2016 Best MBAs: Stephen de Man, University of Texas
University of Texas, McCombs School of Business
“The degree to which my peers will go to help a fellow classmate still amazes me. I’ll never forget studying for my first accounting exam and having study group mates joined by students I hadn’t even met yet sitting down with me to walk me through concepts and practice problems. Everywhere I turned there was a support and someone willing to make sure I could be successful.”
Age: 33
Hometown: I was born in Montreal, but I grew up in Houston, Texas and Cincinnati, Ohio.
Education: Georgetown University, BA in American Studies; Stanford University Graduate School of Education, MA in Policy, Organization, Leadership Studies (POLS)
Where did you work before enrolling in business school? I was with Teach For America for eight years. First as an eighth grade US History teacher in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas and then on staff as a Recruiter and Director of Alumni Affairs.
Where did you intern during the summer of 2015? Last Spring, David Booth was a guest speaker in our corporate governance class. Inspired by his story and approach to investing, I took a chance and asked his recruiter at the event if they had any internships still available. They took a chance on me and I interned at the investment firm, Dimensional Fund Advisors in Austin, Texas.
Where will you be working after graduation? I had a terrific experience at Dimensional and I’m excited to return as a Senior Associate on the Financial Advisor Services team.
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School While in school, I led a local educational advocacy organization, Austin Kids First. We raise awareness around school board elections, which often go unnoticed on the ballot, despite being immensely important for our community. We helped find and support community leaders who focused on improving educational outcomes for all kids in Austin. As the Executive Director, I led our fundraising, volunteer management, and strategic direction. I involved the University of Texas community, working with alumni, professors and students to successfully support five candidates for the Austin school board.
I am a member of the McCombs Admissions Committee. I serve as an ambassador to the program and conduct prospective student interviews.
As a result of my community work and leadership roles while in business school, I was inducted into the Friar Society-the oldest honor society at the University of Texas. It is a university wide organization with the purpose of recognizing students who have made a significant contribution to the University of Texas.
Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? Running an advocacy organization during an election season while in business school required several hats. I would go from class to a fundraising meeting, to a community forum and then to a school board meeting. I was taking classes on marketing, accounting, and finance while simultaneously making decisions for our organization that involved our promotion, bookkeeping, and our strategic direction. On weekends I was organizing block walkers, using tools from operations to eliminate the bottlenecks by creating the most efficient ways to knock on doors as we talked to voters. Every aspect of leading Austin Kids First could be tied to a class or lesson from school. At the end of the election, five of our candidates were selected to serve as school board members. It was a team and community effort and I’m incredibly grateful for the support of the UT community and the skills I developed from our MBA program.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? I am most proud of my former students who are now teachers. I have at least four who are now teaching, including two who joined Teach For America to return to the Rio Grande Valley and one who is teaching 8th grade US history in the same community where I was his 8th grade US history teacher. This same student went on a class trip to DC and this past February he was asked back to DC, to speak before 15,000 people in the same arena we attend twelve years ago. Nothing is more rewarding than seeing I made a difference in the lives of my students. Now they are doing the same for their kids.
Favorite MBA Courses? I loved my management courses: Power & Politics with Prof. Burris, Leading People with Prof. Martens, and Advocacy with Prof. Daly. I learned the most from my Analysis of Markets class with Prof Henderson.
Why did you choose this business school? The people, the city and the community. What makes McCombs students stand out is the embodiment of the motto, “Leadership is Earned.” You don’t find a sense of entitlement amongst our student body; we work hard and support each other. Additionally, Austin as a city is the perfect place to go to school—an endless array of activities around the lake and campus, coupled with a tremendous live music scene and night life. UT has student orgs, classes and programs for whatever fits your fancy.
What did you enjoy most about business school Without a doubt, it was the people and the classes. It was the people because they pushed me to be a better version of myself and the classes because I learned valuable skills and new ways of thinking critically.
What is the biggest lesson you gained from business school? You don’t need to always know the answers, but it helps knowing who you can turn to when looking for the answer.
What was the hardest part of business school? My top 3 hardest parts:
Advanced Financial Accounting- enough said. Learning a new language. Finance, operations, marketing and accounting all have their own nomenclature. Just being comfortable with the grammar of business in a variety of subjects was particularly challenging for this liberal arts major. FOMO- it is real. There are so many fun and interesting people that I still feel like I’m always missing out on an amazing adventure or opportunity. Learning that it is ok to say no or not go to everything is a real challenge and one that I still wrestle with.What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school? Come visit! Especially with our new building which will be completed next year, McCombs will have a fresh new look. Talk to students, staff and alumni. Grab some BBQ or queso, listen to some live music, go paddle boarding around the lake, and you’ll see few places compare to ATX.
“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I was doing financial book keeping and filings for our organization and I didn’t understand the basics of debits and credits.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…still working in the educational advocacy space, trying to pull in more MBAs and others into the arena.”
Which executive or entrepreneur do you most admire? Wendy Kopp, the founder of Teach For America and David Booth, the founder and CEO of Dimensional Fund Advisors. Both started and grew organizations from nothing that now have a profound impact on others in their respective industries. They challenged the status quo, used academic research as a foundation upon which to build their organizations, and are deeply mission driven.
What are your long-term professional goals? I’d love to be in public service. Aiming high—the State Commissioner of Education, or a member of the State Board of Education, or serving on my local school board. I’ll be applying the teaching/nonprofit/advocacy skills I used before my MBA with my quantitative/management/analytical skills developed during and post MBA.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? My 8th grade US history teacher, Mr. Taft and my high school civics teacher, Mr. Reger. They instilled in me a passion for learning, teaching, and civic participation. They inspired me to be a teacher in the hopes of making a similar impact on my students.
In academia it was Dean Cloke, Professor McKeown, Dr. Porterfield, Paul Begala and Paul Brest—they were thoughtful mentors who taught me to think critically and write clearly.
I want to thank my friends and family for providing encouragement, support and love throughout the journey.
Fun fact about yourself: I have a pocket Constitution that I’ve carried with me since high school. I get it signed by interesting people I’ve meet—included in the mix are seven Supreme Court Justices, two US Presidents and a litany of sports and political figures. My latest was Missy Elliot during SXSW.
Favorite book: Anything by Robert Caro
Favorite movie: The Mission (Robert DeNiro, Jeremy Irons and Liam Neeson as Jesuit priests in South America tackling colonialism—powerful story and amazing sound track)
Favorite musical performer: George Strait
Favorite television show: Tie between The Wire, for its complex characters and storylines, and Friday Night Lights, even for the non-Texans out there it pulls on the heartstrings and it’s more about family than football.
Favorite vacation spot: Buenos Aires, Argentina. My father grew up there and I have the warmest Tio, Tia and primos who roll out the red carpet upon arrival.
Hobbies? In between classes I like to run over to the gym on campus and get in a game or two of Ping-Pong. I also run an international push-up challenge twice a year involving a really intense shared spreadsheet and over one hundred participants from around the globe.
What made Stephen such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?
“Stephen de Man embodies our Texas MBA motto…”Where Leadership is Earned.” When you first meet Stephen de Man, it is likely that you will discover his passion…for history, for teaching and for civic leadership. You may also find out in that first conversation, as I did, that he carries a pocket Constitution wherever he goes and that he has had many signed by Supreme Court Justices, US presidents and members of Congress. He may tell you that he carries it because it reminds him how grateful he is to live in a country with the liberties and structure that we have here in the United States. He may tell you that one day he hopes to work as a leader in education, as the State Commissioner for Education or a member of the State Board of Education. And after that first conversation, it is likely that you will believe that it is not a matter of whether he will reach his goals, as much as when he will reach them.
