Frank Fumarola
- VP of Product & Group General Manager
- Nubank
School Information
School: University of Maryland — College Park
College Major: Business
Years at College Works: 2005 to 2006
Career Information
Working For: Nubank
Title: VP of Product & Group General Manager
Industry: Finance
Brief Description of Duties / Responsibilities:
Manage group of GM’s that are responsible for platformizing our growth capabilities internationally, building the tools that 100m+ customers and 10k+ agents use for customer service, and enabling our next wave of growth using AI and open finance.
What Has Been Your Proudest Accomplishment Post-CWP?I changed careers 3 years after graduation from manufacturing to technology, and in the 4 years since I have quickly been promoted to the 5 person senior management team of a 60+ person $100mm+ company.
College Works Career Impact
In one sentence, what has CW meant to you?
College Works Painting taught me how important it is to set expectations for customers and employees alike. Communication goes a long way.
How did your CW experience impact your career? Immediately after graduation? Now?
Immediately after graduation, College Works Painting definitely strengthened my resume as it showed I was internally driven to accomplish tough goals. It also showed that I had managed people. As time goes by, you will find that College Works Painting isn’t as beneficial to your resume as you gain more relevant experience in the industry you are part of. However, by the time this happens, you will likely have leveraged the skills you learned in College Works Painting to give you an advantage in your new found industry. For myself, as a product person, that definitely came in the way of setting clear expectations and communicating them in a palatable way (especially when the message is not good!).
What was the greatest lesson you learned from your CW experience?
How you deliver a tough message shows your character a lot better than how you deliver a good message.
If you had to come up with a one line slogan for CW, what would it be?
Turn 1 year into 3 months.
Advice
What advice do you have for potential CW participants? Current CW participants?
You will probably want to quit somedays, and that’s alright. College Works Painting is like taking 6 different jobs, planning for a years worth of work, and then smashing it all in to 1 spring and summer. It is the days where you are kicking butt that show you why you hit the pavement every day and why you are doing what you’re doing. Keep at it and you won’t regret it. The lessons you learn will be invaluable.
Many college students struggle to choose between an internship specific to their target industry or doing CW. What advice would you give them on this subject if they wanted to enter your career field?
If your intended industry requires a lot of connections or domain knowledge to get into, you should probably go with target industry internship. If your intended industry just requires aptitude and drive, go College Works Painting.
What’s your best advice for someone interested in entering your career field?
A lot of people are scared to take ownership. As a College Works Painting alumni, you will understand how important it is to assign ownership and responsibility to specific people for critical business tasks. Do not hesitate to ask to own a project that is in the spotlight. If it does well, you can leapfrog in your career. If it doesn’t do well, you’ll have to ask yourself why and figure out how to make sure you succeed with your next opportunity.
What’s your favorite memory from CW?
For one of our payroll events we went tubing down the river. It was during one of the rougher patches of my summer where I had a very difficult client. It was a great chance to kick back and relax. It was proof that sometimes you just need to change gears for a bit and you’ll be able to return to what you were doing in a much stronger capacity.
Last words of wisdom?
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.