Meet Andrew Topinka – A graduate from the Class of Spring 2017.
Major: Finance // Minors: Engineering and Philosophy
Hometown: Powell, OH
Job: Business Technology Analyst for Deloitte Consulting
Previous Internships/Co-Ops:
- Operations Intern, Peletonia (Summer 2014)
- Risk Analyst Intern, Willis Towers Watson in Hong Kong (Summer 2015)
-Most valuable for his personal growth—first time out in the “real world” away from Columbus and his parents
- Analyst, AMEND Consulting (Summer 2016)
-Most valuable for his professional growth—autonomy over projects, and more responsibility than he thought he was ready for at the time
OSU Involvements:
- Brutus Buckeye
-He has started the famous Stadium O-H-I-O during a game!
-While the sporting events were great, Andrew’s favorite memories as Brutus were visiting children in hospitals and leaving a positive, lasting impact on OSU
- Fellow in the Buckeye Leadership Fellows Program
- BuckeyeThon
- Peer advisor for Fisher
- Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity
- University Ambassador
Reason for Ohio State:
Andrew chose Ohio State because of the sense of student collaboration that he felt during his visit which vastly differed from atmospheres at other schools. While he initially did not want to go to OSU because of the proximity to home, he quickly fell in love with campus, and the rest is history!
Why IBE?
Andrew received so many emails about IBE during his first semester freshman year that he thought they were just spam. One of his good friends freshman year joined the program and told him about it after his first class during the second semester. After hearing about the program, he called his advisor and joined IBE! He had strongly already considered engineering as his major, and the entrepreneurial aspect of the freshman design project completely sold him on the idea of IBE.
IBE Capstone Project?
Andrew’s team worked on a project for P&G that was centered around capturing the millennial market for their Tide products. He and his team ultimately recommended that P&G pursued a future in laundry service. This happened to be the same conclusion that P&G’s internal investigation had developed. P&G bought a startup in Dallas that was doing just that during his senior year. As a result, Andrew and his team were able to travel to travel to Dallas and visit this startup with the intentions of optimizing their standard procedures and improving their processes.
How did IBE help you with your internships?
When asked about applying knowledge that he gained while in college, Andrew believes that his most valuable courses during college were the freshman year design project and his senior year capstone. These IBE projects were his most beneficial academic experiences, and he believes that they are applicable to real life problem solving which he carried with him to internships and his current job.
What is an example of a project from your current job at Deloitte?
Andrew was able to work on a project for a large car manufacturer. This company had new mobility services that they wanted to start offering (Remote start for cars, mobile keys, etc.), but they needed help making money on the services from a tech perspective. integrating the technology. Andrew and his team worked to understand the customers’ needs so that they could best monetize these new services. They ended up recommending what their customer’s experience should be when getting these services and how they could achieve it from a technology perspective.
What is the most valuable skill for consultants?
Andrew stressed that the major of a potential employee is not as important as some people make it out to be. The primary characteristic that employers are looking for is people who can think. Technical skills are important for some jobs, but, generally speaking, the skills you need and the jargon of the profession can be learned on the job. Employers desire people who showcase that they can quickly solve problems.
Fun fact?
Andrew’s most difficult course while at Ohio State was a Philosophy logic course!
Andrew is happy to talk about anything related to IBE, professional experiences, or Ohio State in general. He can be contacted at andrewtopinka@gmail.com.