What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do you view them as such?

Sample One

1. JSA:

In June of 2004, a week after graduating from Boston College, I began my strategy consulting career as a research associate with ASM Partners, formerly part of Booz. By 2007, I was managing projects and leading teams with as many as four consultants.

My first assignment as a project manager was to assess the regional jet market and develop a strategic plan for Ace Tooling, a division of a large public aero-structures supplier. Ace Tooling lacked strategic direction and had only one customer, Boeing. In order to succeed as a standalone division, my team recommended that Ace would need to aggressively pursue non-Boeing business. We helped the tooling division restructure so they could garner business independently.

Today, Ace is a diversified structures supplier. I felt a deep sense of accomplishment both engaging with a large company and collaborating with them to develop strategies based on our findings and proving to myself that I had the maturity and independence to step into this leadership role.

2. Pacific Biodiesel:

As a board member of Pacific Biodiesel, I spearheaded financial modeling and strategy development. In 2006, the company was in crisis. Soy prices, the proposed raw material for our biodiesel plant skyrocketed; simultaneously, local politics hamstrung efforts to secure required operating permits. Consequently, our lead investors were about to back out. At that point, I realized that the complex problems the company faced weren’t going to be solved by tactical point solutions. I had to pull everyone together to identify a strategic solution. My insight was that a successful alternative energy company had to be a truly sustainable one. Working with one of our engineers, I discovered that by using yellow grease instead of soy we would have a cheap, renewable, and abundant source of energy. To the board, I argued that we could also leverage the fact that we were using a truly renewable raw material to win state approval for the plant thereby overcoming municipal bureaucratic hurdles. The board agreed and we were united in a common vision: to be a renewable biodiesel producer. State support influenced the municipal government to grant us the needed permits. With the permits, economics, and strategic roadmap in place, the investors agreed to another round of financing. My involvement with Pacific gave me a firsthand view of the promise and potential of cleantech serving as the catalyst for my career vision: to be a leader in cleantech private equity.

3. Pul-e-Alam:

On June 6, 2008, I was the convoy commander tasked with escorting our Provincial Commander to Gardez, Afghanistan. That day my 10 man team was ambushed in the Pul-e-Alam Valley.

This was the first time anyone on my team had seen combat, but as a leader I lived the motto: the more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in combat. We were ready. My soldiers knew exactly what to do, the product of hours of preparation. My soldiers’ ability to establish security while I radioed for support was critical.

After the trail vehicle was disabled, leaving three of my men injured, the vehicle in front instantly backed up to provide cover. The soldiers provided aid to their trapped comrades. My team performed with courage and executed our plans flawlessly and that saved lives.

Of 10 soldiers, four men were awarded medals for valor, and three received purple hearts. More importantly, we all lived to tell the story. In my 28 years this was my most substantial accomplishment; it was the culmination of lessons learned from ROTC to Ranger school. My most important responsibility as a military leader was achieved: we all came home.

Sample Two

My most meaningful accomplishments have not only shaped me, but have also positively impacted others. Each achievement was preceded by a challenging decision or event, and I used my skills and experience to resolve problems and create value. Making good things happen motivates me, especially when I learn and grow along the way.

It’s said that fate chooses relations, but not your friends, and I have found this to be true for me. I’ve built a phenomenal group of friends, a band of brothers, which provides my foundation. In growing a diverse support group, I’ve learned much about their personal difficulties and we’ve helped each other significantly along the way. My Russian brother was forsaken by his parents at the age of 16. Lacking direction, I helped him secure a full ride for college by encouraging his studies and coaching him for interviews. My Guajarati brother lost his twin in a car accident. I led our support of him and his family throughout their grieving. As we physically separated after college, I organized activities to strengthen our bonds, orchestrating cyberspace meetings and vacations to maintain our cohesion. My friends love each other for who we are. Our complements make the group whole, and I’m proud to close the circle.

I carried my team-building abilities with me when I joined the Solar Energy Alliance (SEA), a non-profit trade association, as a technical projects manager fresh out of school. My initial role was to work solely on technical issues. When the Obama administration ramped up its alternative energy programs, the SEA recognized that my unique engineering and finance background could be useful. California, a flagship state, had recently banned the storage of solar energy, and we were concerned that other states would soon follow. Every passing day meant that our stakeholders could not supply their customers with vital alternative fuel. Our Director of State Affairs tapped me to spearhead the team tasked with getting the California solar industry back online. I assembled a team of technical experts to present our case to California’s EPA and State Water Board. After substantial deliberations, we convinced the agencies to permit solar energy storage. The industry was once again back on track. This accomplishment confirmed that my leadership and teamwork skills could generate change, even in the most challenging regulatory environments.

