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My Working Day

Grace McNally, Class of 2010

Grace McNally, Class of 2010 (1997-2006), Freelance Documentary Director and Producer

Interviewing American presidents, meeting criminal cults, discussing international terrorism… When you’re making documentaries, there isn’t a typical day at the office. I might be up before sunrise to capture images in the best light of the day, or navigating several levels of security to film an interview at the UN, or be hidden away in a dark room trying to piece together all the images and sounds we have collected.

As a freelance director and producer, I work on all sorts of projects, from feature films and TV series to short films and political campaign ads. The first film I worked on was a documentary about President Gerald Ford. After studying political science and international relations at the College of the Holy Cross in the US, I worked in consulting and lobbying in Washington DC, but wanted to try something different. I saw an advert from a production company looking for a researcher, and my political background helped me get the job. I ended up being made associate producer and interviewed contributors including Henry Kissinger.

I quickly fell in love with the whole process of researching something deeply and talking to the people at the center of the story. It’s important to have curiosity about, and empathy for, experiences entirely unlike your own when telling someone’s story, which is something I was exposed to during my time at ZIS. In an international school you meet people from different cultures and backgrounds. I didn’t realise how unique and special that education was until I moved back to America.

Since then I’ve covered topics including the US gun-control debate, voting rights and the opioid crisis. Right now, I’m working on a beautiful story about the history of whale acoustic science, told mainly through archive material. When developing a film, I look for a real human story at the center. You might believe people need to hear about an important political or social issue, but if there isn’t a human element, the audience won’t necessarily connect with it.

To do that, you need subjects to share incredibly personal experiences, like Slay The Dragon, for example, a film I co-produced about a political activist fighting to preserve democracy in Michigan. I was so grateful for our subject’s vulnerability in telling that story, so we could make a political issue meaningful. My biggest project to date was co-directing a four-part Netflix series, Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey, about the polygamist Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It took four years to make and, for me, the best part was that the subjects all felt well-represented. As a storyteller, I don’t think objectivity and compassion are mutually exclusive. 

My work can be emotionally draining, so I make sure to do the simple things, like running and eating well. I also make sure to always be taking in some fiction, because so much of my work is very real and sometimes fiction can be more honest than the truth.

The most satisfying part of my job – that I get a finished product that represents all the hard work – is also the most difficult, because it means it’s all over. Finishing a film is always bittersweet: I’m proud, but then it’s onto the next one.

INTERVIEW CLARE THORP PHOTOGRAPHY Ryan Valasek

From Voices Magazine Winter 2024/25

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My Working Day

Christian Heraty, Class of 1994

Christian Heraty, Class of 1994 (1992-94), Founding Board Member of digital transformation specialists GEODESIC.

They say there’s a niche for everyone, and five years after starting my consultancy firm, I feel confident I’ve found mine. And the success I’ve been able to carve out is, in large part, due to the way we were encouraged to think freely and creatively at school – the open, international mindset instilled in me there has shaped my career.

In a changing world of work, grabbing opportunities as they appear is vital. The pandemic forced companies to adopt new technologies rapidly, but many did it without any structure or strategy and now they’re dealing with the aftermath of that. So, I have combined my business management degree with 25 years’ experience in online, IT, business consulting and an interest in human behavioral psychology to respond to transformation. Our company, GEODESIC AG, partners with multinational companies overwhelmed by the amount of technology on offer, working with them to define their vision and map what they want their workplace to look like. It’s incredibly satisfying helping them to solve the puzzle.

My business partners and I all work differently. One works almost exclusively from home, another comes into the office a couple of times I week. I like the change in scenery and headspace I get from coming into the office. I immediately switch into work mode, but when it comes to remote working there’s no right or wrong solution. If you’ve got the opportunity to choose where you work, it’s about finding the place where you feel your best and most creative self. I know people who work in transit on the go, and even one who commutes to work by kayak, weather permitting. 

