Melissa Pumphrey

As a high schooler in Annapolis, MD, I worked in a bagel shop and coached kids at sailing. For my first real job, I worked in macroeconomic research for a small research shop called Decision Economics in NYC, focusing on the US and Canadian macroeconomic outlook.

Before NYCEDC, I spent about seven years in finance and economic consulting. I learned the tools and skills for evaluating specific projects, tracking economic data, and forming a macro view of an economy. But I never felt consistent joy in my work—in finance, most of my clients were institutional investors (in other words, large money managers), and I wasn’t particularly fulfilled by that. Instead, I wanted to use my talents at a mission-driven organization. When I learned about NYCEDC and the work it does, I thought “This could be a great fit.”