Data Engineer Career Journey
At McKinsey, you’ll find endless opportunities to create and evolve a career path based on your own interests, capabilities, and goals.
Ariana Lema-Driscoll
Specialist - Data Engineering
Waltham, Massachusetts, United States
Milestone 1
University of Connecticut, United States
Bachelor of Science in Resource Economics
Minor in Public Policy with MPA credits.
Milestone 2
Human Resources Assistant
Steward Health Care, Greater Boston Area, Massachusetts, United States
My first professional role was in HR, but I decided to return to school for my master’s degree.
Milestone 3
University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States
Master of Arts in Applied Economics
With a multidisciplinary focus in ecological economics and engineering optimization models, I learned statistical methods and stats-oriented programming.
Milestone 4
Data Scientist
Devo, Greater Boston Area, Massachusetts, United States
I pivoted into data science post-master’s and worked at a startup, where I designed, developed, and deployed data-driven predictive models to solve business problems using the most appropriate techniques in data mining, machine learning, and statistical modeling. I implemented algorithms against the Devo platform on behalf of customers and in support of internal initiatives and developed software to facilitate integration with partner platforms.
Milestone 5
Data Analyst
RedStream Technology (for McKinsey & Company), Greater Boston Area, Massachusetts, United States
I came to McKinsey as a contractor and analyst under the data architecture group, where I was the point of contact for skills tagging firm members for staffing on engagements. I mapped legacy databases to new database architecture, communicating changes across teams with Jira and email, and built an ETL process for updating practice/department names and information with .TTL files (written in Python to import/export into PoolParty from formats such as CSV or Excel).
Milestone 6
Senior Data Engineer, Specialist - Data Engineering
McKinsey & Company, Greater Boston Area, Massachusetts, United States
I worked on two cloud migrations and was promoted to data engineering specialist while earning two AWS certificates.
I am now one of the leaders in cutover planning, monitoring a sub-team of engineers, interacting with downstream consumers to communicate changes, and engineering the more complex data blocks. I also led a chapter cohort and manage and mentor many junior engineers.
Want a career like Ariana’s?
Data Scientist Career Journey
At McKinsey, you’ll find endless opportunities to create and evolve a career path based on your own interests, capabilities, and goals.
Yuting Chen
Senior Research Science Analyst
London, United Kingdom
Milestone 1
Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, Liaoning, China
Bachelor of Science in Coastal Engineering
Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
Master of Science in Hydrology and Water Resource Management
PhD in Climate Change and Environmental Research
I completed a PhD and an Master of Science in Hydrology and Water Resources Management from Imperial College London, and a Bachelor's degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Dalian University of Technology. I also pursued Software Engineering at Dalian University of Technology. Throughout my academic journey, I have acquired expertise in various fields, including hydrology, climate change, probability, environmental engineering, coastal engineering, and software development.
Milestone 2
Weather Nowcasting Model Developer
RainPlusPlus, London, United Kingdom
For six months, I worked as a nowcasting model developer, improving the forecasting accuracy of tracking high-impact convective storms for a national weather service.
Milestone 3
Data Scientist
McKinsey & Company, London, United Kingdom
As a data scientist in the Climate Analytics team, I built up in-house modeling capabilities to more accurately assess physical climate risk at the asset level. I recently joined an engagement to help an intergovernmental organization launch climate-health adaptations along with a platform for financial commitments.