When I’m not in the office I might be on site with a client, either in Switzerland or internationally. A big part of my job also involves going to conferences and giving presentations, and writing thoughtleadership articles. While I will always have a touch of stage-fright, it’s never really been a problem, thanks to MUN, theater and my band playing at the Arts Festival at school, which helped me deal with that long before I even got to university.

I met some of my greatest mentors at school, and I’m still in contact with some – such as history teacher Andreas Meitanis and my rugby coach Steve Burnham – today. I’m grateful to still be connected with ZIS by taking students through the internship program. It’s been a fantastic experience and has really renewed my hope for the future, because the interns are so ambitious, energetic and curious.

Many are concerned about what they should study for their career. My advice to them is – unless you know you want to be a doctor – pursue what interests you. My career didn’t exist when I started out, and the job market is changing rapidly. You can’t predict where things are going, so adaptability is the most important skill they can have.

Oh, and make sure you live a full life. When I’m not working I ski, play in a band and read a lot of fantasy and sci-fi. I like to indulge the nerd in me – both at work and at home.

INTERVIEW CLARE THORP PHOTOGRAPHY KATE PETERS

From Voices Magazine Summer 2024

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My Working Day

Pete Morgan, Class of2004

Pete Morgan, Class of 2004 (2000-04), Composites Engineering Technology Instructor at Bellingham Technical College

It's funny how some things come full circle. When I was at university, I watched some students building skis in the engineering department as part of a project. As an avid skier – an interest that was really cemented during my time at ZIS – I thought it was the coolest thing. So much so that it motivated me to take engineering classes and pursue a degree in Industrial Engineering Technology. Now, more than 15 years later, I teach a similar ski-building class as part of my job at a technical college, getting students excited about building things in the same way that I was.

I’ve just finished my eighth year of teaching. Before that, I worked for Boeing as a CNC (computer numerical control) programmer, which involves programming robots to do automated tasks. In my role, I used CAD (computer-aided design) software to simulate how robots would lay down carbon fibre on moulds, primarily for the groundbreaking 787 Dreamliner plane. I was proud to be a part of that, but when the opportunity came to teach a new programme geared towards aerospace manufacturing in Bellingham, Washington, the same town in which I went to university, it was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down.

Bellingham is a fantastic place, with plenty of outdoor activities. The town has a great cycle network and I bike just about everywhere. We’re also lucky to be close to Mount Baker – famous for holding the world record for the most snowfall in a season – so I ski in winter. My love of planes also extends outside of work – about three years ago I got my pilot licence, so I enjoy taking friends up and marvelling at the views.

And I love the job. I teach two or three classes a day – each one usually starts with a lecture or tutorial and then we go into the lab for some hands-on experience. Students often pick up the step-by-step process quickly, but then run into roadblocks – perhaps a programming problem or a machine itself is having issues. So there’s lots of troubleshooting, and I find my ZIS experience incredibly useful. My teachers inspire me as an instructor today; they taught me the value of critical thinking and communication – and the community connections were really valuable. 

Things are never boring, and I’m often learning something new from the students, too. One project we do involves building small autonomous cars that drive around the room using ultrasound to gauge how far away they are from things. Another group put a sensor on the car that could tell where the most light is in the room – the idea being that you could put a houseplant on it and it would always seek out the spot with the most light.

I really enjoy seeing students so engaged, but the rewards go even further than that. I recently received a note from a graduate thanking me for the skills I’d taught him. Before starting the programme he was using a food bank regularly, but he now has a good job and is in a position to buy his own house. I wasn’t expecting to have that type of impact when I first came into teaching.

INTERVIEW CLARE THORP PHOTOGRAPHY BROOK FITTS

From Voices Magazine Winter 2023/24

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My Working Day

Teresa Gemperle, Class of 2014

Teresa Gemperle, Class of 2014 (2008-14), Digital transformation specialist and Partnerships Manager for Girls in Tech.

