Stephen Mao
, ConsultantWhy did you choose Booz Allen?
I chose the firm because of its reputation, work environment, and flexible schedule and work-life balance. I believe the work environment is the first priority in job satisfaction. What I’ve experienced at Booz Allen is not a job, but part of my life. You get to meet people, network, make friends, and more. Managers are just as easy to approach and talk to as anyone else; you can simply walk into their offices and have a casual conversation or ask for advice. At Booz Allen, life doesn’t revolve around work, but comfortably balances work with life.
How has Booz Allen helped you prepare for a career as a consultant?
Booz Allen’s training and education opportunities are among the best I have seen. All new hires are required to take a two-day Discover Consulting course, which introduces them to government consulting, problem solving, and client relationships. Learning and Development has ongoing events and usually notifies us by e-mail. One of the most useful skills I’ve picked up for consulting is effective listening, which I learned at a presentation by the Junior Exempt Employees Forum.
Do you have a mentor at Booz Allen?
I have an informal mentor. I believe that someone with more experience in the same line of work can provide excellent advice. I’ve asked my mentor for input on many things, such as my decision to pursue graduate school through the firm’s partnership. His honest, first-hand information and input ultimately led me to apply for the Master's program.
What is the most important thing that working at Booz Allen has taught you about yourself?
Booz Allen taught me that continued self-development is important to me. My managers not only expect excellent work and client service from me, but also push me to pursue learning and development. Members of my team are strongly encouraged to participate in training or relevant graduate degree programs.
What do you find most interesting or compelling about your work?
Most interesting to me is the chance to work on technology and aspects of projects that I’ve never seen before. Learning new things is not just an opportunity but a necessity, which keeps the work intriguing and challenging.
Describe a time when you saw one of the firm’s Core Values in action.
Diversity, Teamwork, and Respect – In my current project, everyone runs into problems as they design or implement the software. But for each problem, multiple team members contribute different ways to solve it. In software development, there are near-infinite ways to solve the same problem, and each team member has a different background, education, and way of thinking which leads to a different solution. Everyone’s opinion is given equal weight and respect. From these, we can choose the best.
Client Service and Excellence – Because there are multiple solutions to the same development problem, there are often solutions that would be easier for us to implement but are not necessarily the best long-term solution for our client. Even with the extra time needed to develop the best solution, our team exceeds client expectations and delivers only high-quality work.
