A psychology major active in lots of extracurriculars, Rose Lee didn't have a particular path in mind but she decided to leap into the unknonw of consulting because she didn't know anything about it and thought it would be a good challenge. This pattern repeated itself when a financial services recruiter saw a fit Rose had never considered. Find out how recognizing where someone else could shine and reaching out benefits not only that person but the collective.
Guest Rose Lee, Dartmouth ’96, was psychology major, active in lots of extracurriculars. She didn't have a particular path in mind upon graduation, but she decided to leap into the unknown of consulting expressly because she didn't know anything about consulting and thought it would be a good challenge. After four years at a small firm followed by business school, that same pattern repeated itself.
A female recruiter suggested that she take a look at the financial industry, seeing transferable skills and experience that Rose hadn’t even considered transfrerable. Being called out (or called in) made a big impression and set Rose on the path not only to personal success in the financial services industry but to being an advocate, mentor, and sponsor for others to help diversify the field as a whole.
In this episode, find out from Rose how recognizing where someone else could shine and reaching out benefits not only that person but the collective …on ROADS TAKEN...with Leslie Jennings Rowley.
About This Episode's Guest
Rose Lee has been in the financial industry for two decades and currently serves as Managing Director and head of structured products, sales and development for Credit Suisse. She has three kids and still has the time to rally our classmates for a baking challenge (preferably with lots of green food coloring) on Facebook.
Executive Producer/Host: Leslie Jennings Rowley
Music: Brian Burrows
Find more episodes at https://roadstakenshow.com
Email the show at RoadsTakenShow@gmail.com
Rose Lee: We get involved in a lot of different efforts and initiatives to try to promote more women, to recruit talented woman in the same way that I was, you know, when I was naive and didn't know what I could do and didn't have the confidence to try new things and trying to build that base. It’s an ongoing effort. It's not like you can snap of a finger and do it in just a couple of years. So it seems like it's a long path, but it's one that I’m committed to.
Leslie Rowley: A psychology major active in lots of extracurriculars, Rose Lee didn't have a particular path in mind but she decided to leap into the unknonw of consulting because she didn't know anything about it and thought it would be a good challenge. This pattern repeated itself when a financial services recruiter saw a fit Rose had never considered. Find out how recognizing where someone else could shine and reaching out benefits not only that person but the collective...on today's Roads Taken, with me, Leslie Jennings Rowley.
I'm here today with Rose Lee and we're going to talk about expectations and unexpected things and how we get to where we are. So, Rose, thanks so much for being here today.
RL: Thanks for having me, Leslie. This is great.
LJR: So I start this the same way every time and I ask: when we were in college, who were you, and when we were getting ready to leave who did you think you would become?
RL: Those are tough questions you know I went to an all-girls Catholic high school and so you know going into Dartmouth, and I think it was a bit of a culture shock. And you know I would say that I wanted to Dartmouth, not knowing much very naive, but you know bright eyed and excited to meet new folks and kind of start my life independently and I, you know got involved in a lot of different activities. I lived in Butterfield, which was the no alcohol dormitory don't know why I chose but it sounded good; it was part of the application package, so I thought I had to apply. You know and I learned to you know make lots of different friends and connect with people and it went on from there, you know, I think I wasn't any different than a lot of folks that were starting college and being on their own, but you know, in terms of what I want I thought my expectation of who I was going to be, I think you know going out of college I probably thought I was going to save the planet. I did environmental studies, I was a psychology major and I had high hopes for having a really big impact in the world. But I had to pay bills and started with gotta get a real job and I did consulting for four years, and you know Lo and behold, who want who's looking for a psychology major as a prerequisite so it was a great experience working for a small company coming right out of college I didn't know what I wanted to do initially, so it's just sort of you know, is one of two places I had a job offer, and I would say it was an important decision that I probably made at that time. Primarily because the other offer was a paralegal position and this consulting work was something that first of all I didn't know what consulting was why would they hire you know someone right out of college, but it sounded really hard it sounded really complex. And something that I didn't think I could do you know, again, you know sort of this like naive hat on. And so I chose that path because it it, I felt like I had to challenge myself at that point, and it was it was fantastic because it was a small company I got to you know cover pretty senior clients fortune 500 companies and learned a lot working with the founding partners of the firm. And then I realize I gotta do more, I you know I wasn't sure what to do next, but Business School seemed like a good idea, and so I went to business school after my four years of consulting and something very important happened during the recruiting process at Business School. I got it I got an invite to a free dinner from financial services company and I went for the free food because I didn't think I wanted to go into finance. You know, we're poor at that time. And you know the woman that was recruiting basically said, you know your profile is unusual and different than what we normally look at, but you know you should consider the field of finance.
