Alumni Spotlight

The Big Move with Drew Mackey

Many people move away for college. Some fly far away from home while others stay near. Leaving the nest for the first time is an exciting and big decision to make as a young adult (#adulting). Students move away, settle in, and embark on their college journeys . They study hard, have a blast, then suddenly realize that they have morphed into adults, and it’s almost time for graduation. Little did they know that a daunting question would await. Going out into the real world, many people find themselves asking, “Where do I go from here?”

In the case of Drew Mackey, that place was to Austin, TX.

Drew is an MIS alumni who graduated from SJSU in 2017 and landed a job as a Senior Enterprise BDR at Medallia. Medallia is one of many tech companies, such as Apple and Google, that have acquired real estate in Austin, TX. These companies have helped expand the reputation of Texas as one of the new major tech hubs in the United States.

Drew is a Bay Area local that grew up in Oakland, attending school here from elementary all the way up to his college years at SJSU.

Drew has always been a man of travel. In fact, he once received news that he earned an internship at Kaiser Permanente in IT infrastructure as he was boarding a flight to Cuba.

I began to wonder what his motivation for the big move to Texas was. The Lone Star State is halfway across the country, after all.

As it turns out, Drew had been job searching in the Bay Area, but he wasn’t getting the kind of offers he wanted. That’s when he realized he would start looking for opportunities outside of his comfort zone. During his job search, he saw an old friend’s post on LinkedIn about a job in Austin which intrigued him.

Drew: “I saw a job posting on LinkedIn from a friend of mine in Austin, and I thought to myself, ‘Why not go for it?’”

“I saw a job posting on LinkedIn from a friend of mine in Austin, and thought to myself, ‘Why not go for it?’”

And go for it he did. He reached out to an old pal, had a nice coffee and chat, and eventually landed his current role at Medallia.

What was your mindset that led to your big move?

Drew: “I just wanted to start fresh in a new city; in a new state.”

“I just wanted to start fresh in a new city; in a new state.”

The move came with a few prerequisites. He wanted to visit the city first to make sure he liked it. He described the Southern hospitality, food, and unique culture as being some of the key factors in his decision to move.

Once he decided he was game, he packed up his car and drove to Texas. Drew took a three day long road trip with his best friend in tow, and he shared with me some memories that he will never forget.

It was during this road trip that he realized he was doing something big and knew that he had made the right choice in trusting his instincts.

Drew: “Looking back, I took a big leap of faith.”

“Looking back, I took a big leap of faith.”

That leap of faith paid off as he has been successful in his business development role, learning new trades in the process. He is enthusiastic about working with and learning what’s on trend with technologies such as Blockchain and he plans to further his career in Austin.

Yee-haw, Drew!