A Grade 10 robotics class first sparked my interest in the digital world – and I’ve been fascinated by the ways technology can make our lives easier ever since. Today, that means I’m focused on innovation and digitalisation, helping companies and senior leaders become more resilient, more able to respond faster to changes happening around them and within them. It’s about embracing more agile and flexible ways of working.

Above all, this is interesting because it can be tough. We’re asking people to move from a command-and-control model, where you have a boss telling you what to do, to having a leader who is empowering you and enabling your work to be done by removing any impediments along the way. My main focus is on training leaders to switch into this new way of working and thinking.

To do this, my working day involves liaising with lots of different people from all over the world – something that my time at ZIS definitely helped prepare me for. It’s that balance of working well under pressure alongside a healthy work-life balance – meeting friends, going for a run and to a spin class or, weather permitting, playing tennis. In fact, tennis was something I discovered a passion for at ZIS and carried on during my time at the University of St Gallen, studying for a degree in Business with a Master’s in Business Innovation.

Something else that’s stayed with me from my time at ZIS is the importance of giving back – for example, I was delighted to have the chance to take part in a session for prospective parents about life after ZIS. Also, a few years ago, I volunteered at Advance – Gender Equality in Business, the leading business association for gender equality in Switzerland, which set me on the path of wanting to make an impact in that area. In 2020, an opening came up for an events manager that later turned into a partnerships manager position for Girls in Tech, a non-profit organisation whose mission is to help build an inclusive and diverse tech community by empowering and inspiring women. We put on free networking events, provide learning opportunities, help with skills like preparing a CV and navigating a job interview, and give advice and mentorship.

In Switzerland, we’re a team of more than 30 volunteers that keeps growing. By partnering with companies that are committed to attracting and retaining more women in tech, we’ve been able to get funding and resources that we can put back into helping our network of women. Day-to-day, we’re mostly communicating on Slack, but we all attend a yearly retreat and it’s been wonderful to meet people from so many different backgrounds, all with the same goal: to build an inclusive tech community in Switzerland. 

INTERVIEW CLARE THORP PHOTOGRAPHY JULIAN COFFIN-LENNEAR

From Voices Magazine Summer 2023

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My Working Day

Sylvia Cediel, Class of 1995

Sylvia Cediel, Class of 1995 (1993-95), Deputy Public Defender in the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office

"Each of us is more than the worst thing we have ever done,” said Bryan Stevenson, the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, and I firmly believe that’s true. When you work as a public defender, you learn to see the humanity in everyone. I believe everybody deserves good legal representation, and I represent people charged with a crime who cannot afford a private attorney; I do everything I can to try to make sure that their rights are upheld. 

I’m in court nearly every day, usually for at least half the day, but otherwise I might be at the jail seeing clients, meeting with social workers or investigators who are working on my cases, reading police reports or negotiating with the District Attorney’s office. I have 60 clients at any one time and for all of them I’m trying to get the most favorable outcome.

I recently had a client who was in custody for nine months and we finally got him out and home with his family and young son. Moments like that are fantastic. A good day is when I win a case, but it’s not always about getting someone off completely – sometimes it’s about minimizing harm.

We provide what’s called holistic defence, so we’re not just helping people with the criminal charge against them, but addressing all areas of their life that they need support in. We want to improve their lives so we don’t see them here again. My clients are often scared, because they’re facing serious charges. It’s rewarding to be able to hold their hand and help them through the process.

Of course, not all people who commit crime are bad people – and people aren’t always guilty of the crimes they’re accused of. The United States over-prosecutes people of color especially – for example, San Francisco has a black population of less than five per cent, but more than 50 per cent of people in jail accused of a crime are Black.

There’s obviously a massive range of people to deal with, and my ZIS experience has been invaluable, helping me deal with so many different personalities. Being at a school with people from such a diverse range of backgrounds and nationalities definitely makes you more open and tolerant. But as rewarding as my job is, it can be emotionally draining too. Your heart really has to be in this job or you won’t last. The people I work with are really dedicated and we’re a very close community who lean on each other and spend time together outside of work – I’m on a softball team with some colleagues.