Stephen’s professional career began as a dedicated eighth grade teacher in rural south Texas through Teach for America. To find out how inspirational he was as a middle school teacher and mentor, you need only here the moving journey of one of his students, who was inspired by Stephen’s dedication and support, to become a teacher himself.
Stephen is also a storyteller. At Orientation last year, he had the entire first year class in rapt attention as he told them a story about meeting Sandra Day O’Connor for the first time to kick off our Orientation “What’s Your Story” program, inspired by some of Stephen’s ideas about finding out more about individual classmates during the MBA journey.
Stephen de Man wants to continue to be a change agent in education, in Texas and beyond. While getting his MBA and preparing to work at Dimensional Fund Advisors as a Senior Associate, he also runs a non-profit called Austin Kids First, a local, non-partisan group that believes every kid in Austin deserves access to quality public schools. Stephen has used the lessons in business school to run this civic organization that works to ensure excellence and equity in education in Austin. As a result of his community work and leadership roles in the MBA program, Stephen was inducted into the Friar Society, the oldest honor society at the University of Texas. It is a university-wide organization with the purpose of recognizing students who have made a significant contribution to the University of Texas.” — Tina Mabley, Assistant Dean, Full-time MBA Program, McCombs School of Business, University of Texas at Austin
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2019: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Stephen de Man, University of Texas appeared first on Poets and Quants.
Michigan State University, Broad College of Business
“Tyler has been a difference-maker ever since his arrival at Broad…the total package. Great leader, teammate, and steward of the program.”
Age: 24
Hometown: Spring Lake, MI
Education: Central Michigan University – Sport Management
Where did you work before enrolling in business school? A number of start-up companies while in undergrad (including companies in logistics, demolition, PEO Services and Medical Devices)
Where did you intern during the summer of 2015? Spectrum Health Hospital System- Contracting Intern
Where will you be working after graduation? Raytheon- Supply Chain Leadership Development Program
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School Appointed as a Team Advisor (a top student in leadership), as a presentation coach (a top student for communication skills) and as the President of our Finance Association along with my graduate assistant position with the Entrepreneurship Institute on campus.
Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? Being a team advisor for this academic year was a great opportunity. Four people in our program get the opportunity to “advise” the first years as they navigate through their first semester with their team (that they are assigned to for the year). Being able to learn how different individuals come together in a team to form different strategies for success was extremely insightful. This is an experience that I will take long into my professional career of establishing and working in teams.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? I am most proud of my contributions to the start-ups that I have been working on throughout the program. I am currently working on two, one in the energy industry and another in autonomous technologies. The work that I helped with has resulted in the autonomous technologies company to be awarded an SBIR grant through the military and being a part of the company has given me a lot of opportunities to learn more about the engineering side of things.
Favorite MBA Courses? Corporate Financial Strategies, Leadership/Teamwork and Supply Chain Applications
Why did you choose this business school? The location and quality of the program, I felt I could get a well-balanced education. The family atmosphere both with the staff and the students were a major draw as well.
What did you enjoy most about business school? The challenges and experiences gained from working with so many different people with different backgrounds. I’ve learned a lot about different people and cultures and how those differences effect teamwork in business.
What is the biggest lesson you gained from business school? There are tradeoffs with everything and understanding what the reaction to a decision will be is the key to making the right strategic moves.
What was the most surprising thing about business school? The extensive diversity of backgrounds was a pleasant surprise. I wanted to get an MBA for the opportunity to learn from people that had different experiences than I did and the diversity of backgrounds in our program widely exceeded my expectations.
What was the hardest part of business school? Learning a “new level” of time management. I had previously worked for multiple employers/organizations at one time, so I thought that I knew how to manage my time until I started this program. Balancing all of the competing priorities in the program with extracurricular opportunities and academics was difficult enough, but then making sure to balance that with personal life was definitely an adjustment.
What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school? Begin with the end in mind. Identifying the appropriate MBA program for you does not only come down to rankings, but look where graduates are going and really see if that’s where you want to be. Michigan State was the best choice I could have made, but I also realize that it is not the best choice for everyone.
“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I realized that I had an opportunity to learn from many people with different backgrounds while being challenged in the classroom and professionally.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…working in finance for small businesses in West Michigan.”
What are your long-term professional goals? I really enjoy the challenges related to working with people and thinking strategically, so I would like to be in an executive level management position in a small or large business.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? My parents taught me an excellent balance of hard work and knowing that there is more to life than work. Through that perspective, I have been able to focus on finding what I enjoy and understanding the risks to decisions I have made. And of course, my fiancé has helped me through this MBA program. She really encouraged me through all of the times that I felt like I had taken on too much and has been a major factor in my success since we met.
Fun fact about yourself: I ran my first marathon (without training) and went skydiving in the same month.
Favorite books: Business by the Book by Larry Burkett, Give and Take by Adam Grant and Dodging Extinction by Anthony Barnosky
Favorite movie: Goodwill Hunting
Favorite musical performer: Needtobreathe
Favorite television show: House of Cards
Favorite vacation spot: The family cabin (Cheboygan, MI)
Hobbies? I enjoy working with start-ups, reading and working out.
What made Tyler such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?
“Tyler has been a difference-maker ever since his arrival at Broad. He has been our #1 student mentor and advocate in financial matters, both academically and professionally. As a first year student, his efforts were instrumental in developing and conducting the ACG cup on campus and as the #2 in the student finance organization.
In his second year, he set the Broad MBA program on fire. Through his work with the Broad College Institute for Entrepreneurship, he helped inspire and create a 3-day innovation/entrepreneurship workshop that garnered the highest seminar course evaluations in the Broad MBA in 3 years! Although our overall finance enrollment has dipped, Tyler’s efforts have added tremendous value in the professional development of our student finance group. Through his leadership, the finance organization increased their program offerings to students, both on-campus and on professional treks, 200%. Tyler is amongst the top 5% of students in the Broad MBA because he is the total package. Great leader, teammate, and steward of the program.” –Wayne Hutchison, Director, Academic and Program Services, Broad MBA
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2016: THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Tyler Erhorn, Michigan State appeared first on Poets and Quants.
Wisconsin School of Business
“A dreamer and a doer” known for her passion and her focus on “adding value to people’s lives each and every day.”
Age: 39
Hometown: New Berlin, WI
Education:
Lund University, Masters in South Asian Studies
Gonzaga University, Bachelors – Political Science
Where did you work before enrolling in business school? Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking (Asia, MENA, Europe team) at the U.S. Dept of Labor
Where did you intern during the summer of 2015? Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Neenah, WI
Where will you be working after graduation? I’ll be doing multiple things. I’ll be working full-time as an Associate Brand Manager at the Kimberly-Clark Corporation while continuing to work as CEO & Co-Founder of Admit Sensei. I also work part-time during the football season as a Game Day Operations Specialist for Zebra Technologies at Lambeau Field.
