Paul Dienemann
Retired Program Director
LMI
“Apply [for the job] even if you don't feel qualified.”
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
Went back to school for MBA, Engineering not a fit.
RAND sent me to DC for a year, and them closed the office. I stayed changing jobs.
Went to work at Dept of Defense in Cost Analysis Dept in the Pentagon. Quickly learned a poor fit, but great learning experience.
Went to work for another not-for -profit consulting firm primarily for the Military
Branched out from cost analysis to resource analysis in transportation. Learned same principles apply.
Took off 2 years to work internationally and then returned to my previous company. Became "overpaid" program director.
Assisted company to explore international consulting. They decided funding was unstable and not their area of expertise.
Was first Program Director to start different new areas of expertise, train new leader and move on.
Education
High School
Westchester
Westchester
Graduate
Operations Research MBA
University of California, Los Angeles
Operations Research MBA
University of California, Los Angeles
Career
Retired Program Director
I developed new areas of expertise at our consulting company
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Non-Profit Organizations
Business
Problem Solving
Day to Day
Most of my time was spent meeting with colleagues to assist them in solving problems they were working on for government clients. Clients included Department of Defense, Department of Education, US Postal Service, and others. People I hired were content experts but often lacked the broad research and problem solving skills working with clients that I offered. We did a lot of estimating of future costs from key data points to help them set priorities.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for college students
Apply even though you don't feel qualified... I was so surprised when RAND hired me. Also don't burn bridges and keep in contact as you "move up".
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Graduate
Operations Research MBA
Operations Research MBA
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Myself:
"Figured out I did not like being an Engineer, went back for my MBA."
Challenges I Overcame
First-Generation College Student
