There’s no such thing as a Perfect Plan
Three minutes with Data & Analytics leader, Chelsea Ihle
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? How has this manifested throughout your career?
When I was a kid, I wanted to be a veterinarian. I loved any and all kinds of animals. This has shown up in my career in a way I didn’t think about as much when I was younger, but is very relevant to me today.
Veterinarians have to do a lot of problem solving to serve their voiceless patients. What I love about my job today is that it draws parallels to this in two ways: 1) putting a voice to the concerns of our clients, helping them articulate solutions that may not be apparent to them from their perspective and 2) helping elevate others to advocate for themselves and their careers through coaching and mentorship.
I’m certainly not saying clients and consultants are voiceless, but sometimes having someone who can look at a problem from a different perspective helps make needs more transparent and communicable.
What can we do to build a more diverse and inclusive work environment?
We can’t expect to take the same actions time and time again and have the outcome change. We have to look at changing skills, new technologies, and non-traditional backgrounds to find more diverse talent for our teams. The technology landscape has really changed over the past three years, and so should our methods of identifying emerging and/or existing talent.
What advice would you give your 22-year-old self?
There’s no perfect plan for your life. Throughout college, I thought I was going to be a musician, a biologist, a journalist, an economist — I even started a Ph.D. program for Political Science!
Don’t be scared to explore something new, challenge your motivations for doing or expecting something, and be open to what you find interesting along the way.
I would also say that experience doesn’t always have to look like a conventional bullet on a traditional resume. I learned problem solving skills through my college job making bubble tea. I learned communication skills through my graduate research assistant role.
Don’t be afraid to tell the story that truly shows what you know, who you are, and what it brings to the table for your next opportunity.
Have you ever felt like an outsider? How has that experience helped you to feel more included or inclusive of others?
Yes! I’m a non-white, female, technology leader under 35 in the Midwest. I’ve struggled with feeling the need to constantly validate my presence in a room. This has taught me to never make assumptions about why someone is invited to a meeting or is participating in a conversation — everyone should have an opportunity to be included if they have the skills and desire to do the work.
If you could write a book about your life, what would the title be and why?
I’m not sure what the title would be, but I know it would be an international cookbook! Asian food is a big part of how I connect with where I’m from. I fell in love with Indian food while working abroad. I’ve spent years honing my pastry craft. Food and feeding people is a big way that I show people I care about them.
Why do you stay at Slalom?
I’ve been at Slalom for a little over four years—working with a variety of clients in a variety of industries—some of which have been amazing and some of which have been stressful. At the end of the day I stay at Slalom because of the people that make up our team.
What does this mean to me? We’ve created a group of extremely smart, accountable, and collaborative people who love solving problems together by leveraging diverse experiences, skill sets, and methods. It’s been great to witness how diligent we’ve been in hiring individuals with similar core values, but who are not carbon copies of one another.
Interested in working with Chelsea? Email recruit-minneapolis@slalom.com
