MBA Insider

Julia Wuench (Fuqua, ‘17) is a Career Development and Leadership coach on a mission to enhance human connection and fulfillment at work. She is the Founder of The Authenticity Guide. Before her life as a coach, she graduated from Fuqua, worked as a financial analyst and pursued her “dream career” in social impact. In our interview, Wuench shares how she moved on from her “dream career” to becoming a coach, and the importance and value of being your authentic self.

Sarah Rumbaugh (Darden, ‘15) is the Co-Founder and CEO of Relish Careers, and has a unique perspective in working with both graduate business job seekers as well hiring managers and employers. During our conversation, Sarah shared some of the data and research that she and her team have uncovered from their platform from March-August, as well as the potential shifts in hiring for interns and full-time hiring for this year.

After being elected in late February as Co-Presidents of the Fuqua MBAA, Sarah Izzo and Mike Treiser (Fuqua, ‘21) were thrown into leading the student government and student body as the world and MBA programs began to navigate the challenges of COVID-19. I spoke to Sarah and Mike about their experience leading a student organization during this time, the highs and lows of the past few months, and how the strength of the Fuqua culture and values brought the community together during this difficult time. They also shared their advice to current MBA students, about how they could make the most of their MBA experience this year.

Dr. Britt Andreatta is an author, speaker, and CEO of 7th Mind Inc, and the former Chief Learning Officer at Lynda.com (now LinkedIn Learning). During this interview, we spoke about the brain science behind learning, tips for learning in business school, and maximizing learning in a virtual environment. Britt also shared insights into how to manage stress and challenges while taking care of yourself in business school.

Richard Castleberry is the Director, Full-Time MBA and MS Business Programs at Mays Business School, Texas A&M University. In this interview, Richard takes us behind the scenes of what it’s been like over the past few months to prepare Mays graduate students for the fall semester. He talks about the decisions he and his staff have had to make, and their approach to doing what they can to provide a safe and valuable MBA experience for their students.

Laura Huang is Associate Professor at Harvard Business School who studies interpersonal relationships and implicit bias in entrepreneurship and in the workplace. In this conversation, we’re talking about her new book Edge: Turning Adversity into your advantage. During our conversation, Huang shares the research and stories behind Edge along with practical tips MBA students can use to identify their own unique edge to enrich and bring value to others, whether it’s classmates, professors, or employers. She also shares her thinking and approach around various career development topics that are important for all MBA students to understand.  Follow her on Twitter @LauraHaungLA

After starting her career in consulting, Jovanna Youssef (Anderson, ‘16) got her MBA at UCLA Anderson and transitioned into a career in Product Management. Throughout her post-MBA career, Jovanna has launched products at leading companies in the tech, retail, and fashion industries. In this interview, Jovanna shares her journey to product management, thoughts on what MBAs need to know about product management, and her advice for MBA students interested in product management.

Brad Vonick (UT-McCombs, ‘20) went into March 2020 excited to spend time with his classmates, executing his job search strategy, and  making the most of the second year of business school. COVID-19 hit, altered many of his plans, but despite the challenges, Vonick landed a job, cultivated relationships, and worked to ensure he made the most of his MBA experience. During this interview, Vonick spoke about how he navigated business school during COVID-19, his tips for making the most of challenging moments, advice for building relationships, and his guidance to Second Year Students for how to maximize their time in Business School.

After getting her internship offer rescinded due to COVID-19, Austin Carroll (Fuqua, ‘21) was determined to take matters into her own hands. Carroll not only found another summer internship, but took online coding classes, built a mobile app, and worked on writing a book, all while supporting her fellow classmates looking for internships. The trick? Focusing on following her curiosity. In this interview, Carroll shared her story of finding and losing her internship, finding another internship, and how she’s made the most of her MBA experience at Fuqua.

Presney Blackman and Alexis Murray UT-McCombs (‘21) took on leadership roles at McCombs right as COVID-19 hit in March. During this interview, we spoke about leading student organizations while navigating COVID-19, as well how they navigated, as students, and as student leaders in response to the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. Finally, we also spoke about the response of the McCombs community, leading and taking initiative while maintaining self-care, and the importance of putting in the work as an ally.