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Shad Ahmed
Shad Ahmed
00:53

Shad Ahmed

Opportunity@Work

Mill Valley, CA USA

"If we start to think about what [skills] we do have, that’s enough. That’s enough right now. And that will open up the next door for you."

Career Roadmap

Shad's work combines: Non-Profit Organizations, Business, and Helping People

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Day In The Life

Chief Operating Officer

I lead operations for a social enterprise nonprofit focused on helping workers who have skills but no college degree.

03:43

Day In The Life Of A Chief Operating Officer At A Workforce Development Nonprofit

My Day to Day

My days start out with meetings with our executive team to discuss our priorities for the week. Then we'll move onto internal problem-solving conversations regarding things like our technology, data model, or how we're approaching a partner. In the afternoons, I'll have meetings with executives from the different partner companies that we work with.

Skills & Education

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    Economics and History

    Stanford University

  • Graduate Degree

    Business Administration and Management

    Harvard Business School

Life & Career Milestones

My path in life has been direct

  • 1.

    I did my first volunteer service when I was in elementary school and really enjoyed it—it inspired me to want to eventually work in the social impact space.

  • 2.

    In high school, I got very involved with a nonprofit organization and realized that there were a bunch of skills that I needed to develop in order to do this type of work effectively.

  • 3.

    I earned my bachelor’s degree in economics and history from Stanford University.

  • 4.

    I was able to work abroad, which helped me gain different perspectives and learn how other countries view the role that nonprofits and the nongovernmental sector play in solving social impact issues.

  • 5.

    I earned my MBA and then spent some time working in the private sector as a management consultant and then for a technology company.

  • 6.

    Moving back into the nonprofit sector, I joined Opportunity@Work as an executive-in-residence, and then worked my way up to my current position as chief operating officer.