Orrin Stone is a former President of the GBCC and graduated from UNC in 2018 with a Ph.D. in Pharmacology. He was interviewed by James Meyo when he was an Associate Consultant at McKinsey & Co.
Orrin has been a McKinsey associate consultant for 1.5 years and has really enjoyed his experience. He values the mentorship and supportive culture that is facilitated by the flexible staffing model at the firm. McKinsey’s staffing model accommodates for the onboarding process by exploring the possibility of pairing new hires with experienced mentors from the same office. Orrin also values the diversity of experience working in teams on numerous projects, ranging from pharmaceutical medical products to operations for drug development and clinical trials.
How did the GBCC help Orrin advance his career goals?
Orrin fondly remembers his time with the GBCC, previously the Science & Business Club where he enjoyed learning from career seminars and organizing the annual Duke/UNC case competition. In addition to preparing him for a consulting career, the GBCC also helped Orrin make great friends who share similar career interests. Presently, Orrin keeps up with GBCC current events such as GBCC networking socials and career seminars via the regular posts updated on the GBCC LinkedIn page.
Q: What is Orrin’s advice to current GBCC members?
Orrin emphasized on the importance of networking to identify experienced mentors who can help guide you as you explore your career trajectory. He encourages you to actively seek opportunities to learn more about careers you are interested in and strongly recommends applying for the summer consulting internships that many firms offer. In particular, McKinsey offers the McKinsey Insight summer program. Additionally, Orrin advises that having a support group of peers with shared interests is important to keeping up with your professional development goals.
Q: How does the McKinsey culture accommodate and nurture diversity?
Orrin highlights that McKinsey has numerous diversity initiatives at multiple levels to accommodate for the wide range of employees at the firm. He encourages students interested in summer internships to explore the McKinsey Diversity Connect program, and those applying to full time positions to learn more about numerous programs at the firm, including Women in the Workplace, GLAM and McKinsey Black Network.
Thanks to Orrin for spending time with us to learn more about his experiences! If you’re interested in following his footsteps, you can visit the website of the GBCC. You could also reach out to him over his LinkedIn.