Chicago Engineers' Foundation

Welcome to MEP: Next Gen—a podcast dedicated to bridging the gap between minority students and the Minority Engineering Program here at Purdue. Join Clifford and Kaleia as they learn about the history of the Minority In Engineering Program. We are celebrating 50 amazing years and counting! Join them as we reflect on MEP’s founding, impacts, and the current past-present-future. Watch the first episode on the MEP YouTube Channel here: https://lnkd.in/gvU9QK7h

Today I completed my first week at Jacobs as part of the first rotation of my civil engineering co-op! This semester I will be working at Jacobs in their downtown Chicago location in the civil transportation department. Even though I am only a week in, I am already very excited for the things I will learn from this out of classroom experience!

I spent the last 2+ years working a rotational schedule (3 weeks on, 3 weeks off) on Mad Dog, one of bp's Gulf of Mexico platforms, as the site engineer. I am so grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a high integrity team with strong operating discipline. This experience exceeded all my expectations and has undoubtedly been the best part of my career. I will greatly miss the team on Mad Dog! Next up -- I am starting a role in bp's Trading & Shipping organization, as a trading operator based in our Chicago office. I am excited for new challenges and opportunities ahead!

Today marks the end of my 10 week Area Manager Internship with Amazon! I am blessed to have had the amazing opportunity to be a part of such a fast moving and innovative company. I am an advent Amazon shopper, so having the opportunity to learn distribution and manufacturing from one of the best Ecommerce companies in the world, is a dream come true. Thank you to the Operations Intern team for all of the onboarding guidance. I want to also give a special thanks to my Operations Manager and Mentor, Christina Kosmos, for always being available to answer my questions, provide guidance, and hold 1:1s. I would also like to thank the whole MDW2 Nights team. I have learned so many important Amazon leadership principles, my strongest ones being: Ownership, Learn and Be curious, and Deep Dive. During this time, I was able to learn more about the Area Manager and Operation Manager roles through experience, conduct my own study, and implement my own project. Here are some highlights: - I conducted roundtables with Associates and Managers to discuss Continuous Improvement Projects. - I conducted Cost Saving and Human Factor Analysis on many department processes in MDW2. - I increased my department's efficiency and speed by over 50%. - I researched Ergonomic (lifting) conditions and proposed a new system. Thank you to the Amazon MDW2 Nights team for being so welcoming! This is an irreplaceable experience. Working the night shift was not easy, but I am glad I had the opportunity. Once an Amazonian, Always an Amazonian! #amazonintern