I was born in Madrid, Spain. In 2008, after my 11th birthday, we moved to the US.
I barely spoke English, and was immersed in a culture far different from what I was used to. Finding a new support system and learning a new language was challenging. Adding to the difficulty, at 14, I lost my mom to cancer. As the middle child from a family of six, this tragedy forced me to grow up much faster so I could be there to support my siblings.
The challenges and tragedy of my youth shaped who I am and helped me become the woman I am today. They no doubt fed my passion for championing diversity and helping people when they need it most.
From intern to full-time colleague
In January 2021, I joined the firm as a fully remote recruiting intern in the Digital & Analytics practice. What was supposed to be a one-year internship, turned out to be the start of a fulfilling career.
Since the day I began interning at the firm, I knew this is where I wanted to stay. I couldn’t have been happier when I was offered the junior recruiter role just two months after my internship began. Not long after, I was promoted from junior recruiter to recruiter.
Even as an intern, I was presented opportunities to take on meaningful work, such as Analytics hiring for Iberia and involvement in Iberia’s recruiting processes for Digital practice colleagues. The recruiter who was overseeing Analytics hiring decided to continue his McKinsey career in a different position as a professional development coordinator. That opened the door for me to take ownership and demonstrate I was capable of doing more for the firm.
Now, I serve a variety of recruiting functions to bring talent to the firm, such as campus recruitment, talent marketplace research, and experienced professional sourcing.
Impacting diversity across the firm
My first project for McKinsey focused on diversity. I joined a team in charge of driving diversity initiatives for tech hiring across Europe. We were launching a friendly referral competition, and it required collaboration between multiple stakeholders and locations. One of the end goals was to increase women’s representation on our teams.
The project was incredibly meaningful to me because it was the first project I led at McKinsey, my first chance to prove myself, and an opportunity to drive positive change around something I care deeply about.
During the project, something magical happened that surprised me: my colleagues were so determined to help the cause because they sincerely wanted to bring about change. It has been inspiring to see the effort from everyone in the initiative, and their commitment to diversity at McKinsey.
Feeding my passion to advocate for mental health
I prioritize mental health in my own life. With a background in psychology, people think I have everything figured out, but that is far from the truth. I am proud to say I went to therapy in my early 20s, and I have a personal goal to help normalize therapy and encourage people to go.
McKinsey is enabling me to follow this passion, as well. I joined a local McKinsey Mind Matters team, which provides 24/7 intervention support for the firm’s 30,000 members. We work on initiatives to increase awareness around mental health and substance abuse issues. We want our colleagues to know all the resources available to them, so they can prioritize their mental health.
Outside of work, when I’m not with my family and friends, I’m likely listening to a podcast, reading, or watching a documentary.