to a city like San Francisco doesn’t come along often and I was looking for a challenge. I had to say yes. And I’m glad that I did.
The Coleman San Francisco team has welcomed me with open arms and made what could have been a difficult transition an easy one. I have truly enjoyed my experience with Coleman over the past two and a half years because I have been challenged in every role and taken advantage of Coleman’s many growth opportunities.