Some light reading for the holiday: A great perspective of grad school from a successful industrial scientists – by former Geiger group PhD student Andrea Greyson

In our series of former Geiger group members contributing blog posts, this one by Andrea Greyson at Dow Chemical Company is a great perspective of grad school from a successful industrial scientists.

Working in 18 Font Bold

By Andrea Greyson, Geiger PhD in 2006

As a R&D Portfolio Manager for Dow Chemical, I do just about as much SFG work as you would think.  Yet my preparation in Franz’s lab couldn’t have been better foundation for success as an industrial chemist, mainly because it was all about preparation.  From my research proposal to my thesis defense, not to mention the conference talks in between – Franz drilled into me the importance of having something of value to say and then making sure I said it in 18 font bold red text.  He meant that literally, and my slides at Dow since reflect his teachings.  Though I have given up on Arial, seriously Franz – it is not a pretty font.

Having something of value is easier said than done of course, and especially when you are quickly moving from field to field or at least project to project.  High quality content comes from thoughtful, well researched ideas with data to back them up.  In this area in particular, grad school shines as a training program.  The oversight I had in Franz’s group was sometimes painful, but the critique improved my critical thinking skills and built a better me.  But having good ideas is not the end of the story.

In industry I was first asked “What do you want to get out of the [meeting, review, etc.]”?  For me, this question was a turning point.  It highlighted that every engagement should have value to me, whether it be a meeting, technical talk or 1:1 discussion.  The valuable outcomes vary widely and include items like communicating key technical points, asking for resources, and even raising visibility.  In understanding your key goal ahead of time, your preparation can ensure that the message comes across in the metaphorical bold red font.  Since time and effort are scarce resources, that pre-work doubles as project work – forcing discussions on the project goals, timing, and key learnings.  When done with intention, preparing for a discussion raises your own clarity and serves you as much as it benefits your audience.

What I learned in grad school has been cemented in industry: prepare for every meeting, for every class, for every conversation you can.  That preparation is exhausting, time consuming and sometimes flat out wishful thinking.  But when you do it, you will learn in leap and bounds and amaze yourself at what you can do.