Much like in chess, business student Maddy Lawrence is always thinking steps ahead. As someone who loves rules, Maddy has found her stride in business strategy, developing and executing plans to steer businesses to success.
Unlike the boardgame, however, Maddy also likes to bend the rules: "I love procedures and following a step by step process. In business strategy, I get to create my own procedure, implement it and execute it," she said.
"Strategy is my passion. I love to help other people. I think that is where it all comes from, knowing how strategy can help others and what it can do for them."
When it came to enrolling in the Bachelor of Business, it was Maddy's father who encouraged her to make her move.
"My dad has a graphic design business and I grew up watching how he managed that and built relationships with his clients," Maddy said.
"He inspired me to follow in his footsteps. I think my drive for business comes from him. Seeing how he runs his business, the lifestyle that he leads and the value he gets from his interactions with his clients. He encouraged me to study business and give it a shot."
For Maddy, studying business with Southern Cross has proved to be a winning move.
"I am really thriving. I feel like I belong. Business is something that I love but what I love about it specifically is the interactions with people and the ability to forge those connections," she said.
Those connections are boosted by strong communication skills, which Maddy has developed through her degree: "Those skills are really important and will help me to succeed in my career," she said.
The practical application of knowledge was also a highlight.
"In every one of the units I have studied, I have learnt a concept that I can apply to real world situations. The learnings are already helping me in my job now," Maddy said.
Maddy is putting these into practice through an internship at Gold Coast Health in the workforce strategy and culture team. "We take surveys within the clinical and non-clinical teams and assess what is happening, propose strategies for improvement, then implement and execute those strategies," she said.
"This field of business strategy is definitely where I want my degree to take me."