My third accomplishment combined regulatory proficiency with real-world market dynamics. In late 2008, the SEA CEO expressed concerns about a new product in the fuel industry called a Renewable Identification Number (RIN), an esoteric renewable fuel credit that could be traded as a commodity. He professed that our ignorance was costing our members money, and we needed to stop the hemorrhaging. Being comfortable with financial instruments, I quickly offered to become the RIN expert for our industry. After researching the regulations, I cultivated a thorough understanding of the RIN program, earning recognition from many in the fuel industry. In fact, I’m now so comfortable with the RIN program that I am frequently consulted by the petroleum and renewable fuel industries, RIN brokers, clearing houses, and even the EPA – the writers of the RIN rules – to give my insight on how the RIN functions in the marketplace. My efforts have acted as a tourniquet and generated substantial income for members. Volunteering was a sink-or-swim moment, and I’ve proven that I possess the leadership necessary to grow a successful program from the ground up.

These three accomplishments are a result of my leadership and motivation, demonstrating my ability to analyze novel problems, both human and technical, and develop successful approaches that constructively impact others.

Sample Three

Over the past few years, there have been accomplishments which I have viewed as defining moments in my personal development. Three of these milestones, involving both my personal and professional life, stand out above the others, providing evidence of my achievements as an individual. When it came time to make the college decision, I searched far and wide for the “right school.” I knew Tulane encompassed what I wanted, but my parents saw no need for an out-of-state education. They would not tolerate my opinion and threatened complete financial independence. After my acceptance, I weighed my options and decided to do what was right for me, all the while hoping someday my parents would support my decision. I devised financial strategies, applied for financial aid, found co-signers for student loans, lined up side jobs, and when everything was in place, I confidently told my family I would be attending Tulane despite their lack of financial or moral support. Fortunately, with time, my family saw my determination and decided to embrace my decision. I am very proud of the fact that I stood up for what I knew was right despite the stiff adversity I faced from two people whose opinions I valued most.

My father has been an alcoholic for years. During my junior year of college, I was devastated when the police called to say that he had been involved in a drunk-driving accident. Shortly after, he was unwillingly placed in a rehabilitation facility. After he twice attempted to escape, I was forced to speak with the District Attorney, who explained that one more attempt and he would go back to jail. I had no choice but to take on the responsibility of caring for him. The last two months of school I juggled classes and finals’ preparation while spending hours each day speaking to counselors, lawyers, relatives, and, of course, my father. I organized Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, counseling sessions, and contacted friends of his who had recovered from similar incidents to help provide support. On Saturday night while my friends were socializing, I was learning about the twelve steps of Al-Anon. Today, my father refrains from drinking, a fact to which I am proud to say that I contributed. My courage and maturity were tested to the limit, but the lessons learned about doing the right thing and facing problems head-on have been invaluable to my personal development.

The last accomplishment I would like to highlight is the way I have been able to adapt and conform to different cultures and environments through my work experience. After having lived a normal college life, my time with Schlumberger has required multiple skill sets which include linguistic ability and forced concentration for up to sixty hours in one sitting. I have had the opportunity to apply these skills while performing explosive and radioactive operations that could easily result in loss of life in operating environments where small mistakes can cost millions of dollars. Most importantly, I have learned to transition from one project to another or one country to another at a moment’s notice through my business travels in the US, Brazil, Thailand, and Cambodia. Through these experiences, I believe the adaptability I’ve acquired is quite unique among my peers.

These accomplishments highlight my strengths and my ability to handle any scenario placed before me. Despite difficulty, I have grown through my experiences and I appreciate the knowledge gained from each - for they have equipped me with the confidence to handle whatever barrier might try to obstruct my future goals.

Sample Four

1. Overcoming a Speech Impediment

As a result of prolonged hearing loss during my crucial years of language development, I struggled with a speech impediment for many years. My hearing problem was corrected by surgery when I was five, but by the time I entered middle school, despite weekly speech therapy sessions since Kindergarten, my speech impediment persisted. To rid myself of my speech problems, I devised a disciplined plan. I redoubled my efforts in therapy and began doing extra exercises at home. It took me eight years, but with courage and perseverance I completely conquered my disorder. The painstaking work I did to develop into a confident and effective communicator has continued to pay dividends, especially in my career. As a worldwide account manager, I lead teams of engineers and salespeople, who rely on me as the main communication link between Computer Tech (CT) and its customers. Recently, after presenting to a group of 250 colleagues, I received accolades from senior management on my ability to engage a large audience while delivering a cohesive message. The audience did not know about the long journey that led to that stage.

