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texaslong22
Joined: 14 Mar 2017
Last visit: 23 Apr 2020
Posts: 8
Location: United States (TX)
Schools: CBS '22 HBS '22 Stanford '22 Wharton '22
GMAT 1: 760 Q49 V44
28 Aug 2019, 05:31
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Hi!
As I am preparing my application strategy for R2 at H/S/W, I have a question on who I should select as my recommender.
Background:
- former strategy consultant at top 5 consulting firm
- currently on the strategy team of a big tech firm
Recommender:
- Strong recommendation from Partner I worked with on multiple projects at consulting firm
Looking for advice on who to choose as my second recommendation, let me know your thoughts please!
Options for 2nd recommender :
Let's assume they will be equally strong in their praise and effort to help.
- A principal on my team that helped me manage my previous project that can provide strong insight into my ability to drive run large scale projects and drive impact in our org. I will also ask him to incorporate some positive stakeholder feedback to demonstrate impact. He does not have an MBA and I am not sure if he has written a recommendation letter for MBA.
- A stakeholder/client on the same project that can speak to my leadership and ability to drive impact in her org. I will ask her to incorporate thoughts and feedback from my manager as well. She has an MBA from HBS.
- A director on my team that is aware of my project work and can generally speak to it but is more abreast to the team initiatives I work on such as D&I and Mentorship. Although I can always have her speak with the principal I worked with on the project above to get more detail on my role and impact. She has an MBA from HBS.
Obviously difficult to provide the best recommendation without additional detail on my background and relationship with each but any general advice or recommendation, specifically on the supposed 'weight' of client vs. manager/supervisor and MBA (HBS) vs. non-MBA, you have would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks so much!!
As I am preparing my application strategy for R2 at H/S/W, I have a question on who I should select as my recommender.
Background:
- former strategy consultant at top 5 consulting firm
- currently on the strategy team of a big tech firm
Recommender:
- Strong recommendation from Partner I worked with on multiple projects at consulting firm
Looking for advice on who to choose as my second recommendation, let me know your thoughts please!
Options for 2nd recommender :
Let's assume they will be equally strong in their praise and effort to help.
- A principal on my team that helped me manage my previous project that can provide strong insight into my ability to drive run large scale projects and drive impact in our org. I will also ask him to incorporate some positive stakeholder feedback to demonstrate impact. He does not have an MBA and I am not sure if he has written a recommendation letter for MBA.
- A stakeholder/client on the same project that can speak to my leadership and ability to drive impact in her org. I will ask her to incorporate thoughts and feedback from my manager as well. She has an MBA from HBS.
- A director on my team that is aware of my project work and can generally speak to it but is more abreast to the team initiatives I work on such as D&I and Mentorship. Although I can always have her speak with the principal I worked with on the project above to get more detail on my role and impact. She has an MBA from HBS.
Obviously difficult to provide the best recommendation without additional detail on my background and relationship with each but any general advice or recommendation, specifically on the supposed 'weight' of client vs. manager/supervisor and MBA (HBS) vs. non-MBA, you have would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks so much!!
08 Sep 2019, 12:16
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi texaslong22,
Thank you for your post. You seem to have a few compelling options, which is a good problem to have!
My first reaction is that you do not have anyone from your current job. Can you not ask someone from the tech firm? Can't let them know you're applying? That's okay, and it happens, but it will be worth explaining why via a few sentences, either in the application field where they ask you ("If you did not provide a recommendation from your current supervisor, please explain why..."), or within the Optional Essay / Additional Information.
Beyond that, the honest and nuanced answer is that it's a little tough to say in a vacuum -- without knowing what the rest of your profile is, strengths and weaknesses are (and therefore how each recommender can potentially gap-fill), and what each recommender would specifically be able to address from a strengths, projects, and even constructive feedback example. That said, my lean based on the information you've provided is toward the Principal. Even though the other two have MBAs from HBS, the Principal appears to have had the deepest and most significant management of / engagement with you. Just make sure that if he hasn't done this before, he knows what a modern-day MBA recommendation needs to look like from an insightfulness and specificity standpoint, and make sure that he is not going to overlap too much with the Partner's recommendation. (They can be complementary but shouldn't be redundant.)
If you have any questions, would like to provide more information (so we can hash this out "in actual context"), and/or wish to further this conversation, please feel free to sign up for a Free Consultation. I would be happy to share additional thoughts! https://www.avantiprep.com/free-consultation.html
Best Regards,
Greg
Thank you for your post. You seem to have a few compelling options, which is a good problem to have!
My first reaction is that you do not have anyone from your current job. Can you not ask someone from the tech firm? Can't let them know you're applying? That's okay, and it happens, but it will be worth explaining why via a few sentences, either in the application field where they ask you ("If you did not provide a recommendation from your current supervisor, please explain why..."), or within the Optional Essay / Additional Information.
Beyond that, the honest and nuanced answer is that it's a little tough to say in a vacuum -- without knowing what the rest of your profile is, strengths and weaknesses are (and therefore how each recommender can potentially gap-fill), and what each recommender would specifically be able to address from a strengths, projects, and even constructive feedback example. That said, my lean based on the information you've provided is toward the Principal. Even though the other two have MBAs from HBS, the Principal appears to have had the deepest and most significant management of / engagement with you. Just make sure that if he hasn't done this before, he knows what a modern-day MBA recommendation needs to look like from an insightfulness and specificity standpoint, and make sure that he is not going to overlap too much with the Partner's recommendation. (They can be complementary but shouldn't be redundant.)
If you have any questions, would like to provide more information (so we can hash this out "in actual context"), and/or wish to further this conversation, please feel free to sign up for a Free Consultation. I would be happy to share additional thoughts! https://www.avantiprep.com/free-consultation.html
Best Regards,
Greg
