Byron
Operations Research Associate Consultant, Philadelphia Office
Education
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
B.S. in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, 2005
Activities at Cornell: Cornell Presidential Research Scholar (CPRS), Teaching Assistant within ORIE department
Memories of Cornell: With the combination of high stress levels and harsh winters, I can honestly say that I didn't enjoy my time at Cornell as much as I should have. I'll never forget returning to Cornell for the first time after graduating for on-campus recruiting with ZS. I walked through Ho Plaza on a beautiful afternoon and observed students in the midst of their daily routine. It was surreal to see the life I recently knew passing me by and to realize how fast things change. Within less than one year, I had been transformed from student to recruiter.
Hometown
Pennington, NJ
ZS Career Path
Operations Research Analyst, 2005
- Moved to the Philadelphia office, 2007
On the work
"A pharmaceutical company was preparing for the launch of a new drug and needed to hire and train an entirely new sales team. They wanted us to tell them the appropriate number of sales reps that they would need to properly promote the new product. In addition, as their product gained new potential indications over time, they needed to know the number of people they would need to hire incrementally in the future. Our team first gained inputs from the client such as financial assumptions and data related to the location and value of target accounts. We then used proprietary software that takes into account geographical constraints to find the appropriate number of reps to hire to promote the new drug.
"Just a few months later, the same client came back to ZS and asked us to design balanced territories for the sales force that we had recently sized. We were ultimately able to deliver maps and target account lists for each territory we created for our client's future sales force. It was extremely exciting to solve a real life geographical optimization problem and to then follow up with the implementation of the solution we delivered."
On ZS values
Treat People Right: "As an associate at ZS, I feel truly responsible for my work and empowered by everyone around me to get the job done right. ZS gives new employees the opportunity to work on complex problems right from the start, encouraging you to learn along the way and become an expert in what you are working on. The atmosphere in the office is one of learning and people are sincerely interested in helping you to learn and grow both professionally as well as personally. The work at ZS poses a challenge, but with the challenge comes an extremely rewarding experience."
On life outside work
"Outside of work, I really enjoy running on the canal in Princeton and playing tennis. On the weekends, I often go to Philadelphia or Atlantic City. I also enjoy dining out at the many great restaurants in the area."