Chad Chadbourn
Class of 2013
Hometown: Alexandria, VA
Undergraduate University: University of Mary Washington
Class Year: 2006
Major/Minor: Business Administration
Employer: Booz Allen Hamilton
After he was recruited by Booz Allen Hamilton in 2013, Chad Chadbourn spent six-plus years building his brand as a federal consultant in the Washington, D.C., area.
"One of the reasons that I came to Booz Allen Hamilton was for the additional career growth opportunities," he explains. "That's what drew me into public sector consulting. We are working with a lot of different federal agencies and helping them solve real challenging problems."
Chad has enjoyed his ability to have multiple careers within the company by taking challenging and complex assignments of interest. Previously, he was assigned to the Department of Veterans Affairs in a project management role, providing process improvement support. In his current position with the Department of Energy, Chad has shifted his focus to helping manage a data analytics platform to build business intelligence data and track commercial outcomes from the investments the department has made in high-risk, high-reward energy technology.
"I support research and development grants as a support contractor. We are working with a lot of small businesses and how they're developing their business plans and also their ability to bring positional funding outside of the federal government," he says. "That's what gets me out of bed every morning. I'm really excited to have the opportunity to help solve some of these challenging problems and experience career growth through mentorship here at Booz Allen."
While Chad has worked his way up to the position of Associate, he finds an equal amount of gratification in the work he does on behalf of Booz Allen, recruiting talented, young MBA candidates from his alma mater.
"My career experience has allowed me to give back to William & Mary. Being able to go back and participate in on-campus interviews is something I really enjoy, and it shows the value of the alumni network for William & Mary," he says.
A Virginia native, Chad Chadbourn began his career pursuing an undergraduate degree in business at the University of Mary Washington, a liberal arts college in Central Virginia. Chad thrived in the smaller environment, concentrating on international development and business. Upon graduation, he leveraged the school's connections with the Peace Corps, joining and ultimately serving as a small business adviser in Costa Rica from 2006 to 2008.
When he returned to the United States, he worked in several positions related to economic development in the Washington, D.C., area. Those experiences showed Chad that he needed to continue learning, expand his project and financial management skills, and access a refined leadership development program. Initially, he looked at pursuing a Master's in Public Policy but ultimately found himself applying to the full-time MBA program.
"I thought the environment at William & Mary was one that was really focused on dedication and innovation and entrepreneurship. There was also quite a lot of collaboration among teams that really resonated well with me, and so I was immediately drawn in once I was accepted to the program," he says.
During his time in the full-time MBA program, Chad appreciates the diversity of the cohort, the Executive Partners program, and the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities such as the Net Impact Club and various community service programs available on campus. He became an advocate along with fellow Peace Corps alumni within the William & Mary community to secure scholarship funding for future MBA candidates with Peace Corps experience.
"Another impactful experience for me was my relationship with the entrepreneurship professors. Both Professor Monarch and Professor Ash were invaluable in terms of their relationship with students and encouraging us to be entrepreneurial in a small business environment," he says.
Following his first year in the program, Chad spent exactly 89 days in Poland working for Animex, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, as part of an international leadership development program. The internship exposed Chad to Animex's positioning in the Polish and German meat markets and rotated him through their supply chain, finance, internal audit, marketing, and international business offices.
"It was a short experience, but it was a great time to be over there. The Euro Cup was going on. They provided Polish lessons to me once a week. The folks were just very welcoming and really enjoyed the international exchange experience they had with me. We had a great time traveling around and getting to see the various different plants," he explains.
His exposure to the varying departments within Animex reinforced Chad's desire to pursue consulting upon graduation. He secured a position with Booz Allen Hamilton in Washington, D.C., and has built his brand as a federal consultant for the last six years. He's remained connected with the Tribe network through recruitment events on-campus and by remaining in contact with close friends from his MBA cohort.
"Two years ago, I was taking an international vacation with my now fiancee, and we just happened to randomly select to go to Thailand. We reached out to several of my classmates who were in the MBA program with me. We were able to connect with them, and they gave me recommendations on where to go, things to experience," he recounts. "As it turns out, there were some classmates visiting over from Taiwan that we also connected with. Being able to reconnect with classmates from that experience overseas was the highlight of our vacation, and it just speaks volumes to no matter where I go in the world, there's somebody from William & Mary's MBA program."
