It is truly an honor to announce the newest addition to the WAVE Advisory Board is Jamie Shah, President of Chem-Impex International. Jamie brings a wealth of experience and expertise from both the corporate and entrepreneurial world. Jamie earned her Bachelor of Business Administration degree with a double major in finance, investment and banking and Spanish at UW-Madison and her MBA degree at Chicago Booth. Prior to working within the family business, Jamie worked for Hyde Park Angels and Hyde Park Venture Partners, Goldman Sachs, and Google.
After numerous years with big corporations, Jamie wanted to be more involved in the operations of a small business. Wanting to create a bigger impact and be able to change the trajectory of businesses, Jamie got involved with the family business, Chem-Impex. “When you’re at a large company, your focus is really narrow. Because your focus is so narrow you don’t get to see the whole system. You may inadvertently be creating negative externalities and may be creating a less efficient system when you are focusing on a too small part of the system.”
At Chem-Impex she helps facilitate drug discovery-supporting major pharmaceutical companies (i.e. Pfizer, Moderna, Ely Lilly) and smaller university labs (including UW-Madison’s Chemistry department!). These companies and labs alike are looking to find major breakthroughs, including curing cancer, solving neurological challenges, and other illnesses. As a distributor and manufacturer of high purity laboratory chemicals, Chem-Impex is honored to support these pharmaceutical companies in their mission. Jamie is proud to stand behind this mission, announcing: “You name the challenge and people have found our products to be a way of application for them!” This business, started by her father, has grown over the last 42 years into a multi-million dollar organization and preferred supplier to companies around the world. Jamie notes that she was always inspired by her dad who had started a business when he had nothing, joining him in their work alongside her twin sister, Jessica.
Coming back to UW-Madison, Jamie emphasizes the unique culture and learning environment that sets the University apart. Commending UW-Madison on its values, she expresses, “I feel like UW does a great job teaching tactical and real skills to get you that first job. I think the sense of humility that students at UW have is unlike any other place. There is no chip on your shoulder. Most people are coming to the University with this Midwest mentality of just being hardworking and friendly, and that is the best thing that can serve you when starting your career. I think it really prepared me well for investment banking.” Acknowledging the University’s role in preparing her in her entrepreneurial journey, Jamie strives to serve students with knowledge, telling them not to overlook entrepreneurship. As she joins the WAVE advisory board, she is eager to give back and support the next generation of entrepreneurs.
“I am so excited about the entrepreneurship program at UW and I’m excited to advocate for voices that may not be heard as much, whether it is in family business, women, or people of color. I feel like the university has given me so much and I’m excited to give back to it.”
Categories: