AlphaSights

By Emilio Oelsinger.

Why did I pack up my things and move to London as a fresh graduate? Because I wanted to accelerate my career in a way that no entry-level role in Austria or graduate degree could.

A fresh start

My journey started in August of 2022 when I moved to London with nothing more than a suitcase, a backpack, and a desire to prove myself to the world. Just a few days later I began my role as a Client Services Associate at AlphaSights, a role which I had accepted three months before to kickstart my career in an exciting, global, and fast-paced environment. 

Embracing the unexpected

I did not expect the many challenges and difficulties I would face in my first year, or how much more I would grow and surpass my expectations for what I had set out to achieve as a result. The first and most difficult obstacle I faced was the difference in lifestyle, culture, and sheer size of London compared to my humble hometown, Klagenfurt am Wörthersee. I thought the transition would be quite smooth as I had spent a year as an au pair in Summit, New Jersey, and had done my fair bit of traveling. That, as it turned out, was not even close to true. I had underestimated the multitude of backgrounds, lives, and motivations coming together in a city like London. 

I was then faced with the daunting task of socialising in a world that was much bigger and more diverse than the one in my upbringing. Luckily, the amazing people I have met at AlphaSights are all very supportive and welcoming, which helped me to find a group of people I now call friends from day one of the job.

Pia Heckmann 

Overcoming challenges

I faced seemingly insurmountable odds in my first months when I realized what it takes to be successful in a city like London and a fast-paced environment like AlphaSights. However, I listened to the people guiding me through the process, I engaged in the learnings along the path as thoroughly as I could, and I stretched myself towards achieving and exceeding my objectives each day. As a result, I was able to find my path in an ever-adapting and extremely demanding environment. In a phrase, I’m embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. The experts, clients, and colleagues I work with daily are some of the smartest people I have met and it excites me beyond words that I am fortunate enough to have the opportunity to grow and challenge myself in such surroundings.

Leveraging my language skills

Part of why I love working at AlphaSights is because I get to use all three of the languages I speak fluently, including German, Italian, and English, continuously. The experts I engage are from all over Europe and often all over the world, which makes my command of three major languages an invaluable asset to myself and the business I work for. In a globalized society like the one we live in today, one cannot go far without interacting with other cultures and people. The languages I speak (and the ones I am learning at the moment) enable me to communicate with genuinely amazing people who make my life and work richer and more enjoyable. Without it, there would be something missing that cannot be replaced.

In summary

I learned a valuable lesson embarking on this journey that I won’t easily forget: a problem, obstacle, or goal is less unsurmountable or unachievable if you take a breath, analyze its structure, roots, and possible implications, set out a concrete action plan on how to move forward and manage to implement and tackle one step at a time. 

Thank you AlphaSights and thank you London for allowing me to grow, challenge myself, and live more intently and intensively!