Alum of the Month
Daniel Chen
May 2013
London Program
August 2009 Intake
What and where did you study before your Mountbatten internship?
Lehigh University- BS in Finance and Management
What made you apply for the Mountbatten programme?
Continuing education with Masters Degree and Travel opportunity.
Describe your sponsor company and your role within it.
Deutsche Bank- Analyst with Client Reporting Group of Global Prime Brokerage Department. Managed CRG systems and ensured timely delivery of all reports for bank's clients. Daily monitoring of systems to identify issues as well as implement resolutions. Worked with global teams in Mumbai India and New York USA.
What was the highlight/most memorable moment of your working experience during this year?
I shook the hands of Mr. Anshu Jain, who was the CFO of Deutsche Bank at the time, at an awesome technology showcase event hosted by DB annually. Now he is Co-CEO of the company. I volunteered to help plan the event and in turn was able to meet a lot of great people, and play with the newest toys in business technology.
What was the social highlight/most memorable moment during this year?
There's never a dull moment during Mountbatten. When we all went on our team building and leadership retreat, it was a great way to really get to know my fellow Mountbattens and build long lasting relationships.
Please share a little wisdom/philosophy that you acquired during your internship.
Never underestimate the power of networking. Everyone you meet has something to offer, whether it be a professional or social, and you will have something in return. Through networking, you actually learn to value your own abilities while creating additional value for yourself as human capital. Mountbatten goes far and beyond to create networking events and therefore offers plenty of value building opportunities.
If you could change anything about your internship, what would it be?
I did a lot of case studies as an undergrad and felt those were the best introductions to the real world from an educational standpoint. I felt St. Mary's could have used more case studies, and I wished Mountbatten had allowed us to work on projects with real companies to really enhance the educational aspect of the program.
What happened after completing the year - what did you do next?
After completing the entire MBA program, I returned to New York and actually ended up starting a Wholesale apparel company. Due to networking and pre-established connections, I had a manufacturing plant in China, a solid distribution network in the US, and very little barriers to entry for starting my business. Within a few months, I found myself with over 200 new clients generating a 6 figure revenue.
Where are you now in your working life and what do you do?
I currently focus on Real Estate now as both a developer and a broker. I still have my apparel business on the side and will continue growing it, but it has reached a certain level of maturity so I can manage it from the sidelines. My job now is to conduct market research on potential development sites, facilitate deals to acquire development sites, and administer the actual development of new residential and/or commercial property. I also help New York residents find homes, whether it be rental apartments, first time home buyers, or investors. I plan to acquire my own broker's license soon as well.
Do you have any future plans that you would like to realise & what are they (career & social)?
My future plans are primarily professional. Establish a good reputation as a developer and property manager in the greater NYC area, start my own brokerage firm, and be a valued community member in my neighborhood. I also want to re-brand my apparel business by hiring a new designer and come out with a new line of women's and/or men's apparel.