Christian
When you ask a military member what inspired them to join, it’s mostly about love for their country. In my case, patriotism and family tradition aside, it was about helping others. After leaving the military, many veterans are often unhappy with civilian jobs and find themselves settling or constantly switching careers due to lack of skills, education, opportunities, or company culture. I can honestly say, Infosys has made my transition experience better than I could have hoped for.
The military didn’t come easy to me. After giving college a try, switching majors a few times, losing interest and some personal struggles; I quickly found myself with limited options and decided to walk into my recruiter’s office, only to be asked; “How much do you weigh?”, as he reached into his cupboard for a business card to hand me and say “Here, take this and come back when you weigh under 170.” I had always been a big kid – peaking at over 240 pounds in college but growing up in a severely-underprivileged area of rural Southern California was a great motivator. So, I got to working on myself and in about 7 months and over 70 pounds later, I returned to my recruiter’s office to enlist. After serving in the military for over 10 years and deploying 3 times throughout the Middle East; I felt I had accomplished everything I wanted to do, and it was time to move on, but still continue to help others in a different capacity. So, after my 8th year of service in 2019, I began my transition out of the military. While the options were plenty in other industries, what piqued my interest required one to be academically strong or experienced in both fields, tech and finance. I started by obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice with a concentration in Cybercrime and Cybersecurity. Followed by completing the CORe certificate program from Harvard Business School, focused on economics, business analytics, and accounting. Lastly, getting an MBA from Georgia Tech this past December.
I was introduced to Infosys through an MBA recruiting conference specifically for veterans, MBAVets, and was very surprised they were interested in me for this role; even though I had no background in sales. I feel extremely lucky to be here and sincerely appreciate the faith they put in me for the opportunity.
I’ve always wanted to help people with financial literacy and to understand the changing dynamics of finance in the digital world. At Infosys I naturally gravitated towards fintech. This interest in fintech coupled with the right opportunities at Infosys have helped me grow and continuously expand my knowledge in both areas. I am currently working in the Financial Services regional banking sub-vertical and as an account manager for multiple mid-sized banks. Where my responsibilities are to maintain and grow customer relationships, help my team find new growth opportunities, and enable these institutions to achieve their digital goals and better serve their clients. I am also involved in the complete sales cycle and am fortunate that Infosys has some great tools, that make it much easier to know and understand the client and their requirements before meeting with them.
Over the limited time that I have spent at Infosys, I realized that this company has some similarities with the military; The large-sized organizational structure and focus on innovation and growth, brings a sense of comfort. Initially the autonomy associated with my role was something that made me uncomfortable. I struggled to find the right balance between focusing on work tasks, finding the right amount of time to learn something new about the many Infosys offerings, and how to work with technical teams back in India. It took me about a month to get acclimated to and figure out the best way to structure my day to be productive. Thankfully, my manager has been very patient and empowers me to drive tasks outside of my skillsets, while providing guidance whenever needed. Truth be told, I can’t think of any other company that provides this level of opportunity to progress your career at your own pace and while making significant impact in some the leading companies of every industry; all in one place. To say I’m lucky to be here is an understatement.
I am also a part of the Infosys Multicultural and Veteran Employee Resource Group (ERG). These groups help other Latinos and veterans know and understand the opportunities that lie within the company and beyond. Currently, Im working on establishing a DoD funded 6-month internship program for transitioning service members wanting to explore careers within Infosys. Bringing with them diverse cultures, experiences, and methodologies to implement across the company and best serve current and future clients and generations.
Im proud to be InfyVet and most importantly and Infosicion.
