You’ve heard managers say it’s tough to find good help these days. The gems are out there though, just waiting for a chance to succeed. The Andriole Investment Management Group of New Haven, Connecticut scored some truly outstanding office help when they discovered Erin Laura. He’s an intern assigned important analytical tasks rather than photocopying and grunt work. This young man has won the respect of his managers and other coworkers at the wealth management firm within Prudential Securities.

Doug Munson is Erin’s boss and he knew he had a winner when they first talked about a possible internship. “What impressed me was his knowledge base, and his willingness to learn, and incredible drive. Plus he is a great guy. He’s got a wonderful sense of humor, and he integrates well with all ages and social backgrounds. Erin will succeed in whatever he wants to accomplish. He has unparalleled drive, which makes him special. Anyone Erin is around becomes better in his presence. He has forced us to become better.”

Charles Andriole, the top executive at the firm, recalls the reaction at the end of Erin’s first day there in the summer of 2001. “We couldn't wait to get him back the following day. He integrates so well, he is comfortable, confident, diligent, passionate, warm, funny, and endearing... He’s everything you would hope to be yourself or want your own children to be. He is a treasure.”

Those are two ringing endorsements for a college student. And with the high-powered executives at this back, you might think Erin’s ascension up the corporate ladder should be a piece of cake. But consider the fact that Erin is legally blind, and you begin to see that it’s his remarkable determination carrying him through life.

Andriole respects Erin’s drive. “Erin has learned over the years to conquer his disability. He tries harder, is probably more diligent, concentrates more, is forward thinking and thrives. Erin has failed over and over in his life, and that is why he succeeds.”

Laura lost 90 percent of his vision five years ago due to Hodgkin's disease, which he has battled since he was a child. The 25 year old has been determined ever since this battle began.

“On the day the doctor’s told me that my vision would not return, and that I may lose all of my vision, I remember trying not to let myself get sidetracked by the horrific news. I could have easily just unraveled and gradually moved farther away from trying to achieve the things that I want out of life. Instead of losing my focus, I focused not on losing my vision, but on how I could do what I wanted, and be whom I wanted without vision. I attribute the majority of whatever success I have achieved thus far to determination.”

Laura had confidence that he could find a way to achieve his goals despite his disability. He knew what he wanted, and he’d wanted it since he was a little boy.

”I have wanted to work in the equity markets since I was a child. I became interested in the subject in the fourth grade. The desire to be a portfolio manager was a natural manifestation of my fascination with the subject. I also see portfolio management as an opportunity to do something that I consider beneficial for society. Helping people with their noble goals of saving for retirement, a child’s education, and growing their money for the family member who may not be able to care for themselves independently, are objectives that I would be proud to help people with.”

Laura does technical analysis at Prudential. He monitors stocks his bosses have in various portfolios. He also researches stocks in which his company is considering investing. He uses assistive technology to help him perform to his highest levels.

“I still have a bit of peripheral vision left in my right eye, so I use a combination of talking software to operate my computer and ‘read’ and an extremely high-powered magnifier to observe charts and graphs, as the software cannot verbally interpret such data. The software is a screen reader, which makes virtually any program within windows and windows itself ‘talk’. The other piece of talking software is called optical character recognition software, and it is used in conjunction with a flat bed scanner. I scan typed material into it, and the software converts it to text, which it then outputs to me via a synthesized voice. It’s a far cry from reading, but it gets the job done.”

Laura hopes more companies will hire workers with disabilities and give them a chance to succeed. He knows many managers have concerns about the costs of assistive technology and accommodating some workers. Laura believes those concerns are often overestimated.

“When I interviewed with Prudential, the only accommodation I asked for was a desk. I had already received several thousand dollars of computer software and hardware from the state of Connecticut, and Prudential did not have to purchase anything for me to work there. It is simply a misconception that a business must pay for all of a disabled person’s accommodations out of pocket. We have all heard of the horror stories on the nightly news about particular cases in which a disabled person’s costly accommodations became a financial hardship for the business to bear. These stories are in the minority, and I urge employers to find that out for themselves, because the disabled workers I have known have made their employers very happy. I think that many disabled people share the same mind set that I have. Many of us are aware that we have to excel in what we do to get the same degree of credibility as an equivalently talented able-bodied person. This helps foster a work ethic that makes some disabled people excellent employees.”

Erin’s boss, Doug Munson agrees. “I think it would be a foolish mistake not to hire someone due to a few extra dollars for technology. What we have spent on Erin has come back ten-fold.”

Managers at the company say they’ve worked hard to make Erin’s internship a positive learning experience rather than a time to do simple office chores. Andriole points out, “Erin's responsibilities include monitoring our Group's universe of stocks technically. He makes Buy, Sell and Hold recommendations to us and must be prepared to defend his position. He is working with me developing fundamental screening criteria for use in our stock selection process. We are now integrating him into our marketing process. All of us have new business responsibilities and Erin is no different.”

Laura appreciates the support from management, but he knows there are still challenges ahead in his career. “I think the biggest challenge is to get people to take me seriously. My bosses at Prudential have been fantastic, kind, and encouraging, but I know that many people will think I cannot achieve the professional goals that I have set for myself. I try to counter them by outdoing others. I know that I must be better than my peers just to get the same job, and I put my best effort into whatever chance I get to prove myself. When someone asks me to do something, the product is what it is, regardless of who created it and what deficiencies they had. Strong work stands on its own.”

Erin says his biggest rewards are a stimulating office environment and some great people. “They are happy, kind, fun, and intelligent people, and we have a great time nearly every day. I rarely laugh as hard as when I am at work. They have created a fantastic and unusual ambiance at work, that combines a good deal of serious work that is peppered with lighthearted humor and plenty of laughs throughout the day.”

The future Wall Street guru has many interests outside the office too. Laura loves music. He listens to early European vocal music, jazz and modern international music. He also plays the guitar. Erin also enjoys Medieval art and architecture as well as baroque art and architecture.”

Laura is planning for his future, continuing with his college classes and thinking about the education he’ll need to become a portfolio manager. Laura already has a full time job waiting for him at the firm when he graduates. He’s received some good advice on mapping out a career plan.

“My immediate future career plans include studying for the CMT (chartered market technician), which is a designation for technical analysts. I had the pleasure of meeting with Ralph Acampora, Prudential’s highest profile technician, in December of last year. He suggested that I receive this certification, and I have filled out the requisite paperwork to begin the process.”

Munson believes his intern will succeed. “Erin is unique...He has qualities that are very rare in today's society...Never have I seen desire to accomplish a dream...The sacrifices he has made to make these dreams possible...And the attitude that won't let him quit.”

Laura believes he has work to do outside of the office too. He believes there’s still some progress to be made within our society on how people with disabilities are perceived and treated.

“I feel like I have a responsibility to disabled people. I am not the sort of person who is likely to boycott businesses that are notorious for not hiring disabled people, or anything like that. My style is much more passive. Ideally, the manner in which I help improve the lot of disabled people would come from people’s perception of me. I believe that if people see me achieve the goals that are important and know a little about the things I use to do what everyone else does, then that may help reduce some of the stigma and misconceptions of disabled people everywhere.”