Whenever I’m having a tough day I remind myself of the bigger goal of why I do this, which is making sure that justice is served for everybody, and that everyone has the opportunity to be properly represented in the system, no matter their skin color or socioeconomic background. 

INTERVIEW CLARE THORP PHOTOGRAPHY JULIAN COFFIN-LENNEAR

From Voices Magazine Winter 2022/23

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My Working Day

Sylvia Cediel, Class of 1995

The human angle Benji’s Humans of Covid-19 Instagram account showed the shocking, real-life impact of the pandemic on frontline healthcare professionals.

There’s been a lot of talk about doctors and nurses being heroes, but I don’t know anyone who wants that kind of recognition – we just want to have a normal shift. I start mine in London walking into the hospital through the ambulance bay – it gives me a feel for how busy we are. At the height of Covid, we didn’t have enough space in A&E and there were many shifts when I went into the backs of ambulances to assess people, even walking them to X-ray and then back to the ambulance to start treatment. It sounds absurd but we did the best with what we had.

It was difficult working in such an intense environment and then seeing people meeting up and not social distancing. I started the Instagram account Humans of Covid-19 in April 2020 to let people know what it’s like on the frontline and why we were passionate about following the guidelines. There are now seven of us interviewing healthcare  workers all over the world and we’ve reached more than five million people through social media. More importantly, many of our followers say they changed their behaviour as a result. The message was important – if we all do everything we can to stop the pandemic, then frontline staff can get on with making patients feel better.

Pandemic or not, no two days are alike, of course. People don’t typically come into A&E from nine to five, so most of my shifts are midday to midnight or 10pm to 8am. The numbers of patients I see can vary massively, and you have to be adaptable. Looking at things from a different perspective and having the confidence to try new ideas were really rewarded at ZIS and are a big part of my role now. Giving presentations throughout high school also taught me a hugely valuable skill, because these days I have to present all the time, whether it’s updating colleagues or telling a specialist why my patient needs to be admitted.

I spend my days off working on Humans of Covid-19 or studying, because as a doctor that never ends – you need to stay sharp. I’m also in a jazz band and I missed being able to practise together. I play the drums which is incredibly cathartic and just a world away from the working day!

INTERVIEW DIANE SHIPLEY PHOTOGRAPHY HUMANS OF COVID-19

From Voices Magazine Winter 2021

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My Working Day

Sophia Marti, Class of 2006

A walk in the park Sophia, who runs Marti Engagement Marketing Agency, says that she savoured walks with Blanche even more during lockdown.

I’m quite self-disciplined, so my day starts early, usually around 6am as that’s the easiest time I can get out for a spot of exercise. I might go running or do a high-intensity style boot camp, or maybe yoga.

Then it’s time for Blanche, my lovely fox terrier. I’ve only had her for a couple of years but she’s transformed my working day. As well as the walk into work, I try to take her out for some fresh air whenever I get a break; there’s a beautiful forest near our office and we love to spend time there. I never realised what a difference it makes if you step away from your desk, even for a brief 10 minutes. I return with a clearer mindset and, during the lockdown, walks with Blanche became even more frequent and savoured.

I’ll spend the day dealing with multiple clients, and that can be tricky as everything can come at once. My approach is to tackle the difficult stuff first; I’m not a person who can live with something hanging over me – it drives me nuts. Some clients are very sensitive; they want everything to be 100 per cent accurate and I find myself on call 24/7. I’m in the office from 8.30am to 6pm every day – but I might work evenings too.

Many of my clients are international and, without my experience of the international outlook at ZIS, I don’t think I would have been able to operate in that world. My parents are Swiss, I’m Swiss, but I speak English almost as my mother tongue. The ZIS culture made me completely comfortable communicating with people anywhere in the world – my international clients don’t realise I’m Swiss!

That’s not to say I was the most academic person at school, but I don’t think it’s all about being academically excellent – one way that ZIS prepared me was to emphasise that it’s important to find the thing you have a passion for and make the most of that. Don’t be afraid to follow that ambition.

It’s worked for me: so much of what I do is new ground for me, but I love the flexibility of being my own boss and making my own decisions. I don’t have a mentor, but I do consult my husband, who runs his own asset management firm, so we know what we’re both going through.

Having your own business is exciting because every day is different and brings new opportunities, but it can also be challenging as you need to be patient and stay motivated. Having ambition is what pulls you through; if you are driven, you can take the lows, move on and fight for what you love doing.

INTERVIEW DIANE SHIPLEY PHOTOGRAPHY KATE PETERS

From Voices Magazine Spring 2021

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Small World

Mazood Razaq, Class of 1992

Masood Razaq isn’t sure which was the most nerve-racking: working with Bill Gates or trying to break a Toblerone the Swiss way in front of his peers. But one thing he’s sure of is that no matter what he’s doing, the experience at AISZ taught him to aim high.

“You should try to surround yourself with as many talented people as possible,” says Masood. “It forces you to raise your game, to perform at a higher level, and to learn from some of the best people around. That will be a good thing for your career forever.”

Masood first came to Zurich at 15 (having lived in Egypt, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Greece and Germany), and he settled into school quickly. “There was a family atmosphere, which gave it a feeling of intimacy and trust,” he says. “Looking back, it was a privilege to be in such an intimate classroom setting. I do better in small groups.”

Via Harvard, Cambridge University and Harvard Business School, his first job was with management consulting firm A.T. Kearney in London. However, his most significant professional experience was at Microsoft in Seattle, where he spent four years as part of the corporate strategy group, working with senior executives on new product ideas. “I had some meetings with Bill Gates, which were mildly terrifying. He’s a really good guy, but it’s hard to talk to someone about the future when they’re way ahead of you on everything,” he says.

It was in Seattle that he met his wife, Sofia, an interior and clothing designer, and it was also a time where he discovered a new challenge. “I became interested in working with business people who are risking their own capital and doing things more organically, and I wanted to see if I could do that in an emerging markets context.” Through Verdacore, he advises Gulf-based family groups, entrepreneurs and mid-sized businesses on strategic opportunities, operational improvement and investments, in addition to mentoring a couple of startups.

He’d like his two sons (Zayn, 6, and Rayan, 10) to have a similar high school experience to his own and not just academically. He played soccer and tennis, visited the Uffizi gallery in Florence with his art class and took part in Model United Nations conferences, a simulated version of UN proceedings. “You definitely felt that teachers were passionate about their subjects and cared about you – they weren’t just punching in to a job,” says Masood.

He also picked up some practical skills. “One of my classmates taught me how to break a Toblerone the Swiss way: press inwards on the last point with your thumb, rather than pulling it apart.”

He still keeps in touch with about a dozen school friends through Facebook. “Many of them are doing amazing things. It makes you set your sights higher in terms of what you can do in the world.”

WORDS DIANE SHIPLEY / PHOTOGRAPHY SIDDHARTH SIVA 

From Voices Magazine Summer 2018

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Small World

Erika Darmstaedter (Class of 1981)

From self-styled ‘ski bum’ to award-winning ad agency leader, Erika Darmstaedter (Class of 1981 (1979-81) is proof that there’s more than one route to success. Responsible for global account management and client strategy at FCB, one of the largest global advertising agency networks, she has overseen some of the biggest brands in the world. But it hasn’t always been straightforward.

She left AISZ in 1981 with no clear career goals. Instead, she brushed up her German and spent two years lost on the ski slopes. It was when she landed a junior secretary job at Geneva-based advertising agency Y&R that she found her true calling. Within five years, she’d worked her way up to account management but, at 26, she decided it was time to get a degree and studied Business Administration at New York University.