2. Developing a Sales Management Tool

After working two months in sales at CT, I realized that manually compiling sales reports for our accounts took too much time - time better spent in front of customers. I decided that the sales force needed an automated account management system.

When I recommended a new system to my managers, they responded that there was no room in the budget. I volunteered to build a prototype on my own time, reasoning that once I had proved how much time could be saved management would see that this system would pay for itself. My prototype was a success but my superiors still resisted. I decided to build the package myself and after four months of working nights and weekends, a tool called Account Analysis was born. This system has become a vital part of my region’s everyday account management practices and it is used by 32 other sales representatives. I am proud that I seized the opportunity to change our sales reporting process for the better. Transforming an idea into reality gave me a tremendous sense of accomplishment.

3. Founding the Employee Council

Along with five co-workers, I founded the Employee Council, a committee of 10 peers dedicated to boosting morale and helping employees in CT’s Austin sales organization feel more connected. Through team building exercises, formal training, community service and extracurricular activities, the Council fosters community and culture, and encourages personal and professional development.

I led the Employee Council’s philanthropic efforts. Like me, many of my co-workers have a desire to give back to the community, but our demanding jobs get in the way. I instituted fund raising and community outreach events for the employees and their families. In the last three years, the CT sales organization in Austin has given back to our community via food drives, Christmas toy drives for needy children and Habitat for Humanity. I feel great satisfaction when my co-workers recognize the Employee Council for providing an outlet for their desire to volunteer. Founding the Employee Council has given me an opportunity to have an impact on the CT organization by improving morale and making us feel like part of the community.

Sample Five

1. Helping Sharon Graduate

As Sharon Smith crossed the stage and received her high school diploma, I reflected on how far she had come in such a short time. Two months earlier she was permanently suspended from school for disciplinary reasons. Sharon did not qualify for the school’s tutoring service and her family could not afford a private tutor, so I volunteered to help her free of charge. We met four times per week for five weeks. I coached Sharon on her study habits, pushed her to complete assignments, and reinforced the importance of time management. Before we met, Sharon never set foot in the local library. By the end of the semester, we laughed at how often the librarian asked us to leave, just before closing. Sharon’s hard work paid off and she graduated with her classmates.

Helping Sharon finish high school was a significant accomplishment because I know I changed her life for the better. Seeing how hard she worked to achieve her goals inspired me work harder when I returned to college that fall. After Sharon’s graduation ceremony, her mother hugged me and thanked me for everything I did for her daughter. At that moment, I knew I accomplished something meaningful.

2. Initiating Recruiting at Geneseo.

Today, Geneseo is a recruiting destination for the HSBC management training programs, but that was not the case when I was accepted into the program in 2002. I applied to HSBC by reaching out to their human resources department and persisting until I was granted an interview. My first week in the training program, I discovered that every other new hire was recruited on campus. I vowed to make Geneseo a stop on the bank’s future recruiting tours. My first step was to contact the dean of Geneseo’s business school. She was excited by the prospect of a relationship with HSBC. The VP of the bank’s human resources department was less enthusiastic. HSBC had relationships with many schools and a fixed recruiting budget.

Nevertheless, I continued to build my case. Three months of emails and meetings led to a pilot program. Twenty Geneseo seniors were interviewed and three were hired.

Now, Geneseo is a staple on HSBC’s recruiting schedule. I feel strongly about this accomplishment because I played a part in helping HSBC recognize the quality of Geneseo graduates. This accomplishment is particularly meaningful because I gave something back to a community that gave so much to me.

3. Refining Moody's Sales Strategy

Moody’s sells ratings and credit research to institutional investors. When I joined, the firm’s sales were flat, and the Managing Director of Sales asked me to investigate the underlying causes. After a series of interviews with sales representatives and clients, I concluded that the problem was that Moody’s sales process was product focused, not customer focused. Sales representatives sold the same products to clients regardless of their size, investment style, or risk appetite. Moody’s needed to develop a solutions based strategy.

I began by segmenting our customers according to their investment goals. My research identified unique client needs and I matched those needs with Moody’s products. When I presented the new sales strategy to the MD, he was reluctant to make changes. I persuaded him by highlighting a similar program I had implemented while with my previous employer, HSBC, which resulted in revenue growth. Once he was on board, we worked together for two months to formulate our action plan and presented the final strategy to a group of over 100 sales professionals.

