Och Initiative for Women in Finance Sends Female Students to Financial Epicenters

OCH INITIATIVE STUDENT IMPACT

Taking the Treks of a Lifetime During the summer of 2020, the Och Initiative for Women in Finance at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business formed the Och Council to help shape the program’s direction.

The inaugural group, which includes students Haley Click, Paulina Garcia, Alyson Koh, and Emily Sanchez, meets monthly to plan events, company visits, and ways to maximize the Och Initiative experience for students. We hope you enjoy learning about these four young leaders, their passion for finance, and ways that the Och Initiative’s treks have helped shape their career paths.

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passion for finance can begin in unexpected places — like the dinner table.

Wanting to contribute to the mealtime conversations about investors and portfolios with her father and three older brothers, Paulina Garcia, BBA ’23, took it upon herself to learn more. She started researching investment themes, sharing her thoughts on fashion trends and the disruption of big-box retail stores by digital platforms.

Years later, the Miami, FL native is one of four young women at Michigan Ross serving on the first Och Council, a group of students already experienced with the Och Initiative who, among other responsibilities, serve as mentors for students who are new to the program.

Garcia jumped at the chance to go on the West Coast trek as a freshman, an experience that helped shape her career path.

“I grew up around a dad and older brothers in finance but never have heard the perspective of a woman in this sector,” she said.

“This opportunity provided me with exposure to real-world experiences of women in finance and the opportunity to network with students and Ross Career Development Office staff. I saw that finance allowed me to use my multicultural perspective to think outside the box and be challenged. I decided I wanted to launch my career in either private equity or investment banking.”

Council Cohort Emily Sanchez, BBA ‘21, grew up in downtown Chicago in the shadows of high-rise financial firms, but was not aware of the types of opportunities they held for her. She decided to attend the Chicago trek in the fall of 2018 and the New York one that winter.

Together, the treks led her to some powerful realizations.

“At the time, most of my assumptions about finance, specifically investment banking which I hoped to pursue,

revolved around the field being very male dominated,” she said.

“Meeting these very intelligent, successful women and learning about their paths within finance opened my eyes to the options available to me and what resources I could take advantage of that were geared towards diversity candidates.

“The treks made me realize that although I am choosing to enter a field where I will most often be surrounded by men, there is a strong, supportive group of women within investment banking and finance that have achieved success and are happy to help other women pursue their careers within the same field.”

Sanchez was offered a full-time position as an investment banking analyst at Lazard, an opportunity she credits in large part to the initiative.

“I truly believe the Och program has helped many young women, including me, start their careers in finance,” she said. “I don’t think I would have my full-time analyst offer at Lazard without the knowledge, connections, and support I received from the participants and organizers of the trek. When I started college, I felt unsure about my interests, aspirations, and goals. I would sit in the Ross Winter Garden and listen to my peers speak confidently about the finance career path they had chosen. I felt like I was at a disadvantage because I didn’t have any knowledge about finance or the different roles available within the field.

“The Och Initiative provided me with a supportive and inclusive space to meet young women like myself, speak with successful professionals, and learn much more about finance than I could ever learn in a classroom.”

Haley Click, BBA ’21, felt an early pull to the fast-paced professional environment of Manhattan.

“I had been to NYC a few times in the past for family reasons, and I was drawn to the high-intensity and competitive atmosphere,” she said. “I had never been in a New York office or even in a bank prior to my Och Initiative. I felt comfortable asking questions that I normally would refrain from asking during normal recruiting sessions. I became much more comfortable with networking during the Trek. It was great to receive one-on-one time with analysts, and everyone was extremely welcoming and willing to help me and my peers. I was also drawn to the New York City lifestyle. The fast-paced aspect of the city excited me, and I think it is a great place to start a career.”

Although Click was drawn to New York, it was a trek she didn’t even go on that most shaped her career path. A friend who went on the West Coast trek reported back on her wonderful experience with a middle market bank in San Francisco called Cowen and Company. Intrigued by the reports of a strong culture and great people there, Click investigated the firm and spent her junior summer there and was ultimately offered a full-time position at its New York headquarters upon graduation next year.

“This shows the indirect impact that the Trek has on women in Ross that I think many people do not realize,” Click said. “Word of mouth is a powerful tool, and Och Alumni have nothing but positives to say about their experiences on the Treks.”

For Alyson Koh, BBA ’22 — who worked as an analyst at JPMorgan this summer — her interest in finance began in high school, when she interned at an asset management firm during her junior year.

“From there, I knew from my first corporate experience that I wanted to explore the world of finance more and that I wanted a career that challenged and excited me when I got up for work,” she said, noting that the NY and Chicago treks both further developed that interest.

“There was insight into how companies operated, what they valued, the culture of the people and community, and the growth opportunities for young women. The Och trek helped me explore what I want to do and where, as well as opening my eyes to younger firms on the Street, and growing my relationships with professionals in the space.”

The council members said they joined, in large part, to reciprocate what others gave to them during their early Och experience.

“I am excited to sit on the Och Council and pay it forward,” Garcia said. “As a member of the council, I hope to help adapt to the virtual world and keep Och’s mission of supporting women in Finance at its core. This trek provided me access to professional women in finance and their insights on successfully joining the workforce, and I fully intend to share this experience as a mentor to my Ross colleagues to promote greater diversity in the finance industry.”

The Och Initiative for Women in Finance was made possible by generous support from Jane (BBA, MAcc ’86) and Daniel Och. This initiative fosters and cultivates interest in finance careers among female BBA students. In 2020, the program marked its sixth year at Michigan Ross.