LJR: What did she mean by that, that you just hadn't been an economics major?
RL: Yeah yeah. You know I wasn't a STEM major. I had no economics background, you know. I don't think I took one class outside of my business school and I was a psychology major so you know I didn't check the box. But you know she took a chance on me and kind of coached me you know. Obviously I was honest and saying [LJR: I came for the food] Look I I don't have any finance background and nd she said that's that's actually not true, you know, this is a client oriented business and she talked about she looked at my resume and said you recommended ideas. That's what you'd be doing in finance. It's just a different product. So anyway, fast forward : I ended up getting an offer and I've been in finance the past 19 years. So this one person who kind of took a chance on you know, looking at a profile of someone who didn't fit the mold no, she was—and I don't know who this woman is; I wish I could meet her now and thank her. But you know I think I've had these people like her in my life that's kind of pushed me along the way. It's been a big influence on sort of the road I've taken.
LJR: That's really interesting because it, particularly in those worlds, where there's a recruiter involved or some sort of hiring manager that isn't ultimately your superior or your mentor day to day, you have to hope that what they see is what other people want and are willing to hone, so luckily you found that, it sounds like.
RL: yeah yeah and and you know the connections that I’ve made at Dartmouth, and the friends I’ve stayed in touch with and people that I’ve, mentors that I’ve met along the way, they've been you know incredible sort of I would say advocates to, you know, opening up new opportunities and new ways of looking at things. That's been a big driving force in my life.
LJR: So often, when we look in hindsight, everything, all those dots seem to make sense and you go Oh, of course that that worked out…But, at the time that seemed like this was very out of the box ,kind of unexpected, I don't have the background. So now, when you are looking back, would you say Oh, I should have seen that pathway, on my own or is it still like gosh that really was a big jump for me?
RL: No, I mean looking back you know in our older age now in our 40s right pushing 50 I think it's so much easier to see those connections and you know I think we naturally fall in the area of being mentors ourselves and sponsors ourselves, and you know that it's just it seems so obvious now. So it's great to kind of use the experience I’ve had to kind of pay it forward as well.
LJR: Yeah. So along the way, what have been your most interesting surprises about being in this industry that you had really no, wasn't on your radar in the beginning? But what do you like about it, how does it really tap into who you are?
RL: Oh no, I think that in my in my position--I'm in the sales world and finance—covering clients and problem solving: those two things have been really important driver of why I’ve stayed in this industry, for you know almost 20 years. No day is ever the same and you're constantly having to figure out complex situations. You're having to explain things so that complex ideas get simplified that you know people understand what they are, in a way that makes them take action. And you know, because it's a people business, I think my psychology background, for example, has been you know tremendously helpful. Because I feel like I have you know, in some ways, an edge over other people that have never taken a psychology class which is you know ultimately outside of you know, complex financial products that you might be dealing with. You have to understand people and what motivates them? What do they need? Figuring out and anticipating questions they might be asking, you know. Those things are things that you know, sometimes it's less obvious to people and what they need, as a skill set so that's been important. But I would say, you know, in finance, it is a male dominated industry. It's, you know, not culturally diverse in general, you know. You look at the ranks and a lot of finance industry, banks and so forth, and you know, there are very few senior woman representation as well, so I think there's still you know a lot that I can do, and want to change, and you know we get involved in a lot of different efforts and initiatives to try to promote more women, to recruit talented woman in the same way that I was, you know, when I was naive and didn't know what I could do and didn't have the confidence to try new things and trying to build that base. It’s an ongoing effort. It's not like you can snap of a finger and do it in just a couple of years. So it seems like it's a long path, but it's one that I’m committed to.
LJR: Yeah yeah and so outside of the finance world and the working world how has your path twisted here and there,? Have you had to relocate because of jobs, or is this pretty much it's been New York?
RL: It's been pretty much New York, I have three kids :13 almost 12 and almost eight. So it's been it's been a wild ride, you know, being a working mom. Trying to trying to have a life outside of career and you know mommy mode but yeah every it's a you don't have a choice just kind of every day, one day, at a time.
LJR: That’s right. That's right. So the Rose that was ready to just embrace life in college and see where this was going to take her. What might you go back and tell her to kind of get her ready for where she's landed 25 years later?
RL: I would say, I would say, take more risks. And try things that you don't think you're capable of doing. And do things that you love doing. You know that could be work that could be a hobby but you know just just getting involved I think when you're when you're starting out you're just so focused on the one thing or the you know, trying to be successful in one thing or be really good at one thing, and I think that having more balances is great longer term.
