We've had almost two dozen interns spend time with us at Floricane over the years. Many of them come to us by way of Randolph-Macon College's psychology department. But sometimes our best interns just come out of nowhere. Kayla Maxey, a rising senior at Boston University, knocked at our door at just the right moment this spring. She's spending the summer interviewing our past strategic planning clients, and supporting our organizational culture work with the University of Richmond.
Can you share a bit about yourself — your life in Richmond, and your journey to Boston University?
I was born and raised in the Richmond area and attended high school at Patrick Henry in Ashland. I grew up an avid swimmer, so a good chunk of my time growing up was spent in pools around the Richmond area. I continued the sport competitively throughout middle and high school, and was our Varsity captain my junior and senior year. In addition to swimming, I was also involved in a number of extracurriculars including DECA, Key Club, and even our cheese club. Though participating in DECA and competing at their conferences is really what made me realize I wanted to pursue a major in business.
As much as I loved Richmond, I was ready and eager to try out somewhere new for college. I was drawn to Boston University for a number of reasons. For one, I knew for sure that I wanted to be in a big city for college. They also had the academic reputation and proximity to opportunities that I was looking for in a school and the rest is history. Currently, I’m a rising senior studying business administration with concentrations in strategy and operations and supply chain management. At school I’m involved in the BU Consulting Group, where I have been able to prepare and develop skills needed to be successful in the field of consulting. I am also on our club snowboarding team, which is what you’ll probably find me doing most weekends during the season. As different as it is from Richmond, it’s been a really good experience and I've grown quite fond of the city, its New England architecture, and its seemingly endless amount of college students.
Why Floricane? What did you decide to intern at Floricane initially, and what have you experienced in your first four weeks that validated your decision?
What initially drew me to Floricane was a connection with their values and approach to consulting. It seemed to me that they held a stakeholder view that focused on bringing everyone’s voices together to create organizational change. As someone who feels strongly about the importance of listening to stakeholders, that view really resonated with me. That focus on people and building strong relationships really emanates from Floricane and it’s something that I've heard across the board in my conversations with past clients.
I’ve seen that there’s a high level of trust between Floricane and its clients and I think that speaks to their emphasis on building relationships, as well as allowing them to be able to engage people in an authentic way. Change is hard, and organizational change is no different, and it really takes the people in an organization to care about those changes to make a plan successful. Bringing that diversity of voices to the table allows employees to see themselves and their experiences reflected in the strategy of an organization, instead of a siloed process that ignores the full scope of an organization's work. Creating that sense of ownership of the strategy is really important, since at the end of the day those are the same people responsible for carrying out that plan, and I think Floricane does a great job of creating that in its strategic planning.
You’re working at Floricane for 10 weeks this summer. Can you briefly describe the main areas of work or projects that are consuming your time and energy?
One of the projects that has been taking up most of my time this first half of summer is a review of Floricane’s strategic planning process. I’ve been speaking with past clients about their experience with the company and using that feedback to develop some insights around the strategic planning process. With the interviews I’ve had so far, I’ve been able to synthesize those ideas to come up with some high-level takeaways to enhance Floricane’s strategic planning process and understand how they can leverage what differentiates them as a consulting firm. At the end of the summer, I’ll be translating this into a presentation that will be part of an event hosted by Floricane. The other project I’ll be working on this summer is for the University of Richmond’s Business Affairs, where I’ll be helping out in the facilitation of employee conversations. I’m looking forward to that project ramping up and to learning from those conversations.
Absolute favorite class you’ve taken at Boston University?
My favorite class I’ve taken at Boston University has been Sustainable Energy, which I took this past semester. It was a really interesting look at the history and progression of energy systems, with a focus on renewable energy. One of the things I really enjoyed about the class was that it was taught from the intersectional lens of science, economics, and social and political. Since energy touches all parts of our lives, it was really helpful to contextualize it in that way to see how those different aspects play a role in both the history and future of energy. It was a class that felt very relevant and I walked away from it feeling like I had learned a lot.
Why in the world do you think you want to work in consulting? What resonates with you about consulting work?
It sounds a bit cliche, but I’m drawn to the problem-solving aspect of consulting. I enjoy being challenged to think outside of the box and consulting exposes me to a wide range of problems that require innovative solutions. Like I mentioned before, competing through DECA is what initially inspired me to consider a career in business. In hindsight, the competitions operated much like a case interview for consulting does, and it’s that same sense of working through challenges to solve a problem that still draws me to it. I also appreciate the fact that each client engagement presents a unique set of issues, whether it's streamlining operations, optimizing strategies, or addressing organizational challenges. The dynamic nature of consulting and the diversity of work is something that excites me with its learning opportunities along the way.
You’ve been talking to some of Floricane’s clients this summer. What are three words they’ve used to describe Floricane that feel really on-target to you? Can you give an example, or a brief story, that illuminates or provides some context for one of those words?
The three words that come to mind for me are personable, inclusive, and storytellers. The process by which Floricane goes about strategic planning really speaks to each of those words. A recurring idea that was expressed to me was Floricane’s ability to engage various stakeholders in each company in a way that was inclusive and reflective of all areas of the organization. In a lot of cases this input was important in discovering and understanding strategic priorities that might not have even been on the radar before that discussion. That’s where I feel the “storyteller” description really comes into play, in how they’re able to take this amalgamation of ideas and weave them into a story that guides the strategy for each organization.
What are you most excited about for your fall semester in Denmark?
I’m really looking forward to immersing myself in a new culture and getting to know Copenhagen. I’d consider myself quite the foodie so I’m also eager to explore the food offerings in what I've heard is quite a culinary city. Though, as excited as I am to explore Copenhagen, I’m probably most excited about the opportunity to travel around Europe while I’m there. There’s so many places that I’d like to make it to, and my goal is to see how much of that list I can get to. Coincidentally, my best friend is studying abroad in Rome at the same time as I will be, which is already my excuse to visit Italy while I’m there.
I’m also quite excited to be attending Copenhagen Business School while I’m there. I'm particularly looking forward to my corporate sustainability classes, which is what initially drew me to Copenhagen in the first place. Denmark's strong commitment to sustainability and innovation is something that really inspires me. The country is a global leader in renewable energy, urban planning, and environmental initiatives. I'm eager to witness firsthand how Denmark incorporates sustainability into its daily life, and I hope to gain some valuable insights to bring back home with me.
What are you going to do next May when you graduate!?
Ideally by May of next year I will have a job offer that’s in the field of consulting and will be preparing to start that next chapter of my life. I’m both excited and nervous to look further into those opportunities, but am certainly looking forward to whatever the future holds for me. I also think it might be nice to do a little bit of traveling before I dive into the next phase of my career, so that’s definitely a possibility too.