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School:
Co-President, Net Impact
President, Entrepreneurship Association
Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? I’m proudest of the company I co-founded, Admit Sensei, getting accepted into gBETA a pre-seed accelerator operated by Gener8tor – a top 15 accelerator. I came up with the idea of Admit Sensei a year ago. As a career changer and older MBA applicant with aspirations of starting my own business, I read article after article that I was too old to apply to full-time MBA programs. I would have given anything to have spoken to someone like me currently in business school. Admit Sensei solves this problem by enabling MBA applicants to find a current student MBA student with a similar background who they can relate to. By leveraging the experience of current MBA students, we can provide relatable and personalized admissions advice that everyone can afford. Throughout the MBA program, I’ve been able to build the Admit Sensei team and our business model. I’m excited that gBETA believes in my company and is providing mentorship and resources to help us continue to develop Admit Sensei.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? I’m most proud of the child labor project that I helped design in Burma / Myanmar. In Burma, we had the unique opportunity to incorporate child labor policies and programs during the early stages of the government reforms and have the chance of preventing problems rather than reacting to problems. The project is collecting data and information that has never been collected in the country while also building local capacity to improve education and prevent child labor at the community level. As the country continues to rapidly change (most notably electing its first civilian president in over 53 years), I believe that this project will have a lasting impact on the lives of millions of children.
Favorite MBA Courses? WAVE – Weinert Applied Ventures in Entrepreneurship (putting the lean startup principles to work through starting your own venture), Applied Learning (different companies come in each weak to give us a problem to solve), Strategy
Why did you choose this business school? I chose the Wisconsin School of Business for three reasons. First, I chose it because of its specialization model. I believed that my training in Brand Management would provide me with the skills that I would need to run my own business. Second, I chose the program for its involved and esteemed advisory board of 25+ C-Suite Marketing Professionals. Where else would I have the opportunity to run business ideas over dinner with Scott Cook (founder of Intuit) or run through career decisions with Shawn Dennis, the head of brand development at Dream Works. Finally, I chose Wisconsin for its high return on investment. Wisconsin was able to offer me a generous funding package which gave me the freedom to pursue my dreams rather than pursuing what would pay off my debt.
What did you enjoy most about business school? My classmates. I love having classmates with completely different backgrounds than myself. I had been in a bubble during my professional career, where many of my friends had similar careers, similar life experiences, and similar political leanings. I’ve been able to learn tremendously from my classmates varied experiences, their different (and many times) opposing viewpoints, and have always had their continuous support.
What was the most surprising thing about business school? How fast it all goes by. Savor every second of it.
What was the hardest part of business school? Saying ‘No.’ There are so many amazing opportunities and experiences available to you during business school – and you’ll want to do them all. Prioritizing what I wanted to experience and letting other opportunities go was extremely difficult, but is a necessity.
What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school? Wisconsin has a very unique specialization model and you should be clear about why you want to pursue a particular specialization and what type of company you’d like to work for. We’re a small program (100 students in each class) and you’ll get to know everyone in your class. Make sure to explain what you’ll be able to contribute to that class. Finally, buy a good winter coat.
“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I continued to see vocational training programs that didn’t lead to gainful employment. I knew the impact that sustainable jobs had in communities and how they enabled families to make their own life decisions. After having worked in the nonprofit and govt. sectors, I wanted to see what impact I could make through business and wanted to challenge myself to create sustainable livelihoods in the future.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…navigating government bureaucracy and sitting in my former cube researching what types of hazardous work children are currently engaged in throughout Asia.”
What are your long-term professional goals? To start a social enterprise that revolutionizes how migrant laborers find jobs and relocate. My company would assist migrant laborers in finding good, safe jobs in other communities or other countries without paying tens of thousands of dollars to a scrupulous middle man.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? My parents. They’re the hardest working people I know and have always supported me in whatever I’ve done – no matter how much they didn’t understand what I was doing or where I’d be going to next. If I was happy, they were happy. I left a very stable government job at the age of 37 to start something new from scratch. Some may have thought it was crazy but they never once second guessed my decision.
Fun fact about yourself: When I was a little girl, I dreamt of being the first female pitcher in major league baseball. I’ve traveled to 65+ countries and once met Prince Charles. I spent three months living with former child soldiers in Sri Lanka.
Favorite book: The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Favorite movie: Hoop Dreams
Favorite musical performer: Stevie Wonder
Favorite television show: House of Cards
Favorite vacation spot: Florence, Italy
Hobbies? Arts Metal, Photography, Cycling, Traveling, Watching the Green Bay Packers
What made Angela Peltzer such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?
“A deep desire to learn, a commitment to innovation and a focus toward making the world a better place drives Angie Peltzer. Most notably, her leadership at the Wisconsin School of Business in Net Impact, the WSB Entrepreneurship Association and as campus director for the HULT Prize have made Angie an invaluable addition to the Class of 2016.
“The Hult Prize is the largest social innovation competition in the world and brings together the brightest college and university students from around the globe to focus on solving one of the world’s key social challenges and awards US$1,000,000 in start-up capital to winner.” In fall 2015, Angie spearheaded the efforts at UW-Madison, collaborating with many departments and colleges and increased the number of applications for the local competition, coordinated logistics, recruited judges and supported the entire process start to finish. While in her first year, Angie and her team participated in the competition and were regional chapter finalists. She was captain of the team Shiksha Shakti, which focused on bringing innovative early childhood education to poor rural areas. The team placed in the top 30 of 20,000 entrants.
Angie is co-president of the Wisconsin School of Business Net Impact Board and also serves as the WSB Entrepreneurship Association President. Her desire for continuous improvement and collaboration has led to new events and expanded participation in both groups. While striving to do well academically, she volunteered numerous hours without seeking public recognition. Beyond the classroom and the traditional internship (which she performed so well at Kimberly Clark that she received an offer), Angie has founded Admit Sensei, an online portal that connects MBA applicants with current MBA students, who have similar backgrounds and already attend the applicants desired school. It offers relatable, affordable, and personalized admissions advice. Admit Sensei is a part of gBETA.
Angie has been a perfect fit with the culture at the Wisconsin School of Business. She is skilled, hard-working, passionate and focused on adding value to people’s lives each and every day. She has been willing to go the extra mile when a classmate needs help or a prospective student desires a conversation. She readily accepted the opportunity to provide an introduction for her former boss, Secretary of Labor, Thomas E. Perez, during his visit to campus and participation in the M. Keith Weikel Leadership Speaker Series and did a fantastic job.
Her fellow classmates rave about her passion, her ability to manage her time and her contributions toward making their experience better. Angie is a dreamer and a doer! For all that she has done, I am grateful.” — Blair Sanford, Assistant Dean Wisconsin MBA, University of Wisconsin-Madison
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2016: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Angie Peltzer, Wisconsin appeared first on Poets and Quants.
Pre-MBA students networking with executives at Poets&Quants preMBA Networking Festival 2016
In Part I of this series, we discussed the importance of developing your network before you apply for your MBA. The networking skills that you’ve developed prior to your MBA application don’t stop once you’ve been accepted, though. In fact, the period between acceptance and enrollment is a critical time for setting yourself up for success during and after your MBA.
It’s no secret that MBA students come from a diverse range of backgrounds, and are equally varied with respect to the depth of their pre-MBA networks. You’ll likely be competing with some of your classmates for job opportunities, and there’s a harsh truth that who you know is sometimes as important as what you know. This is why building a strong network is a must.
The focus this week, then, will be on people, people, and people! The first months in your MBA program will be a whirlwind of managing a very heavy course-load along with a hectic recruiting schedule, so you will want to take every step you can now to strengthen your network. Whether you’ll be exploring on-campus or off-campus recruiting opportunities, your networking will involve encounters with three main groups of individuals: pre-MBA colleagues, predecessors, and industry professionals.
