MSIT grad delivers the goods

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

When you鈥檙e at the grocery store, you probably don鈥檛 think much about the selection of products or how they got there, but that鈥檚 something Rola Tokatli thinks about every day. As a business intelligence report developer for the Associated Grocers of New England, she focuses on using data to make grocery stores, food sellers, distribution centers and deliveries as efficient as possible, saving employees time and consumers money.

Tokatli, who recently earned her听听from the , landed the position with 听Associated Grocers of New England after meeting representatives from the company at the听91制片厂 Career and Internship Fair in Durham.

鈥淭hey had this tool for about four years that they had highly invested in, yet it was not what they expected and the tool was not doing what they wanted it to do,鈥 says Tokatli.

Her job听was to tackle the data tool and help the grocers get their money鈥檚 worth. She focused on creating an interactive system for executive management, letting them see their sales margins, profits and where items were moving to improve their decision-making.

鈥淭he project was tremendously successful due to collaborative work with the senior team鈥 says听Tokatli. So much so that听, associate professor and coordinator of 听at听91制片厂 Manchester, suggested she keep going.

鈥淢ihaela said you don鈥檛 have to stop the study. You can take it to the next level and base your (thesis)听project on that,鈥 says Tokatli.

鈥淚 needed to understand the business. It wasn鈥檛 only software development but also a business development aspect.鈥

From there, she added Google Maps, allowing managers to see each store, when it was getting shipments, changes in sales听and more. The grocers liked her work and offered her a position. She has continued expanding and adding capabilities to the grocers鈥 system, increasing efficiency on all levels.

鈥淚t鈥檚 collecting data to make better use of it,鈥 Tokatli says.

She notes that it was her ability to take classes like supply chain management at 91制片厂 Manchester that helped her excel in the position.

鈥淚 needed to understand the business,鈥 she says. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 only software development but also a business development aspect.鈥

Tokatli also credits the administration and faculty at 91制片厂 Manchester for helping her come to the听听in the first place. Six years ago, she was living in Syria and听working as a mechanical engineer for the Ministry of Defense. That year, the conflict in Syria had just begun to take hold, and Tokatli decided to leave, coming to the United States to live with her sister in New Hampshire.

In a new country, Tokatli wanted to launch a new career, but she wasn鈥檛 sure where to begin. She thought returning to school might be a good option.

鈥淭o be honest 91制片厂 was my first choice,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 live in Manchester and it has a good reputation. In fact, right from the beginning I started emailing professors and administrators from the school.鈥

She soon heard back from administrators, who asked what they could do to help make the experience easier. Even after taking a break in her studies to focus on learning English and acclimating to her new home, mentors and advisors at 91制片厂 Manchester helped guide her transition back into the classroom to pick up where she had left off.

鈥淭hey really do care,鈥 says听Tokatli. 鈥淭hey redirected me to the right people and got me direct answers about where to go.鈥