I joined Moody’s to learn how to develop strategy and how to translate strategy into action. Those skills are essential to becoming an effective general manager in financial services. Bringing this strategy to fruition represented a step toward my goal of becoming a leader in financial services.

Sample Six

1. Big Brothers of America

My little brother, Owen, was nine years old when he told me he wanted to learn to swim. At that time, I was organizing a C.G. family swim meet and this inspired me to ask him to join my team. For the next several months, Owen and I spent every weekend training at the pool.

Prior to the meet, Owen set a personal goal of beating his best time to date. Owen did beat his fastest time and also received the loudest cheers I have ever heard at a meet. When I asked Owen how it felt to hear the crowd yell his name he told me he had not heard them because he was so focused on beating his time. I realized then that Owen had learned that the cheers that matter most come from inside. This is a lesson I am so proud to have taught him, since he rarely receives encouragement at home.

Owen knows he can accomplish goals by working hard. I have seen him apply this new perspective to many facets in his life. Watching him aspire to do and be more and have faith in himself is one of my biggest accomplishments. Through Owen, I learned that inspiring others to believe in themselves is a reward in and of itself. It is my personal goal to continue to inspire Owen.

2. Scott’s Hut Race

Four days before my college graduation, I was involved in a serious car accident and sustained severe injuries, which nearly cost me my right arm. My recovery took four months and as a result I was weakened physically. Having always been athletic, I had difficulty dealing with a physical impairment. Five months later, while deployed on the icebreaker STAR LONG, I had the opportunity to regain my confidence in my physical performance and overcome this obstacle. I registered to run in the Scott’s Hut Race, the southernmost road race in the world held in Antarctica.

Having only the ship’s deck as a track, I began my training. For three months I ran day and night working around my watch schedule. Surly sea conditions that brought 40-foot swells and rolled the ship 50 degrees and ice fields that caused the ship to shudder violently added to my training challenges.

On race day 400 runners competed, and I placed fifth. Driven to regain what I had lost, I pushed myself extremely hard, and achieved a level of success I had not even imagined. I am still proud of this accomplishment and think of it often when faced with obstacles that I need to overcome.

3. S.A.M.E. Award

The Coast Guard culture is extremely sensitive to titles and rank. As a junior officer it requires a great deal of personal power to effect change, a power I learned I possessed when I received the S.A.M.E. Award before the most senior military engineers in the nation.

This citation was in recognition of a litany of successful undertakings including my development of a Flag Officer (military executive) housing program including an innovative web-based ordering system and the reinvention of a tired training program which increased much needed training funds 120% over two years. Both acts resulted in a higher level of service and impacted the people at the highest level of the organization.

I implemented these programs in an effort to improve efficiency. This award signifies that I accomplished what I set out to do. Recognition by my superiors over the other 200 eligible military engineers in the D.C. area shows that I was successful in bringing about positive change.

Sample Seven

My three most substantial accomplishments are obtaining a dual BA/BS degree from Stanford, rock-climbing a 5.12 (five-twelve) route, and consistently increasing profits at Finance Insight. Because I value academic, physical, and professional success, I strive for constant improvement in these aspects of my life.

1. Stanford

While Stanford’s 5-year dual BA/BS degree program is challenging under any circumstances, I feel it is even more of an accomplishment given my background. I was born fatherless, to a fifteen year-old mother who was on welfare and in a street gang. My mother had 4 more children, which drove us deeper into despair, while my stepfather was a heroin-addict who frequently stole our money to support his habit. I do not believe that most people thought that I had much of a chance to avoid the many pitfalls in my path. However, I learned that odds mean nothing. A strong, determined will is fuel enough to accomplish any unlikely goal. Negotiating myself out of my hardships will remain my most proud accomplishment until I can successfully assist another child in a similar situation in negotiating their self out of theirs.

2. Rock Climbing

I have been a rock-climber for over two years and have made significant progress during that period. I began by climbing 5.07 rated routes, which are almost as easy as climbing a ladder, and progressed to the point where, during the summer of 2001, I climbed a 5.12 (five-twelve) route for the first time. When the YDS rating system was invented in the 1970’s, the highest rating was 5.10 because that was thought to be the most difficult possible climb. Now, the highest rating is 5.14, with only the very best rock-climbing professionals climbing above 5.13. I am proud of this achievement because of the difficulty of the task, but I am equally proud of what I learned through the process. Throughout my life, I had learned that persistence and diligence allows one to achieve lofty goals. My rock-climbing experience, however, taught me that there is a fine line between being intense and being unreasonable. While planning our rigorous training regimen, my training partner and I frequently disagreed. For example, at one point my partner was convinced that we were over-training, but I believed that our progress plateau was the result of under-training. I reluctantly agreed to accommodate my partner’s desires by adopting his training regimen and, within weeks, we began progressing again. I now know that there is a fine line between pushing to the limit and pushing over the edge and, if not for my teammate, I would not have found that line. Through our relationship, I have also come to better understand the benefits that can result from a productive, collaborative effort.

