RACHEL RICHARDSON

Founder of Beginning, Middle and End

By Megan Geall

If you could sum up your experience at City in three words, what would they be? Intense, fun, skint.

What was your favourite part about working at Snapchat?

Being paid to understand the idiosyncrasies of Gen Z and how to tell stories on social.

Do you have a piece of journalism that you are proudest of?

I should say one of the campaigns I worked on but I actually think it’s securing Lady Gaga for the cover of Fabulous magazine back in 2009.

If you could interview anyone, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

The Queen. I believe she’s only ever given one interview and it was about her coronation. I would have loved to ask her about her unique and extraordinary life.

Have you ever experienced sexism in your career?

I am a woman, yes! Not to give the media industry a gold star that it doesn’t deserve but I experienced it much more working in the tech industry than I ever did as a journalist.

SUNANDA MALIK International Client Relationships and Marketing Vice President at Genpact

By Megan Geall

What is the most useful skill you learned at City that you still use today?

To be self-suffcient and comfortable with myself. It was my frst time living away from home, in a foreign land, too. Until then, I had led a life of privilege, but at City I was managing my own schedule, and learning and developing myself.

Who was the most inspiring person you met while on the course?

I admired Adrianne Blue for her outspokenness and inimitable style. But perhaps the most inspiring person I met was a fellow student, Sandra Nyaira (a Zimbabwean reporter who died in 2021). She had a quiet, dignifed manner, and you would never guess she had such a feisty personality and an exciting portfolio of investigative work.

Have you ever experienced microaggressions or racism in your career?

Yes. In fact, whilst I was at City, I was interning for a national daily in London, and when I applied for a full-time job at the end of the internship, the editor under whom I was working told me that my colour would be the determining factor on whether or not I got the job, implying that I only had a shot if the quota wasn’t flled already. I didn’t fully understand the gravity of that statement until much later.

How did your time at City infuence your career?

While I may no longer be a journalist, I attribute much of my success to my education as a journalist. I could practically apply everything I had learnt in theory. I became a marketing and communications professional in the second leg of my career and I often applied the same principles of journalistic research and writing to my business and presentation skills. I also introduced various features like vox pops and podcasts and ultimately started my own talk show featuring leaders and clients. And fnally, as I pivoted towards a sales and business development role, I applied my interviewing skills to sales conversations and my broadcast skills to public speaking opportunities!