Mendoza Alum is Making a Difference at 84.51

Author: Bryan Fields

Share to:

Megan Allen, ND Alum and Current Data Scientist at 84.51

Megan and her Love for Data

Megan Allen (ND ’22) knew growing up that she loved data. Digging into it. Drawing useful conclusions from it. She just didn’t know how to make a career of it until she discovered Mendoza’s Business Analytics program.

“I was really into the FiveThirtyEight blog since early high school and first got interested probably during the 2012 election,” Allen said. “I had an interest in data but didn’t know if I could get a job in it.”

Why She Chose Notre Dame

Allen, who now works as a data scientist at 84.51 in Chicago, decided to pursue a business degree at Notre Dame because she felt Mendoza was more committed to community service than other business schools she researched. Because of that commitment, she felt she could learn work skills while also finding opportunities to help her community. She was undecided about which direction to pursue until two intro classes in data analytics and data visualization showed her how to build her analytical skills, work with data, and use data to inform decision-making.

With her newfound direction in data analytics, Allen landed a summer internship after freshman year at the Multnomah County Commissioner’s office in Portland, Oregon, near her hometown. She said she learned a lot but was sometimes dissatisfied by the lack of data she felt they needed.

“It was frustrating because we didn’t know why we were funding certain programs or funding some more than others,” she said. “We didn’t have the data. This is when I first started thinking about how data could be used to help us make better decisions.”

After sophomore year, she interned at ND’s Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunity, which measures how well nonprofit organizations’ efforts help those they serve. “I started doing data science and found I enjoyed it,” she said. “Digging into data and using it to understand, to help assess the effectiveness of charitable efforts. I got to do the data science that I really wanted to do.”

Starting at 84.51

During junior year while applying for strategy and consulting jobs, she discovered 84.51 staff at a career fair. Asking employees of other companies what they liked about their jobs generally brought vague responses.

“But the staff at 84.51 talked about how they liked the work they were doing, learning new things, doing interesting work, or how much impact their work was making,” she said. She accepted a summer internship there after junior year. This led to a job offer after graduation.

With her Bachelor of Science in Business Analytics degree with supplemental major in Economics, Allen is now enjoying her experience at 84.51. The retail data science, insights and media company and fully owned subsidiary of Kroger also works with consumer-packaged goods companies to help them improve sales and boost profits. She now serves on the company’s pricing team, testing strategies to gain new customers.

Making a Difference at 84.51

“I get to do really cool things that are at the cutting edge of data science,” she said.

She also enjoys how 84.51 shares her commitment to community service, and has worked with nonprofits in the Cincinnati area where 84.51 is headquartered. She said she can easily spot other ND alumni at 84.51 because they share the same mission.

Allen credits her education and experience at ND for preparing her to succeed at 84.51. “The Business Analytics major did a great job of providing me with a combination of technical and soft skills,” she said. “These skills have allowed me to not only do technical work, but also communicate my findings clearly and effectively.”

Learn more about how Mendoza’s Undergraduate and Masters Business Analytics programs can prepare you for success.