Pre-MBA Colleagues: They Drive You to Be Better
An unavoidable reality of MBA programs is that you will be building close relationships with the same people whom you compete against for highly-valued internships and full-time employment. If this environment wasn’t part of your pre-MBA experience, you need to prepare for it now. That being said, competition can be a great way to learn and grow. Some tension is unavoidable but it can be managed, and you will rely upon your MBA colleagues as they will rely upon you. After all, the quality of an MBA program is only as good as the people involved.
With this in mind, it’s best you begin networking with people in similar positions to you before you enter the MBA program. Whether you’re hoping to switch careers or to advance your existing one, networking with your pre-MBA colleagues will help you gain perspective on where your life may be heading. Each MBA class is different because the business world is a dynamic place. Networking with your pre-MBA colleagues can help you keep a pulse on the business environment while also serving as a platform for you to share your knowledge and insights. Remember, networking is about relationships: you need to put in as much as you hope to get out. Don’t be a networking parasite.
While networking with your future classmates can help you focus your career interests, it’s also just a great way to meet future friends and colleagues. You will be spending a lot of time with these people over the next few years, so why not get to know them sooner rather than later. Take advantage of all the networking opportunities that arise and keep a long-term strategic vision in mind. Before I began my MBA, I had considered management consulting but I didn’t know what that entailed. Many of the larger firms host information and networking events where you can network with incoming MBAs who have similar career interests—this can help you understand the industry and it’s also a great way to meet new people in similar situations. Poets & Quants is hosting a broader networking event at the beginning of May—this is a great opportunity for you to network with pre-MBA colleagues and professionals across multiple industries. Keep an open mind about future career paths since you never know what might spark your interest.
Predecessors: Learning from the Past
While networking with your contemporaries will be critically important, don’t lose sight of those who have been there before: current and recent MBA graduates. These individuals are a wealth of knowledge related to both MBA academics and the strategy of career recruiting. Since recruiting will more or less begin on Day 1 of your MBA, connecting with those who have recently gone through the process is invaluable.
If you don’t know where to begin, search your existing network to see if there are any appropriate connections to be made and also leverage the MBA program you’re about to enroll in. When you are networking with these individuals, the conversation will likely be fairly casual, but be sure to identify a few objectives and have a clear self-narrative of where you’ve been and what you’re considering post-MBA to help them understand you better.
Speaking frankly, this is something I didn’t do as well pre-MBA. For instance, I didn’t know anybody from the investment banking world pre-MBA. Since investment banking recruiting begins so early and I didn’t do much pre-MBA networking with current and recent graduates to understand it better, I felt like I had started at a disadvantage. Even if you aren’t interested in banking, the same principle applies to most if not all industries, regardless of whether you’re looking at on-campus or off-campus recruiting. Your predecessors can help you better understand the opportunities ahead of you, because they were once in your shoes.
Career Professionals: Laying the Foundation for Your Career
After starting your MBA, you will try to differentiate yourself from hundreds of classmates for a limited audience at recruiting events. While you can always ask general questions about these individuals’ experiences, it’s even more impressive if you have done your homework beforehand and can ask more informed questions.
This is where pre-MBA networking with career professionals comes in. You can look at these individuals as a resource for information generally about careers post-MBA, for information specifically about careers in a particular industry, and even as a potential post-MBA employer. In any case, this part of your network can help educate you about your career options in ways that can shape your focus as well as provide some very unique insights that will help set you apart from the crowd.
Industry professionals are very busy people, but you’ll find that if you’re respectful of their time and are genuinely interested, many of them will do what they can to make even a narrow window available to you. However, keep in mind that while networking with these individuals can yield significant rewards, it also comes with increased risk if you’re sloppy with your networking. Don’t put yourself in a position where they may not like you afterwards, especially if you don’t know them very well. These individuals are well advanced in their careers with extensive professional networks—just as they may open opportunities to you, they can also close the door on them. Be mindful of your personal and professional reputation at every networking event and encounter, especially when interacting with senior industry professionals.
As MBA programs increasingly emphasize the importance of pre-MBA recruiting events, it behooves you to take pre-MBA networking opportunities very seriously. Just as you learned when applying for your MBA, your MBA path started long before you ever began assembling your application. Think of your MBA career and the need to network in a similar way.
Stay tuned as we conclude our Network to Net Worth series in Part III.
Jason Bodewitz is the Founder & CEO of WyseGyde, an MBA Admissions Consulting Firm.
The post Network to Net Worth, Part II: Pre-MBA Networking appeared first on Poets and Quants.
Olin Business School, Washington University in St. Louis
Tech entrepreneur goes from being nervous to speak in class to being elected as the Student Marshal at graduation.
Age: 29
Hometown: Moshav Beit Herut, Israel.
Undergraduate School and Degree: Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, B.A. degree in Computer Science.
Where did you work before enrolling in business school?
Team leader and warrior in the Israeli Navy Special Forces (equivalent to the US Navy Unit “Seal Team 6”). Software developer engineer at Microsoft R&D center, Herzliya, Israel.Where did you intern during the summer of 2015? I did not do a summer internship during the summer of 2015. I worked full-time on my startup, Quadzilla, a safe online classifieds platform for university students.
Where will you be working after graduation? Product manager at Google, Mountain View, CA.
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School:
Selected as a Student Marshal, the top graduating student in the MBA program. Helped undergraduate and graduate students to enhance their business plans, presentations, and one-line pitches for their start-ups.Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? I am most proud of my experience and progress with my startup, Quadzilla. In less than a year, I was able to achieve the following:
Define and build a web application in which university students can buy and sell used goods and find roommates, sublets, and apartments. Without spending money, I was able to get 1,300 Washington University students to sign up and post more than 600 items. Partnered with UberX and four local businesses, which provided coupons and gift-cards. Hired and managed three full-time unpaid student interns during the summer of 2015. Qualified as a finalist in St. Louis Arch Grants start-up competition.Before Quadzilla, Washington University managed its roommate service for graduate students using Facebook groups and shared spreadsheets. In addition, the University’s various schools did not collaborate, which resulted in fewer roommate options for current and incoming students.
In addition to a buy-sell and housing sections, Quadzilla created an aggregate pool of students who were looking for a roommate, and enabled students to filter and contact potential roommates based on their preferences. The thing that made me the most proud was hearing from students who were able to find a roommate using Quadzilla’s platform. For example, a 2017 MBA student who arrived from Rwanda, personally thanked me after finding a roommate from the U.S (who studied Social Work). Helping students was my motivation for building Quadzilla.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? The achievement I am most proud of in my professional career is the way I led my team in the Navy Commando.
Before becoming the team lead, I had been with my team of 15 people for four years. We’d been through two years of challenging screenings and trainings and had been operational for two additional years. After that, our team leader was released from the military and I was chosen to take his place and lead the team for the final year of service.
Commanding your best friends after being their peer for four years is not an easy task. But through honesty, transparency, and clear communication, we were able to overcome this challenge, and the 5th year of my service was the one I enjoyed the most.
Who is your favorite professor? My most favorite professor is Sergio Chayet (Supply Chain) because:
He puts a lot of effort into helping students learn as much as they can. His slides look amazing; his homework assignments are very interesting; he answers all of the questions respectfully and professionally; and he explains the material in a way that anyone can understand. He is funny, engaging, and always smiles. It made me really love going to his classes. He cares about the students. He is always there to help. He is interested in learning about every student. He puts a lot of effort into connecting with the students (e.g. he made a 5-minute edited video clip of the best class highlights). Lastly, he cares about staying in touch; I’m sure that I will keep in touch with him post-graduation.Favorite MBA Courses? My favorite MBA course was “The Hatchery,” in which student teams pursue their own business idea or support community entrepreneurs by researching, writing, and pitching business plans for new commercial or social ventures.
