My eagerness to learn, which became deeply ingrained during my years at Bain, will stay with me throughout my career. It's something I seek out whenever I look to hire someone for my team.

• Background

  I studied chemistry at Oxford and envisioned a career as a chemist upon graduation. However, my career path took a turn right before the summer of 1989, when I saw an ad posted on campus to be an associate consultant intern for Bain Tokyo. I applied, thinking it would be an interesting opportunity to work abroad for a summer.

  I ended up working in the London office rather than Tokyo. However, my exposure to consulting was quite interesting, and I realized that a job at Bain would be much more exciting than sitting in a lab for my foreseeable future. I accepted the full-time offer on the spot and returned as an associate consultant the following year.

• My experience at Bain

  I believe there is a "Bain type of person" who is energetic, enthusiastic and smart - the kind of person I would choose to be with in any circumstance. Sparks fly when we put our brains and creativity together to provide results for our clients.

  I had the opportunity to work across the Bain system in three offices - London, San Francisco and Stockholm (which I helped launch) - all prior to going to business school. Working in different countries and cultures made me see how the Bain teams, tools and training were applicable to all business situations, wherever they may be.

  During those early years, I was mentored by great partners who provided tremendous guidance, training, and relationships that have continued throughout my life. After four years at Bain, I left for Harvard Business School, where I ended up with several significant opportunities in private equity and banking, which I could have pursued. Instead, I decided to return to Bain after going through the interview process, talking with friends on campus, and not finding any other place with the same spirit, energy and connection among its people as Bain. It was quite an easy decision to return.

• My alumni experience

  Eventually, I decided I was ready to be in a more hands-on role as an operator at a company. I left Bain for Roll International, a private holding company with a diversified portfolio of businesses. I served first as the CFO, and then as president of one of their holdings.

  The broad general management skills I learned at Bain served me well throughout the five years I spent at Roll and continue to do so in my role as head of Nike's $2 billion global running business. With the rigorous analytical thinking and breadth of project experiences at Bain under my belt, I am able to drive to the "quick answer" to complex problems when I may only have a day, a week or a month to make a decision.

  One of the best things my Bain training has given me is the ability to ask the right questions of my team and those around me. I must be able to get to the heart of a problem quickly - from Brazil to China to the US - and no two problems I face are alike. At Bain I learned how to be thrown into a tough situation and come out in a better place. This has been invaluable to my Nike experience, where we faced big challenges: a new structure and new team, fixing fundamental problems and getting the company back on track.

  Bain helped shape who I am personally and professionally. My wife and closest friends are from Bain, and I have a tremendous network of colleagues and peers.  Over the years, I've looked to them for guidance or as a sounding board for difficult business decisions.

  In addition, my eagerness to learn, which became deeply ingrained during my years at Bain, will stay with me throughout my career. It's something I seek out whenever I look to hire someone for my team. I have seen first-hand the power of bringing together "Bain profile" people. Having smart, young and hungry-to-learn individuals on your team creates an atmosphere of creativity and innovation that is unparalleled.