Zeyu Zhao: Data & AI Consulting

Zeyu Zhao

MSc Management, 2020

Based in:

Shanghai, China

First job:

Deloitte Digital Consulting

Ambitions for the future:

Always keep learning and become a corporate executive who can continuously switch between rational and emotional perspectives to solve complex problems.

Strangest interview question:

Where does your sense of achievement come from?

Data & AI Consulting Expert, Bytedance

Describe your current role and what attracted you to it.

Serving Fortune Global 500 clients, conducting business planning for digital transformation centred around data and AI. What attracts me the most to the role is the constant commitment to learning cutting-edge scientific and technological advancements and seeking business scenarios for their implementation, integrating technological development with business model innovation.

What are the key skills you learnt at Warwick that have helped you with your career to date?

Critical thinking: Do not blindly accept a single viewpoint. Always adopt a dialectical mindset to seek results.

Data-based research: Combine quantitative and qualitative approaches to investigate the truth of facts.

Did you have a specific career path in mind when you chose to study at Warwick?

Before going to the University of Warwick, I didn't have a clear career plan for myself. After arriving at Warwick, it was only by participating in consulting communities and communicating with professors that I gradually decided to embark on the career path of consulting professional services.

What top tips do you have for Warwick graduates who would like to work in your sector?

Stay curious and leverage as many resources as possible to learn in various aspects, including communities, job fairs, interview coaching, and so on, so as to grow up as quickly as possible.

What does a typical day look like for you?

Constantly engage with new industries and business problems, attend meetings with corporate executives, use PowerPoint presentations to articulate ideas, and travel by air for more than 80 flights a year.

What do you know now that you wish you had known when you were applying for jobs?

The value of getting an internal referral or contacting internal employees to understand the situation far exceeds expectations.

Advice for current students:

Even if you are ambitious, learn to take breaks and don't be a robot. A career is bigger than a job, but much smaller than a life. Immerse yourself in and exercise as much as possible in the real business world.