MBA Insider

Jasmine Ako (Yale SOM, ‘19) entered business school with a desire to pivot into a career in management consulting. Now a management consultant, Ako took some time to share with us her journey to management consulting, what the first-year management consulting recruiting process is like, and her advice to incoming MBA students who are interested in careers in management consulting.

Triston Francis (HBS, ‘19) entered Harvard Business School with the intention of growing and developing as a leader. He got the chance to do this through many avenues, most notably in serving as Co-President of the HBS Student Association. During this interview, Triston shares his journey to HBS, the highs and lows of the MBA experience, and the lessons he learned from serving as Co-President of the HBS Student Association.

In this podcast episode, I'm sharing a webinar I did about how to prepare the MBA experience. During this webinar, 3 current students shared their experience with the first semester of business school, their tips for preparing for the MBA, and guidance and advice for navigating the virtual MBA experience. 

MBA students and student organizations are responding in a variety of ways against racial injustice and institutionalized violence toward Black communities. During this episode, I spoke with three Black MBA student leaders who shared their experience leading student organizations to navigate these responses. During the podcast, we spoke in detail about how they led their student organization’s response, the importance of action by MBA student leaders, and the challenges and opportunities for growth as a leader through this experience.

After working in politics, Ben Leiner (Darden, 19) came to Darden to pursue a career in technology. At Darden, he realized he wanted to pursue a career in product marketing, and landed an internship and full-time offer in this field, but not without challenges. Ben talks about how he found his interest in product marketing, how his job search went viral on LinkedIn, and his advice for how MBA students can focus on their strengths to find opportunities and navigate challenging job searches.

During his time at business school at UNC Kenan-Flagler, Ben Thayer made the most of his MBA experience. Whether it was learning entirely new topics and skillsets in the classroom, transitioning into a career in management consulting, or actively engaging in student activities and leadership positions, Thayer thoughtfully engaged and immersed himself in the MBA experience. In this wide ranging interview, Thayer shares a detailed account of his journey while at UNC, some of the challenges and difficulties he encountered as well as the lessons and skills he learned along the way that helped him make the most of his MBA Experience.

In this episode, I’m joined by two of my fellow UNC Kenan-Flagler Class of 2015 classmates Blake Koch and Kerry Rigley to talk about life five years after graduating from Business School. This spring, Kerry, Blake and I and many of our classmates were slated to be celebrating our 5-year MBA reunion a few weeks ago in Chapel Hill, but like all in-person events that plan was put on hold. Instead, Blake, Kerry and I reflected upon our own journeys after graduating with our degree, what we've learned, and our advice to fellow MBA graduates.

As an HR Leader at a fast-growing tech company, and author of the career development book Not Your Parents Workplace, Nathan Tanner knows a thing or two about career development. After starting his career in 2008 and having three jobs in one year, Tanner learned the importance of being adaptable and flexible while also embracing each job by making the most of the experience, no matter how challenging or exciting it was. In this episode, Nathan shares his MBA journey, how business school helped him refine his approach to career development, and his advice to MBA students about how to take the career skills you learn in business school and apply them to achieve your own version of success.

MBA Internships are right around the corner, but they’ll certainly look and feel a little bit different this year. In this episode, Tony Morash (UNC Kenan-Flagler, ‘16) joins Al to talk about tips, best practices and general advice for MBA Internships. During the second part of this two part Podcast, Al and Tony talk about tips to be successful, how MBA students can prepare, and guidance around communicating and navigating a virtual MBA Internship.

MBA Internships are right around the corner, but they’ll certainly look and feel a little bit different this year. In this episode, Tony Morash (UNC Kenan-Flagler, ‘16) joins Al to talk about tips, best practices and general advice for MBA Internships. During the first part of this two pert Podcast, Al and Tony talk about tips to be successful, how MBA students can prepare, and guidance around communicating and navigating a virtual MBA Internship