#WhitmanWatch: Daniel Strauss

Name: Daniel Strauss
Graduation Year: 2019
Major(s): Finance
Hometown: Hillsborough, New Jersey

If you’ve been to Syracuse University’s Martin J. Whitman School of Management, you’ve most likely had the pleasure of seeing Daniel Strauss ’19 in action. In his four-year tenure as a Whitman ambassador, Strauss has given hundreds of tours of the building to thousands of prospective students and their families. But Strauss’ contributions to the Whitman community go far beyond him serving as the face of Whitman during his tours.

Strauss has also worked as an intern with Whitman’s marketing team, creating content for the school’s web and social media accounts regarding the external business world as well as internal happenings at the school. Within the academic realm of Whitman, Strauss elected to be a finance major, and through his rigorous course load, he learned the art of dissecting financial statements to uncover the exciting business stories they tell. Anyone that knows Strauss knows just how deep his passion for these business topics run, and it is truly contagious.

While on campus, Strauss has also passed his time in Whitman as a member of the business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, joining the organization during his very first semester at Syracuse University.

“Surrounding yourself with a lot of people that have different interests and are willing to push you and push themselves is a really important experience,” Strauss said, adding, “DSP helped me figure out what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be.”

Strauss wasn’t speaking facetiously about the process of figuring out his goals.

Like many other Whitman students, Strauss’ academic and career goals underwent a major shift during his time in Whitman. After interning as a strategic initiatives intern at PVH for the Heritage Sportswear division during the summer after his sophomore year, Strauss realized that the traditional corporate business world just didn’t hold the career he was truly meant to pursue.

After a moment of courageous personal reflection and an artful career pivot, Strauss unlocked his true passion—journalism. Following this realization, he sprang into action to make his dream of becoming a business reporter a reality.

In December 2017, Strauss joined the staff of The Daily Orange (DO) as an assistant news digital editor and reporter. His duties included working four nights a week pitching graphics and visuals to enhance online story presentation, managing the DO news social media accounts on Twitter and Facebook, and helping create five explainer videos on university-relevant topics.

In May 2018, his role shifted to assistant copy editor and reporter. In his new role, Strauss worked two nights a week editing copy for grammar, accuracy and conformation to proper Associate Press style, while also helping to pitch stories. Overall, Strauss’ efforts helped the DO publish accurate, important stories covering university news, while also ushering the publication into a more modern digital and video-based format that aligns with current media consumption patterns.

In the end, Strauss’ extensive involvement in both the Whitman community and with the DO was rewarded with an internship as a business intern with the Washington Examiner during summer 2018 in Washington, D.C. Strauss reported on the impact of trade, anti-trust and regulatory policy on corporate earnings for Steel Dynamics, Nucor, United Airlines and Netflix. He also pitched weekly magazine stories at the intersection of business and politics while reporting two to three breaking news story daily. And if all these tasks weren’t enough to juggle, Strauss was simultaneously completing requirements that ultimately made him a graduate of the Institute on Political Journalism.

Strauss’ work ethic doesn’t stem from the accolades, positions or titles—it truly stems from his passion for helping people by uncovering the truth and telling stories about just how dynamic and exciting the world of business can be. Following his graduation in May 2019, Strauss began working in New York City as a markets fellow at Business Insider, where he reports on financial markets and public companies. Hard work aside, Strauss largely credits his success to his family, friends and Earl Grey tea.

When asked for a word of parting advice for incoming freshman at the Whitman School of Management, Strauss’ answer was simple, “Every month read a book from the library. Godspeed.”