PROVO, Utah – Feb 7, 2019 – After working in Texas for a decade, BYU Information Systems alumna Rachelle Morris has come back to Utah as a Vice President, Client Advisor for the newest J.P. Morgan office.
“We bleed blue in our office,” Morris explains.
Located in Salt Lake City, Utah’s first J.P. Morgan Private Bank is directed by 9 BYU alumni. All but one team member are alumni of the BYU Marriott School of Business.
Rachelle Morris is responsible for overseeing private client relationships across the state of Utah and advises on a wide range of wealth planning matters including asset allocation, investments, credit, fiduciary services, and philanthropy.
Prior to joining J.P. Morgan, Morris was a Vice President at Goldman Sachs in its Private Wealth Management Division, advising and serving some of the wealthiest families in Texas.
Leaving Texas for J.P. Morgan
After a decade in Texas, Morris received a call that took her back to Utah.
“J.P. Morgan called me and let me know that they would be opening a full-fledged private bank. They asked if I would be interested in it and I was so excited to hear that.”
U.S. News has ranked Utah as 3rd best state in the U.S. It places first for fiscal stability and is among the top 3 for economy and education.
“Utah’s financial services industry has seen significant growth over the past 30 years as many national companies have discovered the strong economy,” the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development states.
Morris explains that despite the thriving financial industry, “Utah has been traditionally underserved in financial services.”
Seeing the ever-growing economy in Utah, Morris regards Utah as “a hotbed for entrepreneurship.”
“People are literally living the American dream in Utah, owning their own businesses,” Morris remarks on the inspiring buzz in the Beehive State.
“It’s a story of growth.”
“Attending BYU was a transformational experience.”
Before becoming a successful VP at Fortune Magazine’s highest ranked megabank, Rachelle Morris had her time as a fearful university student.
“When I first went to BYU, I was terrified of failure and losing my scholarship.”
But by the time she had finished her experience at BYU, her mindset had “completely shifted from fear of failure in life to growth and learning and challenging myself to be better.”
Morris continues, saying that the IS core helped her “learn things that [she] had no idea [she] was able to learn.”
“I feel like I accidentally became a business major.”
The BYU Marriott School of Business was the perfect place for Morris to learn how to become a true professional.
“The notion that we had to work on a team and solve a big problem for INTEX prepared me so well professionally.”
Morris appreciates the IS core as “a great incubator,” explaining her gratitude for professors and TAs that were able to guide her and her classmates if they were going off track.
“When you go out into the world, there are projects that are worth millions of dollars with large budgets,” Morris says, admitting that the program “required learning the nuances of people’s strengths and dealing with stressful situations.”
Morris acknowledges that the Information Systems program gives students a “chance as a university student to take the baby steps into the professional world.”
Finding Her Career Path
Rachelle Morris thought she’d work for a Big Four company as a Systems Consultant but her personal finance class with Professor Sudweeks changed the trajectory of her career.
“I enjoyed project management more than being the engineer. It is not necessarily the natural move out of the program,” Morris admits. “I really appreciated being in a technical major so I could experience both project management and engineering.”
Helping families with their wealth management became her goal.
Giving Back to Information Systems at BYU
Rachelle Morris was “honored” when asked to be a part of the Information Systems Advisory Board.
One of her passions is serving in the community by “helping girls and young women to realize that the world is [their] oyster.”
Her empowering advice to girls is applicable to any student:
“If you want to learn something, nothing is stopping you — [whether] you want to start a business or work in a company you thought you weren’t qualified for. Be an advocate for yourself.”
The BYU IS Department looks forward to seeing how Rachelle Morris can mentor students in their educational and professional development.
IS News seeks to give BYU IS students a better vision of how to build their future careers with help from our star alumni, faculty, and staff.