Alumna Q & A: Amy Chong (IndE 1T1 + PEY)

AmyChong

Last summer, Rotman MBA student Amy Chong (IndE 1T1 + PEY) served as a mentor to Anastasiya Martyts (EngSci 1T6) and Tiange Li (Life Sciences 1T6), two second-year U of T students who were developing a new photography lighting product at The Entrepreneurship Hatchery. Martyts and Li presented Modly – their modular, customizable lighting system – at the Hatchery’s Demo Day in September, competing with eight other teams to win the $20,000 top prize sponsored by entrepreneur and telecommunications executive Anthony Lacavera (CompE 9T7). Chong shares her thoughts on mentorship and her own experiences as a U of T Engineering student.

How did you support the Modly team as a mentor at the Hatchery?

I worked with Anil Bhole, another mentor and intellectual property lawyer, to support the Modly team in three different areas: user interface development, product design and development, and business development. I used my engineering knowledge and experience to provide insight on user interfaces and the product development cycle. As for the business side, I tapped into almost everything: financial management, marketing, business strategy, business design and more. I shared what I knew about forming, launching and managing all the different moving parts in their first startup.

What did you gain from that experience?

Personal satisfaction: When Anastasiya and Tiange won the first-place prize, I was extremely proud of them and happy that I could help in any way possible.

Inspiration: These kids built something out of absolutely nothing in four months. If that doesn’t inspire you to get moving on your goals, I don’t know what will.

More confidence: This experience validated that I have the knowledge and expertise to share and lead projects from both the engineering and business sides.

Why would you suggest other alumni become mentors?

I am a firm believer that we all got to where we are with the help of people who came before us. Always pay it forward. To be able to help someone achieve his or her goal is one of the greatest feelings you can possibly have. Also, mentorship is a reciprocal relationship; as a mentor, you can learn a great deal from your mentee as well.

What did you gain as an undergraduate at U of T Engineering?

The knowledge that I gained from taking engineering courses and doing projects definitely provided a foundation for my career. More importantly, it really taught me the value of persistence and determination, which I think will help me the most in the long run. Also, at U of T, you learn that there are so many opportunities out there and you can do so many awesome things after graduation. You learn to dream big.