Casey Grabbe graduated in 2014 with a major in business administration (corporate finance concentration) and a PPE Minor. She began her career in a finance rotational program at General Electric before deciding to pursue her passion for media at ESPN, where she currently serves as the Senior Director of Corporate Strategy.

 

A Conversation with Casey

(1) What led you to minor in PPE at UNC? 

I was hoping to pursue a minor in Economics to complement my Business major, and was introduced to the PPE program through the Economics department.  I was intrigued by the idea of an interdisciplinary program as a way to sharpen by analytical skills.

 

(2) How has what you learned from the PPE Program helped you in your career?

My role in corporate strategy is rooted in analytical problem solving. The skills I developed through my PPE studies have helped me analyze business challenges through multiple angles and consider different ways of thinking.

 

(3) What is your greatest professional accomplishment so far?

Being able to build a team and watching them succeed has been immensely rewarding for me.

 

(4) What professor or course influenced you the most during your time in the PPE Program?

Political Philosophy was the first Philosophy course I took at UNC (during my senior year) and it made me wish that I’d started taking classes with the department sooner. Learning about the most influential philosophers in history and seeing how their ideas translate to modern society was fascinating.

 

(5) What was your favorite PPE extracurricular programming  (e.g., reading groups, weekend seminars, speaker series, etc.)?

The speaker series were always a treat.

 

(6) What advice do you have for prospective PPE students?

The skills you develop through PPE studies are valuable for a wide variety of career paths. Having a PPE minor is also unique and a differentiator in the job market. (And it doesn’t hurt that people often think you have three minors when reading your resume).

 

(7) What advice do you have for recent PPE graduates?

Make the most of your connections with other students in the program. One of the things I enjoyed most about my PPE classes was that I got to meet other people outside my Business major.

 

(8) Where do you see yourself in five years?

I hope to be continuing to grow my career in media and making bigger and better business contributions.