This week, we will learn about Philip Simmons. Philip is a Research Assistant on Michelle Graef's team.
Where do you hail from:
I grew up in Connecticut before moving to Southern New Jersey for my undergrad at Rowan University. In 2013 I moved to Omaha to attend the Social/Personality program at UNO. I decided to extend my stay in the Midwest and am currently attending the UNO Industrial Organization Psychology PhD Program.
What has been your greatest source of career satisfaction/proudest achievement:
I spent the summer of 2016 helping to establish HR processes, launch a global engagement survey, and develop the People Analytics Team at Tesla. I'm a long time Elon Musk fan, and the opportunity to work so closely with his executive team was a dream come true.
What is your passion/what you are drawn to/what motivates you/where do you hope to be in five years:
Recently someone called me a "futurist," which I suppose is someone who tends to focus what society will become. I guess that's a good description of me because I'm passionate about and attracted to projects, ideas, and companies that are looking to solve the biggest problems facing humans. I'll be the first to say that the contributions of an I/O Psychologist may be considered minor compared to that of an engineer; however, it's still intoxicating knowing your work is going towards something bigger than just, for example, manufacturing batteries and building cars. Where do I hope to be in five years? Well, my primary career interests are in the commercial spaceflight, energy, and transportation industries-so in five years I hope to be back in California working in one of those industries.
Family life/hobbies/community involvement:
My fiancé and I are in the middle of planning our wedding, which will be this summer in the beautiful Oregon Cascade range. When we have time off (ha!), we enjoy traveling; hiking; and visiting family in Texas and on the west coast.
The quotation I live my life by is...
There are two quotes I really like. I have one tattooed on my arm.
"Stand up for what is right even if you are standing alone."
"If something is important enough, even if the odds are against you, you should still do it."