Young Alumni Council member Bryan Postelnek ’12 ’13G graduated from Lehigh with a degree in bioengineering, minor in theatre, and a masters degree in technical entrepreneurship. Bryan lives in Bloomington, Indiana with his fiancee, Katie, and their dog, Abby. Bryan currently works as a product manager at Angie’s List in Indianapolis, Indiana. Bryan also plays board games every Sunday with a local board game group, is a play reader for the Bloomington Playwrights Project, and leads the ProdTech Culture Club at Angie’s List.
What about your Lehigh experience sparked your interest in what you do now?
The Integrated Product Development classes and the Master of Engineering program for Technical Entrepreneurship really launched me in this direction. It’s a perfect fit for the experience I gained in those classes and with that degree.
What are you most passionate about in your work?
I’m most passionate about using data to uncover problems our users have with our product and collaborating with my team (design, UX, analytics, business stakeholders) to design solutions to those problems. Then, I collaborate to design, develop, test, measure, learn from, and iterate upon solutions (big or small) to those same problems.
How did Lehigh help shape your professional success?
Lehigh helped to shape my professional success by providing me leadership opportunities and an environment to learn from my mistakes. During my undergrad, I was able to be an orientation leader, orientation coordinator, IPD senior peer mentor, sound designer for the Dept. of Theatre, peer educator in Break the Silence, and probably one or two more things that I can’t think of right now. I even co-founded my own club, Tossing Not Throwing, and led it to win Student Club/Organization of the Year Award in 2012. In my graduate program, I learned how to navigate the seas of starting my own business, which only helped to reinforce leadership and organizational concepts I learned in my undergrad.
What advice do you have for current students who are interested in your field?
Learn and grow from your experiences and try making something (even if it’s small) that people find valuable and want to prove that you know how to build a product that people find valuable and want, in order to prove
Do you have a role model or idol that you try to emulate? What is the greatest lesson you learned from that person?
I love Marty Cagan’s books on product management. I learned so much about the definition of my job and so many techniques that I employ in my current day-to-day.
If you couldn’t work in your current profession, what area would you work in?
I’d either be a teacher or work in the theatre (or both).
BONUS QUESTIONS
Which fan base do you enjoy teasing more: Lafayette fans or Duke fans?
Duke fans because it happened in my graduating year!
If you had to pick one Lehigh/Bethlehem “delicacy” to eat for the rest of your life (guilt-free), what would it be?
Any Goose sandwich made by Tony because everything he makes is with love (and you can taste it). Purely amazing.
What is your favorite Lehigh item that you own?
My Lehigh zipper-hoodie because I’ve had it forever (pictured above at Commencement 2017, supporting my friend who received his MBA).