I worked together with an undergraduate student and two other MBA students throughout the semester to progress my venture. We won both the midterm and final investor pitch presentation competitions.
Why did you choose this business school? I chose to get my MBA at Washington University in St. Louis in order to participate in its McDonnell International Scholars Academy.
The McDonnell Academy is an exclusive program at Washington University that aims to develop a community of global leaders that will make a positive impact in the world by promoting global awareness and social responsibility.
Each year, a cohort of around fifteen scholars is chosen from around the world to participate in the program. The program offers a scholarship that covers full tuition, a monthly stipend, and other perks. In addition, the scholars get to travel to places such as Washington, D.C. and New York City to meet with leaders in the public and private sectors, including U.S. senators and corporate executives.
Two years ago, a McDonnell Academy ambassador asked me whether I was interested in being a candidate for the McDonnell Academy. I saw this as an amazing opportunity to network with future global leaders and to expand my perspective. I applied to the McDonnell Academy and got accepted. I therefore decided to get my MBA at the Olin Business School.
What did you enjoy most about business school? The people: I was very lucky to meet amazing people from all around the world who were very friendly, inspiring, and interesting. I expanded my perspective on life and was able to learn a lot about different countries and cultures. For example, I had a great talk with a friend from Iran about the Iranian-Israeli relationship in which we each were able to learn more about each other’s perspectives.
What is the biggest lesson you gained from business school? The biggest lesson I gained from the business school is that having a diverse team (e.g. country, gender, work experience, and age) can lead to amazing achievements.
In my first semester I was part of a team of five amazing people from Denmark, China, India, and United States (and myself from Israel) and from different business backgrounds. I learned a lot from each of them and together we were able to perform much better than we could have done individually.
What was the most surprising thing about business school? I was surprised that the culture at Olin was more like a family and not strictly professional. Though the business school is very professional, all of the faculty staff and students are very down to earth, friendly, and kind.
What was the hardest part of business school? At the beginning, it was challenging for me to actively participate in class discussion because I was nervous to speak in English, as I was born and raised in Israel. To mitigate that, I decided to participate in every class and presentation and to not care if I sounded funny or struggled to convey my message. That strategy worked out because today I am not shy about speaking in class and I feel confidence and comfortable speaking in English.
What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school? I would recommend any student to enjoy his or her time as a student and spend as much time with the fellow MBA students getting to know them and building relationships. Not just to expand their professional network, but rather to expand their life perspective, find great friends, and learn about different cultures. For me this was the best experience during the degree program and I feel that I have made life-long friends here.
“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I felt that I had received enough software development skills at Microsoft and was ready to move on to building my business skills. I love technology, but I love it because of the enormous amount of value that one can create using it. Therefore, after almost three years at Microsoft, I was ready to start my MBA.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…building my own start-up in Israel.”
Which executive or entrepreneur do you most admire? Bill Gates. I admire him for both creating Microsoft and for establishing the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. I appreciate people who understand how fortunate they are and who give back to the community.
What are your long-term professional goals?
Build a successful and scalable internet company that has positive impact. Create and manage a non-profit company that helps children from poor families get an equal opportunity to fulfill their dreams.Who would you most want to thank for your success? I would most want to thank my parents for my success because they gave me an enormous amount of love, great education and values, advice and guidance, and the freedom to take risks and explore life.
Fun fact about yourself: I fought against Pirates in the Red Sea while securing a cargo ship.
Favorite book: Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson.
Favorite movie: Pulp Fiction
Favorite musical performer: Bruno Mars
Favorite television show: House of Cards
Favorite vacation spot: Puerto Escondido, Mexico.
Hobbies? Running, snowboarding, surfing, kitesurfing, diving, travelling, woodwork, and cooking.
What made Shai such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?.
“What Shai has brought to Olin from his native Israel is a passion for new ideas, new businesses and measured risk taking. His enthusiasm for these pursuits has been tangible and has a very positive effect on his classmates.
Shai has been very active academically, socially and in the Olin community in general. He is also well known across the campus (a rarity for MBA students) and is held in high regard by many department and university leaders – primarily because of his startup venture from last summer. Shai has a very “personable personality” with a unique sense of humor and a winning attitude.” — Joe Fox, Associate Dean, Olin Business School, Washington University in St. Louis
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2016: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Shai Hatsor, Washington U. appeared first on Poets and Quants.
Brigham Young University, Marriott School of Management
“I’m sure that Kirk has been plagued through his youth with the ‘Man of Steele’ moniker. True story: as I was working to memorize student names before the start of the MBA 502 course last year, I used that moniker to remember Kirk’s name and I wondered if he would in fact prove out to be a superman. Well, he did.”
Age: 30
Hometown: Farmington, Utah
Undergraduate School and Degree: Brigham Young University, BS Business Management
Where did you work before enrolling in business school? Hewlett-Packard – Sales & Marketing (2009-2011); Ford Motor Company – Sales & Marketing (2011-2014)
Where did you intern during the summer of 2015? Google – Manhattan, NY
Where will you be working after graduation? Google as a Strategic Partner Manager in Austin, Texas
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School:
2016 Hawes Scholar The Hawes Scholar award is the highest distinction given to MBA students at the Brigham Young University Marriott School of Management.Students and faculty nominate and vote on each year’s Hawes Scholars. Final selection is made by the Hawes Scholar Committee and is based on academic performance, leadership maturity, and a commitment to high ethical standards. BYU MBA Student Recruiting Manager Responsible for managing the BYU MBA Student Ambassador Program (41 second-year students) in outreach efforts to prospective and admitted students. Responsible for planning and executing on-campus information sessions for prospective students. Responsible for planning and executing Admit Weekend for admitted students. VP of MBA Brand – BYU MBA Marketing Association Responsible for building the BYU MBA and Marketing track brand. BYU MBA Sherpa Responsible for mentoring four first-year MBA students (“climbers”) in their internship search and professional development activities. Includes meeting weekly with each student to do in-depth resume reviews, mock interviews, company research, and recruiting strategy formulation. Helped my climbers successfully land internships at Adobe, Amazon, Dell, and Facebook (this is the first time a BYU MBA has landed an internship or full-time at Facebook). Millennial Marketer Panel Member at Adobe Summit 2015 Roundtable session with Adobe executives at Adobe’s annual customer conference on the value that millennial marketers bring to established marketing organizations. Student Interview Panel for BYU MBA Director of Career Services One of 4 MBA students selected to interview and provide feedback on the final candidates for the BYU MBA Director of Career Services position. Teaching Assistant for core MBA Marketing classWhich academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? BYU is not currently ranked as a top-20 MBA school and we’re one of a handful of top-40 MBA schools that isn’t within a two-hour drive of a major metro (e.g. Dallas, Chicago, LA, etc.), so we have to be really scrappy and hustle. Coming into school, my dream was to go to work for Google. When I told people that they thought I was crazy. Google has never hired anyone for an internship or full-time from BYU’s MBA program before. I networked like crazy and hustled my rear-end off and I was able to land an internship with Google. It was gratifying to show that hard work and determination pay off. What has been even more gratifying is to help others do the same thing. One of the first-year students that I have been responsible for mentoring in his internship search was able to be the first BYU MBA to land an internship or full-time offer with Facebook.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? When I left HP to accept a position at Ford, I knew I was taking a big risk switching to a brand new industry. I was basically starting over from scratch having to learn new industry vocabulary and entirely different set of skills. To be honest, initially I really struggled. My role involved consulting with 13 Ford dealers on how to improve their marketing and sales. As you can imagine, dealership owners with decades of experience in the industry weren’t very eager to take business advice from an industry outsider. It was very discouraging. But I persisted and focused on my strengths rather than what I lacked. Rather than try to become an expert on the auto industry, I decided to become an expert on the data for each dealership. As a result I was able to uncover growth opportunities that helped my dealers to produce a 13% increase in sales and an 11% increase in profitability in 2013. But more importantly I was able to develop some great friendships with the dealers that I worked with.
