The 2023 Rising Stars of the Profession: Olga Alemany

Olga has over 12 years of experience in finance and accounting operations, and a focus on growing client relationships. She focuses on working with the office of the CFO through transformative change, helping to define finance and technology strategy, understanding financial systems and how they support finance and accounting operations, as well as identifying overall business process improvement and automation opportunities. Olga's experience includes complex project and program management, business process design and implementation, software evaluation and selection and implementation of various enterprise applications (including ERP, CPM, HRIS, and CRM).

Olga leads RSM's national management consulting construction and real estate industry practice, working almost exclusively with general contractors, specialty and trade contractors, construction managers, real estate developers, operators and real estate investment trusts (REITs) and is actively involved in various industry associations. She holds a Master of Business Administration, in leadership and organizational transformation, Boston University and Bachelor of Business Administration, finance and operations management, University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

What would you say has been the biggest factor in your success so far?

The biggest factor in my success has been my ability to quickly establish connections and credibility by listening, showcasing my knowledge and sharing my expertise. This strength has allowed me to build long-lasting relationships across my network of clients, peers, mentors and coaches.

My leadership style is to lead by example, therefore I have naturally gravitated toward leaders who have a passion for mentorship and coaching, and I have called upon them for both professional and personal advice – through organizational structure changes, industry alignment, attending business school, and the birth of my two children. As a result, I prioritize mentoring others in hopes that they too find value and opportunities in their networks.

I also attribute my success to my ability to identify an opportunity and dedicate myself fully to seeing it through. Early on in my career, I voiced interest in the construction and real estate industry and developed a level of expertise through meaningful client engagements and lasting relationships. Keeping an open mind and flexible approach has ultimately allowed me to build a team of high performing consultants, dedicated to industry, focused on helping our clients through complex challenges and changes. At RSM, we win as a team, through industry and with our clients.

What do you enjoy most about your career in the consulting industry?

Aside from the variety of work and being constantly challenged by new client issues and experiences, my favorite part about consulting has to be the ability to build meaningful, long lasting client relationships built on trust. Our vision at RSM is to become the first choice advisor to our clients and I am proud to support that vision – the majority of my clients have been clients for multiple years, where we have been able to support them through transformational change that has a real impact on their business.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

While I have had various achievements professionally, my proudest achievements are personal. As I've grown my career at RSM, I've also progressed my personal life in parallel. RSM has supported me as I've completed my part-time MBA, got married to my amazing, supportive husband (Mark), and had our two, soon-to-be three, incredible children – Natasha and Luke. My family motivates me every day to continue to pursue my career and my passions. My goal is to serve as an example to other working moms that a career path in consulting can be inclusive of both personal and professional growth.

What's the best advice you've ever been given?

The best advice I was given early in my career was: "Don't just bring problems, bring solutions." This advice has permeated throughout my time at RSM, both through client engagements and internal initiatives. As consultants, it is our jobs to offer creative solutions to complex business problems. Anyone can point out gaps or pain points – but challenging yourself to constantly think critically and come up with innovative, issue-based solutions is what sets you apart. One of the things I pride myself on is the ability to truly listen to my client's challenges and needs.

As a result, I saw an opportunity to further differentiate RSM, our construction industry practice, and our approach to tackling our client's needs. I developed a customized construction project lifecycle analysis approach, focused on the industry specific issues our clients care most about and presented this framework to leadership. This framework then became the standard that was further leveraged by other industry teams.

What does this recognition mean to you?

First and foremost, this recognition makes me proud and humbled. As a woman and a working mother with young children, this recognition is especially meaningful as it validates all the dedication, focus, and perseverance I have put into achieving success both professionally and personally. More importantly, this sets forth a path for future women in consulting and how they too can achieve their goals. I want to be an inspiration for other working moms and especially for my daughter who can one day follow in her mother's footsteps.

Being honored as a Rising Star is an affirmation of my hard work, determination, and dedication throughout my years in consulting. I have dedicated my entire career to the field of consulting – starting straight out of undergrad and rising to a leadership position. I pride myself and my leadership ability on my authenticity, passion, and loyalty to my teams and clients. This recognition makes me feel seen and deeply appreciated by those that have helped shape me into the leader I am today. I have had the privilege of learning from many inspiring leaders, and this recognition would solidify my place in contributing to the development and growth of the future leaders of tomorrow.