Young alumni are celebrated as rising stars in business

Rutgers Business School celebrated 29 of its alumni, all 30 years old or younger, as rising stars in business during a dinner marking the second year of a new tradition.

The alumni represent diverse parts of the business world from entrepreneurs and marketing professionals to supply chain leaders. They work for investment banks, academia, tech, and entertainment companies. In the mix, is a quant who works at U.S. Bank, a farmer, and an AI strategist for a healthcare company. Many of the award recipients have already achieved executive titles.

The attendees, including parents, spouses, Rutgers Business School’s dean as well as staff and faculty, mingled, reminisced and relished a gathering on campus for a special recognition. “It’s cool to come back – and I do occasionally,” said Michael McCormick, a finance major who graduated in 2018 and works as a finance advisor at Morgan Stanley. “To come back for this,” he continued, “Well, I feel the pride and the Rutgers love.”

Darya Ganzha, who graduated in 2020 after her senior year and convocation were disrupted by the Covid pandemic, said the awards dinner left her with a sense of community. “It’s a great opportunity to celebrate achievements,” she said. “It means a lot.” 

Despite Covid’s interruption, Ganzha graduated with a job offer at Children’s Place. Now, she works at NBC Universal in New York City as a streaming strategic insights and yield optimization manager.

Jennifer Rodrigues, assistant director of alumni and corporate engagement at Rutgers Business School, described the honorees as “exceptional young alumni.”

“They represent the very best of Rutgers Business School,” she said. “They’re ambitious, accomplished and committed to making a positive difference in the world.”

The following is a list of the alumni honored during the second annual Under 30 Rising Business Stars alumni dinner:

Entrepreneurial Trailblazer Award: 

Connor Shaw, founder of Kuyashii Jewelry & Rare Wrist, graduated in 2019 with degrees in supply chain management and entrepreneurship; James Klett, co-owner of Fairgrown Farm in Pennington, N.J., studied management and graduated in 2019; Shannon Garcia, a digital content coordinator at Princeton University, graduated with a Master of Science in Digital Marketing in 2024; Jessica Yang, a data and AI consulting manager at Eliassen Group, graduated in 2018 with degrees in supply chain management and marketing sciences.

Industry Pioneer Award

Allison Darley, an audit manager at KPMG, graduated with degrees in accounting and Business Analytics Information Technology in 2020; Amanda DiCarlo, a director of marketing and innovation at Campbell’s Company, graduated with a degree in marketing in 2019; Chioma Igwebuike, an associate in investment banking compliance at Goldman Sachs, graduated with a degree in accounting in 2017; Darya Ganzha, a streaming strategic insights and yield manager at NBC Universal, graduated with degrees in finance and marketing in 2020.

Tenille Grant is a senior associate in marketing strategy at JP Morgan Chase & Company. She graduated with a degree in marketing in 2023; Zachary Konviser, senior vice president and COO at TMT Investment Banking at Jefferies.  He graduated with a degree in supply chain management in 2017; Michael Leitzke, a senior supply chain strategy analyst at Church & Dwight, graduated with a degree in supply chain management in 2021; Harini Mekala, a senior product manager at Microsoft, graduated with a degree in business analytics and Information technology in 2018; Jamie Lee is an associate director of brand marketing and digital content creator and strategist for Amorepacific’s Korean skincare brand Innisfree. She graduated with a degree in marketing in 2019. Parth Modi, a Generative AI strategy and governance product lead at Johnson & Johnson, graduated in 2019 with degrees in management information systems and supply chain management; Sanjana Narayanan graduated with degrees in finance and management information systems in 2024. She is a risk management associate at Prudential and is currently working on an MBA in AI and marketing at Rutgers Business School.

Joseph Stoneback, a senior tax professional at EY, graduated with degrees in accounting and finance in 2020; Ryan O’Leary, an associate director of market access, BeOne Medicines, completed a Rutgers MBA in 2025. He focused his studies on pharmaceutical management and marketing. Michael McCormick, a financial advisor at Morgan Stanley, graduated with a degree in finance in 2018; Julie Petulla, a principal analyst at FINRA, graduated with a degree in finance in 2017; Rohini Putcha, an ERP and contact manager in Next Generation Transformation at Ralph Lauren. graduated with degrees in supply chain management and management information systems in 2017; Sridivya Ragahavan, at associate manager at PGIM Quantitative Solutions, graduated with a degree in finance in 2018. She is currently an MBA student at Rutgers Business School.

Dhvani Shah, an S&OP manager at L’Oreal, graduated with a degree in supply chain management in 2021; Shreya Panisetty, an ICG analyst NAM Fixed Income Credit, Citi Bank, graduated in 2024 with degrees in finance and business analytics and information technology. Jordan Torres, assistant vice president of Vendor Relationship Manager at Barclays Corporate and Investment Bank, studied supply chain management and graduated in 2020; and Isabella Verdi, a senior manager in R&D procurement, Innovative Medicine at Johnson & Johnson, graduated with a degree in supply chain management in 2018.

Social Impact and Sustainability Award

Akshay Joshi, a quantitative model analyst, AVP at U.S. Bank, graduated with a Master of Science in Quantitative Finance in 2023; Olivia Waaben, an associate at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, graduated with degrees in finance and business analytics & information technology in 2019; and Tyler Patel, an account executive at Cisco Systems, graduated with a degree in business analytics and information technology in 2022; Simmi Sharma graduated in 2019 with degrees in finance and business analytics and information technology. She is employed as an investor with Generative Investment Management's Just Climate in London.

-Susan Todd