28 | INNOVISION MAGAZINE MADDY REILLY: ALUM SPOTLIGHT Recent Alum, Maddy Reilly, graduated last year after double majoring in Marketing and Business Management. Reilly now applies herself as a Strategic Sourcing Specialist and Supplier Relations Personnel at NFI Industries Supply Chain and Logistics Solutions. Originally from the country town of Douglasville, PA, Reilly originally chose KU so she could commute from home. As a college freshman at age 17, she was nervous about moving away. After attending a physics internship at KU in her sophomore year of high school—"where we did 3D printing and coding,” she explained, “basically building robots,”—and later, when attending one of the Accepted Student Days, she felt very comfortable on the campus. Once registered, Reilly started as a Marketing major and later added her second major in Business Management to “diversify my skill set, and I had the credits to do it without taking extra time,” she explained. Reilly seems to love her new role at NFI as she described the extensive capabilities of the Coupa platform, which the company uses to customize and keep track of purchasing data. Reilly has kept her mind open while developing skills regarding the platform. She credits KU for opening her mind to how she approaches learning by saying, “I think this was one of the best benefits for me because now I’m not afraid to jump into projects, and I’m always asking questions.” She is also very appreciative of her team at NFI, “who sees my willingness to learn, and has been willing to teach me so many more things. I think having that good foundation from school really prepared me for that,” she expounded. Reilly started at NFI through an internship by way of Dr. Gary Chao, who invited Jamie Anderson, Vice President of Workforce Strategy at NFI, to speak during one of Reilly's classes. As Reilly listened to Anderson’s presentation, she thought, “that sounds like something I could do,” and started researching the company. She then reached out to Dr. Chao for an introduction, and Dr. Chao recommended Reilly personally to Anderson prior to connecting them. “I got lucky,” she stated. “It was a really interesting and cool internship with the flexibility to work remotely and choose my own hours.” Reilly underwent the internship in her last semester at KU and was offered a full-time position approximately a month before graduating. “When getting an internship first and then a full-time position,” she explained, “you receive the benefit of finding out if the company is right for you especially before committing and relocating. You might be right for the company, but not every job is going to be right for you.” Upon evaluating her internship performance, her current boss, Dennis Fay, offered her a position that was above entry level, which, she noted, “was a huge compliment to me, and I really appreciate the confidence he had in me to grant that.” Reilly began commuting to Camden, NJ from Douglasville, PA for the full-time position in May, but soon relocated to Haddon Heights, NJ where she can get to work or enjoy the Philadelphia city life in only an eleven-minute drive. Her new residence is a far cry from the remote town of Douglasville with “farm fields and a twenty-minute drive to the grocery store” to a bustling, yet still smalltown place containing “neat little local businesses within walking distance,” she explained. “My weeks never look the same, which is cool,” Reilly began, as she described an average week in her new role that follows a hybrid schedule (three days in-person and two remote). “I am currently working on my Supplier Integration project,” which is her own project from start to finish. In the project, she is customizing and improving the Supplier Forms Process within the Coupa software to make it more user-friendly. “This will be a huge upgrade from what we are doing now,” she explained, “keeping all the necessary forms together, so that it’s easier to track and record.” The company has also purchased certification classes for the Coupa software, which Reilly undergoes while working on projects, attending to service tickets and calls, and activating new Coupa users within the company. “I have about a million more certifications to go,” she said with a chuckle. “I definitely see room for growth for me in this company,” Reilly expressed. “Even now, they are giving me more responsibilities, which has shown they have confidence in me to go further in the company.” This allows her to set and maintain the goals “of being open to changes and being willing to take steps forward in the company.” She also seeks to dive deeper into her role of helping customize the Coupa platform, which is like “fitting together structured puzzle pieces to make the software work the way we need it to,” she explained. Reilly remarks on the steps she has taken that has led her to where she is today and emphasizes to current students that getting involved with recruiting events, reaching out to recruiters through faculty, and networking is invaluable. She explained that her current position “technically wasn’t a position that they advertised for,” so it would not have been available if she searched for it online. "My mom has always said that the worst thing someone can say to you is ‘no,’” lessening the idea of rejection, she relayed. Reilly continues to ask questions, keep an open growth mindset, and take each step forward as she continues her journey through the world of business at NFI.
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