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Feb 28, 2019

The Roster: Vol. 17

Ally White

Ally White

The Roster: Vol. 17

At Credera, we believe we’re truly better together. The Roster is a monthly series that allows you to get to know leaders at all levels across the firm. 

Jordan Powell

Principal, Management Consulting

Dallas, TX

Favorite App: Night Sky, it’s a real-time augmented reality (AR) app that tells you the name and other information about the stars and planets that your camera is pointing at. It helps me share my fascination of the cosmos with my kids.

Now Playing: Poirot series with David Suchet, I love all sorts of mysteries but the quirks of this character are quite enjoyable

Favorite Books: 

Favorite Sports Team: Texas Rangers. I have been a fan since 1986 and have lived through the highs and lows of being a diehard fan. I love the current ballpark because of all the memories I have had there with my family.

Office Music Playlist: 

Favorite Credera Memory: While traveling to a client site in Colorado, we used to have regular board game nights and frankly laugh our heads off. We played games like EscapeCastles of BurgundyCamel Up, and Space Cadets Dice Duel. I am always amazed at how much fun I can have with colleagues while cranking out great work.

How You’ve Seen the Core Values Lived Out at Credera: My mentors are consistently concerned about doing the right thing, taking care of our people and their families, and then worried about maximizing profit. By taking care of the first two, the last one falls in line. I have seen us own our mistakes and make things right when needed. I also have people who care deeply that I succeed outside of the office and check on that before work topics come up.

Amber Wang

Consultant, Management Consulting

Dallas, TX

Life Hack: Setting all of the clocks in my home and car three minutes ahead. Honestly, I’m still chronically late (sorry, everyone in my life), but I’m three minutes less late than I would’ve been.

Now Playing: It’s technically not TV, but as a YouTube junkie, I love all of Jubilee Media’s series – thoughtful content with substance and high-quality production. If you’ve ever wanted to see earnest but respectful and open-minded discussions between different perspectives on contentious topics (e.g. identity politics) or thoughtful social experiments (e.g. simulating swipe-based dating apps in real life), I highly recommend checking Jubilee out.

Favorite Book: Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle. Dissuading-ly sappy title aside, a best girlfriend made me read it, and no book has ever shaken me to my core as personally as this one. I think at least some part of this book would deeply resonate with every woman.

Personal Goal: My mom and I would like for me to learn how to cook. Jokes aside, I’d love to adapt the traditions of Chinese home cooking to a Westernized yuppie lifestyle. But right now, I also just can’t cook in general.

Favorite Credera Memory: It’s hard to pick just one. I had the opportunity to put together and actually co-present a guest lecture with one of our partners, Andrew Warden, for an undergraduate consulting class at his alma mater, Baylor University. Not only was the concept of guest lecturing for a college course with a partner cool in and of itself, but I also truly enjoyed getting to know Andrew outside of work. Additionally, to bring it full circle, one of our newest Crederians today actually attended that particular lecture.

Best Advice You’ve Received: “Wherever you go, there you are.” When I first heard this, I thought it was a joke (especially because I heard it quoted in an ‘80s movie titled The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension). But it’s really about mindfulness – letting go of self-perpetuated mindsets that hold you back from the present. The ridiculous simplicity also makes it easy to remember. 

James Darling

Consultant, Microsoft Solutions

Dallas, TX

Now Playing: Parks and Recreation. It’s hilarious and Ron Swanson is my spirit animal. It’s great to be reminded of what a small, committed group of people can accomplish when they work together, whether that’s a running for city council, filing in a giant pit, or playing the Cones of Dunshire.

Favorite Sports Team: The Dallas Cowboys. I have so many great memories with my family, specifically with my dad, watching the Cowboys play. Watching Emmitt Smith set the career rushing record and Jason Witten’s sprint to the endzone after losing his helmet on a hard hit are some of my favorite. And of course, any time Tom Landry’s name was mentioned in our house growing up, my dad required that me and my brother stand and salute.

Passion Outside of Work: I love drumming! Whether it’s classical percussion or jazz drum set, I enjoy getting to play good music with good people. Plus, figuring out a difficult rhythm or awkward sticking is just as fun as solving a tough technical problem.

Life Hack: The best advice I ever received was from my high school percussion teacher, Michael A. Hernandez. He would always say that the hardest thing to do in life is to finish things. Even though this was in the context of finishing out a physically or mentally exhausting drumline season while still playing at a high level, I’ve applied this to so many other areas of my life. It’s easy to start things, and anyone who’s ever worked on projects knows that work in progress can add up very quickly. Focusing on finishing tasks keeps projects, and life, moving forward.

How You’ve Seen the Core Values Lived Out at Credera: During my internship at Credera in 2016, I was working on a vendor selection project with Kevin Erickson and Jake Carter, two high-level partners in the firm. Not only did Kevin and Jake invite me into their interviews with vendors so I could learn from them, but they consistently asked for my input on what I thought about the meetings and the technical capabilities of each vendor. I was blown away by the humility of both of these men to take my feedback seriously and include me even though I was just an intern. This was a great example of the type of servant leaders we have at all levels of Credera and was a big reason I returned to work full time.

Mentorship Experience: I was working on a website redesign project with a tight timeline, and I was personally having a difficult time handling the high workload. My technical lead Ken Schlobohm always took the time to ask me how he could help me succeed and always followed through in supporting me. He helped me learn best practices quickly and introduced me to some great project management material from Atul Gawande’s The Checklist Manifesto. More importantly, he taught me that the best way to solve problems was to spend time trying to find the root cause of an issue instead of just trying to be a hero and reacting to a problem without a plan. The result was a new version of the client’s website that supports thousands of visitors every day and that I’m proud to say I helped develop.

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