Erika admits she was a more committed student as an adult than as a teenager, but she always loved English, particularly class discussions. “Mr Kruger [English teacher, 1966-90] and Mr Killen [English teacher, 1972-90] were superb teachers who both brought literature to life. They opened up this world of exploration and discovery.”

Having grown up in Saudi Arabia, Taiwan and Israel, as well as Zurich, international schools made a big impression on her. “They really influenced my career and who I am today because of the diversity of the people and the cultures that come together.”

After eight years at Saatchi & Saatchi in London, Erika returned to her native Switzerland in 2011 to be closer to her family and so that her children, now 19 and 20, could take the IB. She was on the AISZ board from 1999 to 2001, during the time it adopted the programme, and still thinks it’s the best way to learn. “It has a lot of academic rigour, but more importantly teaches kids to think and value learning. It’s not just teaching kids to pass tests.”

Her love of advertising is as strong as ever, particularly knowing she’s part of a bigger picture. “I get to shape a little of the history of the company and of these beautiful legacy brands.” There are constant challenges, including evolving communication methods and bright young things defecting to tech. But Erika remains optimistic.

“Every day, we try to make our creativity come to life in this new world. We’ve just won another global contract, so we're moving in the right direction. I have creative projects happening in Brazil, Mexico, India, England and France – and that’s just today. I’m living proof that you don’t have to do things in a linear way, you can still take something great from each stage of life. If we teach our children that, they’ll be better prepared to go into the world.”

WORDS DIANE SHIPLEY PHOTOGRAPHY OLIVER OETTLI

Voices Magazine Winter 2020

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Small World

Dr Lucile Burgo-Black, Class of 1970

As a doctor working with war veterans at the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System in Connecticut, Dr Lucile Burgo-Black has seen first-hand the devastation of battle.

Now, as National Co-Director of the Veterans Health Administration’s Post-Deployment Integrated Care Initiative, she splits her time between seeing patients, teaching students, and delivering talks and presentations on behalf of the central office in Washington, DC. “We’re working on making sure that the lessons we’ve learned are hard-wired into the system so that, after each war, we don’t have to relearn how to take care of people coming back.”

In fact, she says, she fell into the work almost by accident. After leaving AISZ she contemplated pursuing skiing professionally, but instead she went to Brown University in Rhode Island to study marine biology, before deciding she “really liked working with people” and returning to medical school at the University of Lausanne. It was there that she met her husband, Robert.

After graduation, they settled in the US state of Connecticut, and had four children in four years. Looking for work she could fit around her family, Lucile took a part-time primary care job at the local VA hospital and soon became passionate about the healthcare needs of people who have been to war.

“I always look back on AISZ, more than my college experience, as making me who I am today: a lot of challenges, a lot of opportunities and incredible mentoring. I tried to get involved in every sport going and the trips were brilliant. We went camping along the Rhine one year – I can still remember the foldable kayaks – and it was a two-week mud-fest, but with so many fun memories.

“Ski weeks were just the best time, and reading books with Chuck Kruger (former English teacher, 1966-90) and playing in the lab with Fowler Stillman (former biology teacher, 1967-89) was just so wonderful. The school’s first head teacher John Mattern (1963-71) was an amazing guy; he had this Jungian atmosphere, just thinking about how we can understand ourselves, and by understanding yourself you can learn about life and others. They just did a wonderful job in raising adolescents.”

Now at Yale, she has stayed connected to her AISZ classmates, thanks to Facebook and occasional reunions. And she says the lessons she learned from the school have stayed with her throughout her career. “You have to work hard, you have to explore, you have to be curious. I had this curiosity to find out about the world that I still hold today. It just makes life so interesting and rewarding.”

WORDS DIANE SHIPLEY / PHOTOGRAPHY SALLY MONTANA

From Voices Magazine Winter 2017

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