Meet the Industry Relations Team

Meredith Olsen serves as Executive Director of the Feld Center for Industry Alliances and as Director of Strategic Industry Partnerships for Boston University’s Questrom School of Business.

In this capacity, she leverages the substantial resources of Questrom, including renowned faculty expertise, cutting-edge research, and top-notch student talent, to foster strategic collaborations with industry that enhance business education, maximize career opportunities, and improve businesses.

Meredith brings to this role a 19 year background in business development, marketing, public relations and corporate sponsorship. Meredith has fostered enterprise relationships, designed sponsorship strategy and generated new revenue for NPR, The New Republic magazine, and the University of New Hampshire. She earned a Bachelor of Science in marketing management in her home town of Fairfax, VA at George Mason University. When not bringing new business to the ELC, Meredith can be found practicing yoga, attending Red Sox games with her family or drawing dragons with her ten-year-old daughter.

Lucy van Beever is the Director of Employer Engagement of the Feld Center for Industry Alliances and is also an Industry Relations Manager for Questrom’s social impact and energy and sustainability students. Lucy leads the Feld Center’s operations team in all they do to support industry engagement and connecting Questrom students to internship and job opportunities (including on-campus recruiting, career fairs, networking events/platforms and employment outcomes reporting).  Prior to Questrom, Lucy worked in BU’s Center for Career Development for over four years where she developed and led employer engagement strategy for the benefit of students university-wide. Lucy also managed two funded internship programs there. Before this role, Lucy was Assistant to the Dean at BU’s School of Hospitality for three years where she worked directly with students, supported career development/academic advising, handled faculty support, managed events and Dean’s Advisory Board activities. Her career has spanned a number of industries, including consultancy, retail, health/wellness, and hospitality.  Lucy holds an M.S. in Administrative Studies from Boston University and a B.S. in Hotel Management from Cornell University.

Joe joined the Questrom Feld Center for Industry Alliances in Fall 2014 as a Corporate Relations Manager.  Joe has over 25 years’ experience in sales and management for T1 through boutique financial services firms.  At Questrom, Joe focuses on growing the Feld Center’s portfolio of Financial, Accounting, and Real Estate employers.  Joe graduated from University of Massachusetts with a Bachelor of Science in Economics and a Masters of Business in Finance from Northeastern University.

Subhadra England, our new Industry Relations Manager for the health sector, joined us at the end of September 2018 and has hit the ground running! Subhadra will be supporting HSM students with their career strategy and developing relationships with health sector employers. Subhadra comes to us from BU College of Engineering’s Career Development Office, where she worked with biomedical engineering students.  Prior to BU, Subhadra founded ThinkFlex, a placement firm that connects professionals with employers that provide flexibility, and sat on Let’s Get Ready’s board, a college access and success organization.  Subhadra started her career at John Hancock Advisers, where she held multiple roles including Institutional Marketing, Risk Management and Communications.

Daniel Spiess joined the Feld team as the Industry Relations Manager for Consulting. In this role, he will collaborate with current Questrom employer partners, actively seeks out opportunities to grow our partnerships, and support students in achieving their career goals. Daniel returns to Boston after five years at The University of Chicago. In his role, Daniel worked with graduate students and postdoctoral researchers from across the University in all aspects of career development and facilitated employer relations in consulting, government, nonprofits, and academia. Prior to UChicago, Daniel was the research director at the World Class Cities Partnership at Northeastern University, managing a global network of city leaders and researchers, working with business and government leaders in Massachusetts, and strategizing with graduate students on career opportunities. Daniel earned his PhD in Urban Planning from the University of Michigan in 2008.

Kathleen Ponte joins Feld as the Industry Relations Manager focusing on the Technology and CPG/Retail Sectors. Kathleen supports students in the MDSi program and CPG/Retail focus with their career strategy and develop relationships with industry employers.  Kathleen comes with over 12 years’ experience in Career Development and Employer Relations including supporting the technology vertical at BU’s College of Engineering. Prior to that she was a Co-op Advisor at Wentworth Institute of Technology. She is excited to use her breadth of knowledge of various engineering and emerging technology industries and apply it to her work in Questrom!

• Provides career development coaching to all MSMS students and MSMS alumni
• Develops and delivers career management courses and workshops
• Maintains contact with students to ensure continual engagement throughout their program Employer Relations and Industry Partnerships
• Identifies and develops relationships with employers to increase full-time opportunities for all MSMS students
• Plans employer related events such as employer information sessions, on-campus interviews, and networking receptions
• Works with faculty to understand and co-develop approaches to experiential design and employer/industry engagement
• Secures employer contributors/external experts in the program development/design process and foster and develop these key relationships
• Provides and analyzes statistical data for periodic and end-of-the-year reports regarding student participation with recruitment, student and employer engagement, job offers received, etc.
• Collaborates with internal/external partners to implement changes designed to improve/increase program goals/objectives.

Affiliated with Boston University’s Questrom School of Business, Elaine served as a career coach to undergraduate and graduate students from 2009 through 2016 in various capacities. In September 2016, she joined the Management and Organizations Department as a Lecturer teaching in their suite of undergraduate Career Classes.

Formerly Vice President, Director of Professional Services at LHH (Lee Hecht Harrison), Elaine held a thought leaders role and worked closely with individual clients in the Boston and Burlington Offices. With a wide-ranging knowledge of career transition and management, Elaine is experienced in guiding professionals into new and exciting career assignments.

Prior to LHH, Elaine worked in the public and private sector, including designing and developing human resource systems and human resource consulting. As an independent consultant, she completed engagements in the insurance, utilities, media/communications, electronics and computer industries. Her public sector experience includes teaching at the secondary level and municipal government.

Elaine earned a BS from Salem State University, an M.Ed. from Slippery Rock University, and an MA in Communication Studies from Emerson College. Elaine also attended Harvard University, University of Michigan and Northeastern University as part of her commitment to ongoing professional development.

An involved member of the community, Elaine held a leadership position with WIND (Wednesday is Networking Day), facilitated the Burlington Human Resources Networking Group, and volunteered at 91.9FM Radio, a public radio station on the campus of UMASS/Boston. Additionally, a past President of the Board of Directors, and Corporator, for the Dana Home in Lexington, she also chaired the HR Committee.

Elaine spends her personal time in photography, illustration, and writing her blog.

Vicky Rayel is a private practice Career Coach and Adjunct at the Questrom School of Business at Boson University for the PEMBA and Undergraduate programs. She is also an Adjunct at Western Connecticut State University.

She started her career as a Technical Recruiter, then transitioned to Finance Operations at State Street Corporation. After completing a master’s program at Northeastern University, she worked as the Career Program Manager and Employer Relations Director supporting first generation/low-income college students at Bottom Line. She later took a role at Questrom as the Assistant Director for Undergraduate Career Services and was later promoted to Director of Undergraduate of Career Management for the Undergraduate Academic and Career Development Center until summer 2021.

As a Certified Career Counselor and Life Coach she focuses her career on supporting professionals across ages, stages, industries, and professions to discover a rewarding career that brings energy and joy to their life.