Favorite MBA Courses? Razor’s Edge – this course focused on thriving personally and professionally. We studied the latest research on happiness, motivation, and engagement and then applied it by taking a two-day camping trip to Southern Utah where we went hiking and mountain biking amongst the red rock cliffs. This class was a defining moment of my MBA experience and has really set the trajectory for my life after MBA school.
Why did you choose this business school? I chose BYU for several reasons. First, one-third of all BYU MBA grads go to work in the tech industry, which is where I wanted to go. Second, BYU’s alumni network is extremely strong and alumni will work very hard to help you get into their company. Third, BYU’s MBA program is the most family friendly MBA program in the country. BYU’s MBA Spouses Association has been a huge asset in helping my family to adjust to life in MBA school. Fourth, BYU MBA students graduate with $21K less debt on average compared to students at other MBA schools.
What did you enjoy most about business school? Engaging and thought-provoking discussion with very bright classmates and professors. I love the back-and-forth during case study discussions and how it brings out some of your best thinking. I’ve also loved the club trips that we’ve taken and the opportunities they’ve provided to bond with classmates outside of the classroom.
What is the biggest lesson you gained from business school? To be intentional about my personal and professional life. To identify what goals and values are important to me and what deliberate actions I need to take in order to become the type of businessperson, husband, and father I want to be at the end of my life.
What was the most surprising thing about business school? How fast it goes by. It literally feels like I just started my MBA and yet the two years are almost done.
What was the hardest part of business school? Finding time to work out and stay in shape. Between the studying, recruiting, and social activities, it is really hard to find time to exercise – and all the free food at info sessions and events doesn’t help.
What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school? BYU’s motto is “Enter to learn, go forth to serve.” Really think about how you are going to take the education you receive at BYU and use it to serve those around you and in your community.
“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I was a junior in high school. One of my mentors, Dan Liljenquist, that I really looked up to had an MBA and I wanted to follow in his footsteps.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…working on a political campaign.”
Which executive or entrepreneur do you most admire Jon Huntsman, Sr. I admire his humility and generosity. Early in his career when he and his wife were on a shoestring budget he was still extremely generous and that never changed when he became wealthy.
What are your long-term professional goals? I would like to run the strategic alliances or business development function for a tech company. If I’m lucky enough, my dream would be to retire at age 50 and run for the U.S. Senate.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? My wife and 3 kids. I wouldn’t have been able to make it through MBA school without the support of my wife. She has been amazing. Getting an MBA has required a lot of long hours and late nights and she has been so supportive. Just before second semester finals, our youngest daughter was born and then shortly after I had to leave for my summer internship in New York while she stayed in Utah with our newborn, a two year old, and five year old. For the three months I was gone, she held down the fort at home in addition to working part-time herself. Any success that I have achieved in my career and in MBA school is largely attributable to the support that my wife has provided me. My kids have also been amazing. Nothing beats coming home after a long day at school to my kids running up to give me hugs and kisses.
Fun fact about yourself: In high school I played the bagpipes in a band called the “Crooked Pipers Society.”
Favorite book: How Will You Measure Your Life? by Clayton Christensen
Favorite movie: The Count of Monte Cristo
Favorite musical performer: Imagine Dragons
Favorite television show: Sherlock on BBC
Favorite vacation spot: Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.
Hobbies? My favorite thing to do is camping and hiking with my wife and three kids. I am also a political junkie. The way that some people watch Monday Night Football is the same way that I watch all of the primary and general election political debates on TV.
What made Kirk such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?
“I’m sure that Kirk has been plagued through his youth with the ‘Man of Steele’ moniker. True story: as I was working to memorize student names before the start of the MBA 502 course last year, I used that moniker to remember Kirk’s name and I wondered if he would in fact prove out to be a superman. Well, he did. I can report that he absolutely tore up my class. His deliverables and his classroom comments were always insightful and spot on. But, and this is so very important, Kirk never bullied the classroom. He came prepared and he graciously supported the work we did together as a class without taking charge. He listened to others and helped flesh out comments and questions to keep the whole class moving forward. That kind of quiet excellence and selfless leadership represents the best qualities of a BYU MBA professional. And to that end, Kirk is not so much an obvious ‘Superman’ as he is the more subtle and more effective ‘Clark Kent.’” — Monte R. Swain, Deloitte Professor of Accountancy, Brigham Young University, Marriott School of Management
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2016: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Kirk Steele, Brigham Young University appeared first on Poets and Quants.
IESE Business School, University of Navarra
“I’ve gained a real appreciation for what diversity brings to a group of people. We all have our own cultural norms (or oddities!), ways of approaching situations, senses of humour, food tastes, you name it – but we all get along and we’re better off for the differences. Plus, from now on I’ll have a couch to crash on and someone to show me the best restaurants and nightlife in >50 countries around the world whenever I go travelling.”
Age: 27
Hometown: Calgary, Alberta (Canada)
Education: University of Calgary; Bachelor of Commerce (Finance)
Where did you work before enrolling in business school? Scotiabank Global Banking & Markets; Investment Banking Associate (Oil & Gas Group, Calgary)
Where did you intern during the summer of 2015? Coller Capital; London (Private Equity; Investment Group Senior Associate Intern)
Where will you be working after graduation? Adidas Group at their headquarters in Germany; Senior Manager, M&A and Corporate Ventures
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School: Student Council Representative; President of MBA Sports Club (coordination of all sports activities, clubs, and sponsorship at IESE); Co-Captain of the IESE Rugby Team; Head of IESE Spring Games Organizing Committee (IESE Spring Games is an Olympics-style MBA sport and social event in Barcelona with >900 participants from >10 schools); Movember Charity Fundraiser School Lead
Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? My most proud achievement was helping to found “La Copa IESE”… a competition throughout the academic year between the school’s 4 sections and 2 years that awards points based on extracurricular activity, in everything from soccer tournaments to charity fundraisers. The vision for La Copa was born from the traditional House Cup systems seen in many UK boarding schools, with the hope being that gamification of the amazing activities students were already partaking in would encourage greater extracurricular involvement, increased school spirit, and boost community involvement / charitable giving. It’s been very cool to see the project through from conception, to founding and now through execution this past academic year. Thus far, the results have been amazing – our students have really jumped on board and activity seems to have increased dramatically. More importantly, though the charity, fundraising and volunteering engagement has been record breaking. Hopefully La Copa IESE becomes a legacy and a real pillar within the IESE MBA experience for years to come.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? Being promoted a full 12 months early from analyst to associate during my investment banking career was definitely something I was am very proud of, as it was pretty rare within the bank. Getting additional project/people management experience, with greater exposure to our clients, was incredibly rewarding at that point in my career. I feel it continues to pay dividends, and I am really thankful to have gotten those professional opportunities so young.
Favorite MBA Courses? I wasn’t a fan of the actual subject matter, but I always looked forward to Operations Management with Professor Wei Luo. He brought so much energy to the class, and still found ways to weave in ethics into classes about warehouse capacity or inventory management. Apart from this, our Entrepreneurship, IT and Entrepreneurial Finance classes were a really great first peek for me into the startup / high tech world, which helped me form a new passion within this space.
Why did you choose this business school? Mainly because of the community feel of IESE. You get a real sense that everyone actually cares about the welfare and development of each other – because the school is so small, it feels like a family. You know almost everyone’s name and at least something about him or her. After just a short campus visit and a few chats with alumni, I already grasped this aspect of the school. Apart from that, the strong commitment to the values of “doing good and doing well” through responsible business, a strong entrepreneurial focus within the school, learning a new language, and of course the location in my favourite city in the world – Barcelona were also helpful in my decision.
What did you enjoy most about business school? Meeting and becoming close friends with people from all over the world and all sorts of backgrounds. That was one of the major reasons why I chose to come overseas to do an MBA, rather than stay in North America. It’s easy to get trapped in a bubble, and I wanted to really get outside my comfort zone. Since coming here and making friends with people from all over the world – some of my closest friends are from countries as varied as El Salvador, Norway, Singapore, United Kingdom, and Iran – I’ve gained a real appreciation for what diversity brings to a group of people. We all have our own cultural norms (or oddities!), ways of approaching situations, senses of humour, food tastes, you name it – but we all get along and we’re better off for the differences. Plus, from now on I’ll have a couch to crash on and someone to show me the best restaurants and nightlife in >50 countries around the world whenever I go travelling.
What is the biggest lesson you gained from business school? I guess it’s an important lesson we learned in our Leadership, Self Management, and Personality classes, driven home by some readings I had for school from the famous author and psychiatrist, Victor Frankl (but that are very applicable to business). The lesson is that every situation, every moment in our lives – represents a choice, and that our biggest asset is our ability to choose. When we’re stripped of everything – job, status, money, clothes, even freedom – we still have the ability to choose how to handle our situation. We can take very negative events and choose to approach them with resolve. We always have the choice to do the right thing. We can also choose to find meaning and learn from what’s happening to us even if it’s completely out of our control. I think this is extremely true of business situations. For example, we can choose to treat our employees well even if its not mandated. We can choose to take some piece of learning away from a crisis at work. Every moment of our lives, in business or otherwise, is a choice.
What was the most surprising thing about business school? Perhaps the workload – sometimes there’s an (apparently misconceived) notion that business school is a bit of a cake-walk when it comes to the amount of work. Of course there’s loads of opportunities to socialize, party, and travel – but there’s still a pile of work a lot of the time and you still sometimes feel a bit underwater by all of it.
What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school? Take every opportunity you can to get involved extracurricular-wise. 5 years from now, you won’t miss that $20 you spent, but you’ll still have the memory from that dinner the Japanese Club organized or that trip to a traditional Catalan BBQ in the countryside. The events are also a great way to meet new people at the school outside your core friends or section classmates. MBA school is a once in a lifetime experience, and as I’ve learned too quickly, way too finite. Don’t waste the opportunity to experience crazy things you never thought you’d get to see or taste, with the amazing group of people that come to IESE each year.
“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…every time I sat down to study for my Level II CFA exam, I ended up researching MBA schools instead.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…perhaps much better off financially at this moment, but dreaming about living in Europe.”
What are your long-term professional goals? One day I’d love to start my own company, probably in the travel business (one of my major passions). In fact, until recently, I thought that’s probably what I’d do right after the MBA. However, when the Adidas opportunity came up and I got the chance to work in an industry I’m obsessed with personally (sports) and an area I’ve become very interested in professionally (startups and venture capital), I knew I couldn’t pass up what is a bit of a dream job for me. One day I’d definitely like to revisit starting my own business though.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? Tough one – honourable mentions to my girlfriend and a few of my sports coaches throughout my life. However, I think it would be a crime not to thank my parents. They gave me the chance to go after every opportunity I wanted, but without it being a free lunch. They were also super laid back about how I lived my life, as long as I was doing relatively well in school – I had a lot of freedom and never got flack from them about how I spent the rest of my time. It always felt like the best type of motivation.
Fun fact about yourself: I have seven tattoos, acquired from three different countries… and am always looking for more!
Favorite book: The Hobbit
Favorite movie: Gladiator
Favorite musical performer: My childhood heroes… Blink 182
Favorite television show: The Sopranos
Favorite vacation spot:
Hvar, Croatia or Mirissa, Sri Lanka
Hobbies? Rugby, snowboarding, cycling, ice hockey when I’m home, travel, cooking
What made Sean such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?
“Sean is an invaluable member of IESE´s Class of 2016. He is super active on campus! He is making lasting impact by being a very important member of our student council. He also runs many of the sports initiatives at the school. He is working every day to make student life at IESE better.” — Marta Escardo, Dean of Students, IESE Business School
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2016: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Sean Porta, IESE Business School appeared first on Poets and Quants.
University of Iowa, Tippie School of Management
“The most precious commodity for graduate students is their time. Kyle is giving of his time and attention to helping others succeed even when he has other pressing business at hand. This has earned him the respect and admiration of his peers. Additionally, staff and faculty voted him the 2015 Excellence in Leadership award winner. In a program of high-achievers, particularly within his class, he was identified as a stand-out.”
Age: 25
Hometown: Moline, IL
Education:
St. Ambrose University
Bachelors of Arts, Management
Davenport, IA
Where did you work before enrolling in business school?
Junior Achievement of the Heartland
Development Director
Moline, IL
Where did you intern during the summer of 2015?
Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Hallmark National Chain Drug team
Kansas City, MO
Where will you be working after graduation? I am still searching for the right opportunity. I want to align myself with an organization that improves quality of life while operating with strong ethics and values similar to those that I hold.
Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School:
2015 Excellence in Leadership Award Young Professionals of Iowa Board of Directors, January 2014 – Present Business Solutions Center Project Leader 2nd-Year Career Coach 2nd place in the 2015 Rutgers Ten Plus Supply Chain Case Competition Graduate College Grant Review Committee, 2014-15 School Year Presented eight (8) Junior Achievement programs for a total of about 35 hours Graduate Assistant with Career Services Tippie TeamUp Mentor Asked to speak on behalf of the Full-Time MBA program at the Iowa City Rotary Asked to assist Admissions with a handful of prospective lunches and conversations Served as captain of the MBA, intermural softball team during the spring of 2015Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? Receiving the 2015 Excellence in Leadership Award was a very humbling experience, but presenting eight Junior Achievement programs while in business school is the achievement that I am most proud of completing. Many people that I interact with, regardless of age, education level, socioeconomic background, etc, struggle with an effective understanding of personal finance. Our public schools are failing when it comes to providing students with these basic life skills, which is why I believe the programs Junior Achievement provides are so critical, Being able to effectively expose these life skills to more than 145 students during the last 21 months has been an absolute pleasure for me.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? The achievements that I’m most proud of are those that improved organizations. Stepping into roles and increasing the organization’s sales or fundraising by 35% and 41% year-over-year, as I did with the DuPage Hounds and Junior Achievement meant a lot to me. Being able to improve an organization in a different way during the MBA program, as we did with Hillphoenix – Specialty Division through a 58% improvement in their quote turnaround time, meant a lot as well. Everyone wants to know that they are adding value. At the end of the day, these achievements do that for me. I hope the team that I am currently leading is able to do the same for the Urology Clinic at The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC).
