Passion for planning leads Rutgers Business School graduate to exciting career in supply chain management

Katherine Perez reinvented herself from a shy freshman into a confident student leader who secured full-time employment at Shiseido.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. , June 16, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- When Katherine Perez started Rutgers Business School-New Brunswick, she was intent on getting good grades, being involved in student organizations, and choosing a career path.

Once she was introduced to supply chain management, she knew she had found her passion.

This summer, the Class of 2023 graduate will launch her career as an external operations planner, working with Japanese skincare manufacturer Shiseido's contractors to ensure that products reach stores. She will also be responsible for managing any disruptions that occur in the process. "I am very excited about starting my career with Shiseido," she said.

Perez discovered supply chain after a friend invited her to come along to a Rutgers University Supply Chain Association (RUSCA) information session. Why not, she thought.

"I was a pretty quiet and reserved first-year," she said. "At the information session, I met kind, confident, and capable seniors who explained the association and the engaging world of supply chains."

The student group provided her with an introduction to supply chain management, including such things as forecasting retailer inventory needs months or years out, and contingency planning for inevitable supply disruptions.

Perez knew she had found the career she was looking for when she realized she could have a job planning how to get organizations what they need, when they need it even if the initial plan fell apart. She joined RUSCA and declared supply chain management as her major. She decided on a second major in marketing because it paired well with supply chain.

After completing the RBS core courses and working through the required major courses, her future career plan was finalized with a demand planning and fulfillment course. "Apparently, people who love planning are not that common. I love planning," she said.

Learn more about how Rutgers Business School-New Brunswick helps students launch their careers.

During college, she continued to achieve the same high grades that got her into Rutgers University-New Brunswick Honors College. She was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, the International Business Honor Society that invites the top 10 percent of undergraduate business students to join the organization. She made the Dean's List eight times, earning a 3.95 GPA.

During the summer between junior and senior year, Perez interned at Ulta Beauty in merchandise planning and inventory. She advanced her knowledge of inventory forecasting and product lifecycle management, organization skills, and problem-solving.

Just as the demand planning and fulfillment course stands out among all of Perez's supply chain courses, hosting the Rutgers University Supply Chain Association banquet is one of her favorite student leadership accomplishments.

"I built my leadership skills with RUSCA and was voted president for the last two years. I was an introvert entering RBS and became a 'people person' with the confidence to enjoy public speaking," she said. "I've developed interpersonal skills for communicating with different people from other backgrounds and perspectives in different time zones."

"I like full-circle moments," she said. "I have become one of the confident and capable seniors I met at my first RUSCA information session."

Her involvement in RUSCA and her role as a student leader earned Perez the Distinguished Leadership Award for the undergraduate Class of 2023 at Rutgers Business School-New Brunswick.

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SOURCE Rutgers Business School-Newark and New Brunswick