3. Finance Insight

I have learned much at Finance Insight and, because of our President’s influence, I have broadened my view of business and have become more aware of aspects such as customer service. As a result, I developed a statistical confidence model for the annual asset returns of a select group of clients and convinced the team to include the analysis in each client’s quarterly report package. I was pleased that several of the company’s clients have expressed gratitude for the simplified way in which my initiatives are able to explain their complex data; the projects have led to increased client satisfaction, which is how our company develops new leads.

Much of my workplace enjoyment stems from doing things that will create a better environment for co-workers. To that end, I have often focused on increasing productivity. For example, I designed a data-storage strategy for which I hired, trained, and supervised an employee, saving approximately $60,000 in annual data storage fees and decreasing data-retrieval time by 90%, a task that had previously been unpleasant and time-consuming for co-workers. As a reward for initiating several successful projects and for handling my constantly increasing responsibilities, I have been given a promotion, from Financial Analyst to Director of Systems and Analysis, and my annual compensation has been increased from $46,000 to $125,00.

I believe that my past success is cause for raising the bar rather than being content with my accomplishments. With some hard work, I am certain that in the very near future there will be many more entirely new accomplishments that I view as most substantial.

Sample Eight (Excerpt)

As a lifelong vegetarian, I used to cringe when dining at fast food restaurants like Burger King, where my entire meal would consist of an overpriced bun containing lettuce, cheese, and a few pickles if I was lucky. So one year into college, I organized a few members of my religious youth group (YJA) to support the idea of introducing a nutritious “veggie patty” to fast food chains. After months of preparation, including the collection of 10,000 supporting signatures from various organizations, my team and I met with Burger King’s President of Consumer Relations in Miami, FL. We presented a detailed market analysis that highlighted the rising vegetarian and health-conscious demographic, citing trends like WeightWatchers and Atkins’ Diet as evidence.

Two months later, Burger King unveiled the Veggie Burger in Manhattan, and after witnessing its commercial success, McDonald’s introduced a rival product—the McVeggie. Both restaurants are still selling these burgers today. By identifying a market opportunity that meshed with my personal values, I helped fast food chains move in a direction that made business sense, while also helping vegetarians obtain more options. Although I can’t prove that a veggie burger would not have launched without our efforts, I’m convinced that we certainly accelerated its arrival. Consequently, I won the YJA Leadership Award that year.

Sample Nine (Excerpt)

I led the Warner Brothers Women’s Affinity Group, an eight person team responsible for responding to the needs of female employees at the company and making the program more appealing to women.

Our first project was to create a library of career tips that were especially relevant for women at the company. The tips highlighted useful information, including interviewing, negotiating, and career paths in the company. The guide was a huge hit amongst our colleagues.

Once we had compiled all this useful information, we created a website and an online discussion group to better share and disseminate information in our community. I decided that we should expand the online forum to serve as a knowledge base for experiences and tips as well. We catalogued each of the articles written by team members and published them online. We also allowed women from across the program to contribute articles and advice, significantly increasing the depth and breadth of our content. The website we built is still in use today and serves as the central communication hub for women at the company.

Sample Ten (Excerpt)

“Tell me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are.” I truly believe this. Over the course of my life, I have interacted with others in many different types of environments, from university to military service, from backpacking around the world, to my professional career – through each experience I met extraordinary people who became my life-long friends.

I am proud of the people with whom I have surrounded myself through the years. Each individual reveals an aspect of my character. Each of them is unique and each inspires me, supports me, and makes me laugh in different ways. Whenever I need advice or assistance, these soul mates are by my side, and I give the same back to them. The rapport that we share strengthens and motivates us.

I have shared my culture with friends across the globe, and I in turn have learned from them about tradition, manners, language and customs. Through a university organization in Israel, I developed a bond with an Arab student – this was an incredibly insightful experience that has shaped my thoughts about war and peace. In the military, my friends and I literally protected one another’s lives. Earning and cultivating these friendships, day-by-day and in ways small and large, is one of the most substantial accomplishments of my life.