Who is your favorite professor? The MBA experience is influenced by so many more people than just professors. There are incredible professors at Iowa, if I’m forced to choose one I’d pick Barry Thomas though. Dr. Thomas taught Operations Management and Data Programming with R. I use the process improvement concepts almost on a daily basis and he is a very personable professor. Jennifer Blackhurst, Faculty Director of the Business Analytics Academy and professor, is my favorite administrator and Cindy Meis, Associate Director of Career Services, is my favorite staff member. Both of them influenced my experience pretty heavily.
Favorite MBA Courses? Beyond the consulting courses, I really enjoyed Operations Management, Advanced Analytics, and Corporate Financing & Investment Decisions.
Why did you choose this business school? I made the decision to obtain an MBA about six (6) years ago, while still in the middle of completing my Management degree at St. Ambrose. I’ve always been on the business path. That said though, I did make a conscious decision to focus on Analytics. I’ve spent the vast majority of my career in small business (less than 50 employees). During that time, I noticed that most decision making is done through intuition or shooting from the hip. I realized from this experience that integrating insights from data with the decision making process could lead to better resource allocation.
What did you enjoy most about business school? The consulting projects and opportunities at Tippie are tremendous. During my time here, I’ve been able to improve three organizations (manufacturing, office/service, and healthcare through process improvement projects), develop a valuation tool for an emerging technology in the energy sector, and utilize analytics to prioritize resources for a senior living, healthcare organization. Putting the theory to work while collaborating with classmates and stakeholders has been a very enjoyable part of business school.
What’s your best advice to an applicant to your school?
Be authentic If you understand valuation, Iowa is a no brainer. Tremendous education for an incredible cost. Take advantage of the opportunities you receive There is no substitute for a strong work ethic; this is Iowa, our ancestors worked on farms for decades.“I knew I wanted to go to business school when…I looked around the minor league sports industry, while completing my undergraduate degree, and saw incredibly low compensation and profitability. I realized that I needed broader exposure to industries and sectors.”
“If I hadn’t gone to business school, I would be…searching for opportunities to expand my knowledge and skillset in some other fashion. I think that it’d be very interesting to complete further study of global economic models throughout history. This type of research could serve well in the development of economic policy. We live in a very interesting time with the central banks around the globe keeping interest rates low to negative and the scope of government continuing to expand.”
What are your long-term professional goals? Specific, long-term goals are hard to develop because they typically never work out the way that you plan. These are very similar to the old phrase “tell God your plans, if you want to see Him laugh.” Therefore, I approach this question with an answer that is related to a way of life. So, my long-term professional goal is to take advantage of opportunities that are placed before me while serving those people around me. I want to develop leaders by providing direction and opportunities to grow, while allowing my mentors to provide the same to me. If I’m able to remanence in retirement about the people that I helped along the way and the opportunities that we took advantage of together, I’d say it was a successful career.
Who would you most want to thank for your success? The typical answer to this question would be my parents. I do thank them for my success, but I think a better answer is all the people that gave me leadership opportunities growing up. People such as John Hendricksen, who let me start helping at church when I was 10-years-old; Coach John Turner, who pushed me to be a better baseball catcher and develop a sense of teamwork; Brian Prybil, who asked me to lead homecoming activities and blood drives in high school; and Ryan Simmons, who gave an 18-year-old, high school graduate the opportunity to learn about business and event management from inside a minor league sports organization. My parents instilled values and basic skills in me, and still do, but people such as these men really cultivated my leadership ability. Collectively, I’d like to thank all of them for giving me the opportunity to grow.
Fun fact about yourself: I’m getting married in June to my lovely fiancée, Hillary. She makes my life exponentially better and I’m incredibly excited to build a life with her.
Favorite book: I really enjoyed reading 41: A Portrait of My Father by President George W. Bush. He touched on the fact that his parents, President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush, always committed to going beyond halfway during discussions or disagreements. Both of their willingness to go beyond the typical halfway point really helped their relationship throughout the years and I believe that is applicable in any type of relationship. If you are able to listen to the other and are willing to give up your position for a better one, I believe that you’ll be a lot more successful in life than if you continue to hold your position out of pride.
Favorite movie: Movies really are not my thing, but I really enjoyed The Big Short, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, and Bridge of Spies within the last year. Older movies that I prefer to re-watch include: The Rookie, Fever Pitch, Vantage Point, and Anchorman.
Favorite musical performer: My fiancée, Hillary, singing and my littlest sister, Carolyn, playing piano. If I had to choose famous performers, I’d pick Zac Brown Band. They do a lot of incredible things on a musical level.
Favorite television show: Honestly, I don’t watch much television. I am a NHL.TV subscriber and watch my favorite team, the Dallas Stars, during my free time. Other than that, I’ll zone out and relax with random television series on Netflix.
Favorite vacation spot: Anywhere in Iowa, essentially. I love the great state of Iowa and love exploring the beautiful land and bodies of water. The lack of urban areas is a real joy in my life as it is very peaceful, which makes it easier to experience God’s creation.
Hobbies? Spending time with family. My little sisters are graduating from undergrad (Illinois State) and high school, respectively, this year. Hillary and I made countless trips during the last two years to be around for their events (theatre performances, sporting events, etc.). Fortunately, Hillary is the youngest and all of her family is close to Iowa City, so it isn’t as long of a trip to spend time with them.
What made Kyle such an invaluable addition to the class of 2016?
“Kyle has distinguished himself by seeking out opportunities to expand his knowledge base and leadership skills, demonstrating a strong intellectual curiosity and high level of engagement. Remarkably, he has achieved a 4.01 GPA while finishing the program with 89 credits when only 60 are required—essentially completing an MBA and a half!
The most precious commodity for graduate students is their time. Kyle is giving of his time and attention to helping others succeed even when he has other pressing business at hand. This has earned him the respect and admiration of his peers. Additionally, staff and faculty voted him the 2015 Excellence in Leadership award winner. In a program of high-achievers, particularly within his class, he was identified as a stand-out.
In both classroom and co-curricular activities, Kyle is the first person to volunteer, always seeking to learn and contribute and providing results that help guide decision making. Kyle has taken on multiple leadership roles inside the MBA Program: he is serving as a second year coach to first year students as they navigate their internship search; he is part of the first TeamUp Tippie Mentoring Program that pairs undergrads with MBAs; he is leading a consulting project team of first years related to patient satisfaction and flow-time within a specific department at UIHC that will result in an improved experience.
Kyle served as the de facto leader of Tippie’s four-person team that competed and placed second in the 2015 Rutger’s Ten Plus Supply Chain Case Competition. This was particularly noteworthy because this was Tippie’s first time participating in this competition and Kyle led a team comprised of two other first-years and one second-year student.
Kyle’s leadership roles also extend beyond the University. He has been on the Young Professionals of Iowa Board of Directors since January 2014, most recently elected to the Executive Committee as Treasurer. He is passionate about volunteering for Junior Achievement and began his sixth program since moving to Iowa City.
Kyle’s decision making is wired to a strong set of core values that blends his passion for social responsibility and improving organizational performance. He puts those beliefs into action and develops creative solutions that balance both.” — Dave Deyak, Assistant Dean, University of Iowa, Tippie School of Management
DON’T MISS: CLASS OF 2016: THE BEST & BRIGHTEST GRADUATING MBAS
The post 2016 Best MBAs: Kyle Wehr, University of Iowa appeared first on Poets and Quants.
Comments
Post a Comment