Alumna Profile: Kimberly Ne’Velle ’07
Kimberly Ne’velle ’07 graduated from UNCG with a BS in finance, insurance, and real estate and firm ideas about what career she did not want to pursue. Just a few years later, she found herself on a path she didn’t expect, doing work she now realizes she loves.
While a student at the Bryan School, Ne’velle thought she would go into accounting after graduation. Specifically, she planned on becoming an auditor and prepared for this by interning with a company for three years. The experience taught her that her anticipated field wasn’t quite the right fit for her future.
Instead, she returned to her hometown of Greenville, NC where Wachovia (now Wells Fargo) had entry-level loan servicing openings. She was promoted to team lead after one year, supervisor within two years, managed a Credit Bureau Reporting team, and then moved into corporate risk as a Wells Fargo compliance consultant. She is now an assistant vice president for corporate risk and is required to perform regulatory reviews to identify and mitigate any regulatory risks in business activity, which makes her position very close to that of an auditor’s. Ne’velle has found a role that both meets her interest in auditing and provides a corporate culture in which she can thrive.
Ne’velle attributes her success largely to her experiences at UNCG – both in and out of the classroom. “The Bryan School,” she recalled, “definitely challenged me and got me out of my comfort zone.” The Bryan School’s academic challenges drove her to work harder and meet new people to form study groups. She also benefitted from exposure to a wide range of businesses through career fairs and business spotlight. These experiences helped her narrow down exactly what did and didn’t interest her about the business world.
Outside of academics, Ne’velle also worked as a University Ambassador. That experience helped her with her interactions with people in the workforce and presentation skills. “I’m a lot more comfortable with my speaking skills than I would be if I hadn’t given things such as tours and orientations.”
Ne’velle encourages current students to get to know their professors, and to visit them during office hours. She also says that employers value experience, so students should absolutely take advantage of any internship opportunities that might be presented.
For recent graduates, Ne’velle has a reminder that sometimes it can be necessary to make short-term sacrifices for long-term goals. “Be open-minded, and put in the hard work and dedication.” At times, this means taking jobs for which you feel overqualified, since you may find yourself excelling quicker.
Today, after meeting her leadership goals, Ne’velle is able to focus on other aspects of her work. One of those is problem solving, something that she does well. She goes about this by being proactive and foreseeing future complications and ensuring they never occur.
Writer: Alison McKane ’17
