From the time Qisheng “Qi” moved from China to Oakland at the age of seven, until his senior year of high school, he thought he understood what his future would look like. As a first generation student and the only child of immigrant parents working minimum wage jobs with limited resources, Qi grew up with a narrow view of what success might look like. Qi thought he was destine for “a minimum wage job or to be a car salesman.”
He never imagined himself working in a corporate office until he was introduced to Genesys Works. Qi first heard about Genesys Works Bay Area from one of his high school teachers, Mrs. Johnson, who encouraged him to apply. Throughout the recruitment process, Qi thought getting a Genesys Works internship meant a chill, low-key job he could passively partake in his senior year of high school. What he found instead was a life-changing opportunity that completely redefined his sense of what was possible.
Placed as an intern on the Customer Success team at Salesforce, Qi found himself in a high rise building in downtown San Francisco. Under the mentorship of his manager, Mike Torres, he began learning about enterprise technology systems like ERP and CRM. Though he initially felt out of place and like he didn’t belong in such a high-powered environment, Qi quickly found his footing through the relationships be built and continued to foster at Salesforce.
Qi’s time at Salesforce was transformative. His experience sparked an interest in technology and consulting, and after graduating from Oakland High School in 2018, he enrolled at UC Davis to pursue those passions.
After college, Qi entered the fast-paced world of ERP consulting, working at PwC and applied knowledge that he gained through Genesys Works. Now, Qi’s professional journey has led him work as a consultant at Odoo and work part-time in cybersecurity with the US Air Force, a role he only considered after a conversation with a mentor from his time at PwC. He credits his success to the relationships he continues to build from his time with Genesys Works Bay Area.
“Genesys Works showed me what was out there,” Qi reflects. “It helped me to gain confidence and step into spaces I never thought were available to me.” He works to stay connected to mentors and peers from his time with GWBA, and would advise future students to do the same. He encourages students to keep an open mind; Genesys Works creates exposure to careers and futures never previously conceivable to so many.
From a first generation college student so sure of what his limited future would look like, Qi is now confident in his path and has discovered a life he never thought possible. His story is a powerful example of what happens when opportunity meets ambition, drive, and hard work – and when one young person is able to see a future beyond the boundaries of what they once thought possible.
