Seattle: Boeing and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

What is the next experience you want? This was a major question that was raised during our Alumni Q&A with Kira Wenzel and Nate Simpson. Reflecting on this question, when I first signed up to Quinlan Ramble, this was the next experience I was looking for. The Ramble would allow me the opportunity to not only visit a dream city I have been wanting to visit, but the opportunity to network and connect with countless companies and individuals. This would allow me to learn from other individuals and vice-versa, which I believe is essential in order to build an external network. So far, the Quinlan Ramble has been nothing short of amazing.

For today’s visits, we were able to visit both Boeing and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, along with an alumni reception.

While visiting Boeing, the two things that resonated with me were lean production/innovation and a quote shared by our guide, Michael Conklin. The way Boeing has their manufacturing set up is very efficient. All the planes are in an assembly line and get moved up based on different stages. One of the things that allows them to cut down on time is that they keep all the required materials close by rather than having to go find them in a common storage place. Their innovation with design has allowed their planes to become more efficient as well. They were able to make the 737 New Generation plane more efficient by 14% than the older model, 737 Max. Lastly, Michael’s quote really did emphasize the need to find a type of work that you enjoy. He said, “enjoy what you do, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life”.

Next, we visited The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Not only does this foundation help others, but their building structure is the eco-friendliest, for which they received a platinum LEED certificate. Throughout the building there were three beautiful artworks that really exemplified the mission Bill and Melinda Gates have. One of them was an Aerial Sculpture by Janet Echelman, named ‘IMPATIENT OPTIMIST’. This artwork looks like a net, which is used to represent that the world is connected and if something occurs at one place, it has a ripple effect on the rest of the world. Their discovery center was truly eye opening and inspiring because we got to see the different problems they are facing along with things they have accomplished through their work.

Finally, we ended the day with an alumni reception. I was able to network with various individuals that shared their stories of how they got to where they are and their experience at Loyola. Again, the theme of “changing career paths” outside of what you majored in has been something that countless individuals have expressed. This helps me have faith that everything will work out for me and my career and that I should not stress if my career changes paths from my original plan. I just have to see life as a ‘work in progress’.

 

Yesenia Del Real (BBA '18)
Information Systems