Tracy Postert no longer has to answer to cries of “Get a job!” from people who passed by the Occupy Wall Street protest.
I used to say, “I’m trying!” she told ABCNews.com. Postert doesn’t have to try any longer.
The New York City woman, who split her time between Occupy Wall Street and having her “nose in the computer looking for work,” now has a job, thanks to a little marketing savvy and an executive who happened to pass by at just the right time.
Armed with 800 copies of her resume, Postert held a sign that read: “Ph.D. Biomedical Scientist Seeking Full Time Employment.”
Although Postert was looking for work in academia, she had all but given up.
Her sign caught the eye of Wayne Kaufman, the chief market analyst for John Thomas Financial Brokerage — a firm with a prime Wall Street address.
“I said a very quick hello,” Kaufman told ABCNews.com. “I took a copy of her resume and contacted her the next day. I was very impressed by it.”
Postert came in a few days later for an interview at the company’s office at 14 Wall St., where she learned that Kaufman wanted her to be a junior analyst evaluating medical companies as potential investments.
“She was not wildly enthusiastic,” Kaufman said.
Although his firm usually hires people with business or financial backgrounds for that sort of position, he said Postert could fit a certain niche.
“I thought, ‘Maybe this is a person who could help us understand these early-stage biotech companies that financial people just don’t always understand,’” he said.
Eager for a job, Postert accepted. She’s going into her fourth week in her position and said she’s learning a lot.
“There’s a lot to like about it,” she said. “And I’m learning more about the business and legal sides, too.”
Postert said she’s been down to Zuccotti Park a few brief times since she started her job because she has been busy with work.
As for that infamous sign that caught Kaufman’s eye? It’s at home now, but Postert said she plans to bring it in to keep by her desk.
“It’s a classic sign now,” she said.
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