LJR: I was gonna say at least the first two, it sounds like you internalize those lessons already and might not have needed to be to be told to do those things but probably the third one, we all could have used a little bit more.
RL: Absolutely. Yeah absolutely and I think with taking risks, you know, we tend to—or I shouldn't say we—Itend to sometimes play it safe, and you know only raise my hand for things I know I can accomplish and you know if I look back on things that I’ve been really proud of probably they're the ones that I didn't think I could do, but was forced into it in some form or you know had had to be pushed a little bit to see those things, and I wish I had done more of those things because it's been a growing experience.
LJR: Yeah and, as you said, at this point in our lives and careers were in that position where we can not only tell somebody that but kind of push people into those positions of on comfort and their point of natural inclination and that's part of mentorship and doing what you said we kind of need to do in various industries of bringing people in that might not feel ready or might not be drawn to a certain skill that they ultimately would excel it and the whole enterprise would be richer for their experience .
Okay, so the flip side of risk, though I think there's this benefit of seeing what you didn't think you could do. But then there's also the chance that it doesn't turn out the way you wanted to. So have there been times where that was the case for you, and although the practice of taking the risk was good, the outcome wasn't what you'd hoped?
RL: Absolutely, I have so many of those. And you know I think at the time. When things don't go your way, it looks like that was a waste of my time, and you know: why did I do that? But time is so important because, looking back, the things that I failed that have been so important for my next position in my next role or you know new opportunities that I’ve been able to get on the back of that, you know, I was asked to build out a new business and frankly it just it never took off. It didn't get the interest. Didn't, you know, gather a ton of P&L. And we ended up having to shut the business down within this this initiative that we were working on. And you know it felt really bad, but probably that experience allowed me to get my new role. And I know what not to do, and so, in my next business building idea that's been so important, because now, I can say: You know what? We tried that; it didn't work; we're not going to do it, even though everybody thinks we should do it that way. And that's, you know, it's given me so much more, I would say credibility in the things that I’m doing so, you know I think when I say. I wish I you know tell myself take more risks, you have to expect the failures to come, but those are actually part of, you know, the growth and there's huge importance of actually failing. So I know people say you got to take more risks and failure is good. I tell that to my kids, you know all the time, but it it's actually true in real life.
LJR: Yeah, and I mean it's good to hear that it's…we do say that and do we really believe it, right? Oh, I learned from that! Well I learned I don't want to do that again. I don't want to take that risk again, right? Sometimes the thing you learn it but actually what you're really learning I like that you're able to say Okay, we did it that way it didn't work that doesn't mean I have the answer, but at least I can say: You know, going against the grain or whatever it doesn't really work here, we need to try something else and yeah those are concrete things that we're learning, not just to be a little more gunshy.
RL: Exactly exactly. One other comment: As we become more, I don't know, wiser, older, mature.
LJR: I like wiser.
RL: You know what's really fun is seeing and connecting the dots of, you know, where opportunities are where, you know, you see people that are really great at something that you know you can leverage for another opportunity and give them a platform to grow that's I think I think that's an important aspect of where we are at our stage in our career.
LJR: Yeah. Well, Rose, it's just a delight to get to talk to you again and to hear where you've been and that you're on a path that's really kind of shaping the face and vibrancy of an industry and it's great to have somebody in leadership that thinks like you, looks like you, is all the qualities of you so thank you so much for being part of this.
RL: Thank you so much for having me on this and I know this is a big time commitment on your part, and I it's been really great to connect. You know, even though we're just listening and not actually having conversation with them directly it's still I think you know ties us and connects us in a way that we really, especially during the pandemic has been, so thank you.
LJR: You're welcome. It's been a delight.
That was Rose Lee, who--with nearly two decades in the financial industry—is Managing Director and head of structured products, sales and development for Credit Suisse. She has three kids and still has the time to rally our classmates for a baking challenge—preferably with lots of green food coloring) on Facebook. Speaking of online platforms, we hope you will visit your podcast platform of choice soon and take a minute to follow our show and leave a rating and review so that the algorithms have more data to match other discerning listeners to our program. I'm so proud to get the chance to speak with such a wide range of interesting people and share their stories each week. And if you know of any stories we've yet to share, give us a suggestion on RoadsTakenShow.com or via email at RoadsTakenShow@gmail.com. Thanks so much for listening and all the best from me, Leslie Jennings Rowley, until our next episodes of ROADS TAKEN.