Tuck Bridge Stories: Jamie McLaughlin
Jamie McLaughlin graduated from Dartmouth College in 2012 with an Earth Science major and Ecology minor. She attended Tuck Bridge in 2012. Jamie is VP of Marketing Projects, Planning, and Engagement at Synchrony Financial. This is her Bridge story:
What are your primary responsibilities in your current position?
In my current position I support our Chief Marketing Officer and other Marketing leadership in driving operational vision and alignment across the marketing team. I work across our eight marketing teams to execute our annual planning process, support the resulting strategic initiatives, run leadership meetings and insure consistent communication across the organization. My favorite part of my current position is translating leadership direction and decisions into an interesting and motivational format for the rest of the organization through town halls, newsletters and team meetings.
Why did you choose to attend Bridge?
I chose to attend Bridge because I discovered my interest in business late in my college experience. With degrees in geology and ecology, I was sure I wanted to pursue sustainability and conservation work. After many exploratory interviews, I found myself interested in roles positioned at the nexus of sustainability and business – finding solutions with both environmental and capital returns. I quickly realized I was going to be constrained by my lack of business and economic knowledge. When Paul Doscher shared an overview of Tuck Bridge in a class I was taking, I knew immediately Bridge would give me the foundational learning and resources I needed to build out a new network of opportunities in the business world.
How did Bridge prepare you for your current position/career trajectory? How did the program help “Bridge Your Future?”
I vividly remember sitting in Professor Taylor’s Marketing class debating breakfast sausages. Prof. Taylor asked us each to choose the best from a list of potential taglines for an imaginary breakfast sausage company and prepare to defend our choice. As students argued emphatically for tag lines such as ‘quick and easy breakfast’ or ‘bring your family together’, I realized something about the whole exercise: at the core of it, and all the varied business courses we were taking, was the same need to connect with people. Whether customers, clients or shareholders, we were learning how to understand, motivate and influence people toward an outcome, whether it be buying stock or sausages. Understanding that basic concept has empowered me to take on a career path that has hopped from sales to business development to marketing. Each new position has brought a giant new learning curve, but the core of each position has been the same – connecting and influencing people. The Bridge classroom is where I first learned this foundational concept.
