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12 Mar 2020, 12:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: How women can find mentors in the workplace |
Most would agree connecting with the right mentor can help propel your career. Studies show women who have a mentor get more promotions, achieve higher pay and report increased happiness at work. This paper from Associate Professor Sameer Srivastava reports that women gain more social capital from affiliation with a high-status mentor than their male counterparts. However, a Development Dimension International (DDI) study found that “although 78 percent of women in senior roles served as formal mentors at one time or another, very few of them had a formal mentor of their own." An overwhelming 63 percent of women in the study reported that they have never had a formal mentor. This is cause for concern considering 67 percent of women surveyed rated mentorship as highly important in helping to advance their careers. So what can women do to find influential mentors? Here are a few tips. Don’t be afraid to ask Emilie Arel—CEO of Fullbeauty Brands, and a Haas School alumna—says that one of the things that women who aspire to move up in the organization need to get over is the perception that they have to know everything there is to know. “I think that a lot of times, as women in particular, we come into a situation—it could be my first time as CEO, or my first time as a vice president, or the first day of my MBA classes—thinking that to get a seat at the table, we have to know everything,” says Emilie. “That is just not the case. The more experiences you put yourself in, and more confidence you build around different groups of people, the more you realize you’re worth it and can—and should—ask for what you want.” “Ultimately, this boils down to confidence—having it, building it, nurturing it. When opportunities arrive on our doorstep, we need to take them and not shy away, thinking we are for some reason undeserving or unqualified,” adds Kellie McElhaney, Distinguished Teaching Fellow and the Founding Director of the Center for Equity, Gender and Leadership. If you are impressed with the way a colleague conducted a meeting or handled a certain situation, let them know. If you think this person could be a good potential mentor for you, don't be afraid to ask. Be clear about the guidance you're seeking. Do you want coaching on how to deal with key issues you face in the workplace, are you hoping this person can connect you to industry leaders to expand your network, or are you simply looking for recommendations for reading and other resources to grow your skillset? Seek out opportunities to grow your network Confidence does come from experience and knowledge, and MBA programs are a good place to get both, along with a rich network of connections—with other students, instructors, and alumni. “At a conference, I heard a woman on a panel refer to a study that had surveyed women leaders and male leaders. Most of the characteristics between the genders were the same, except when they were asked the question, ‘Do you have a mentor or a sponsor who helped you get to where you are?’ The majority of men said yes, while the women said no. That resonated with me, and it's part of why I got my MBA at Haas—to find those mentors and sponsors,” says Laura Teclemariam, EMBA 18. “So I'd advise other women to make finding a career mentor a priority. Just think, if each person finds a mentor and then in return becomes a mentor in the future, we can grow the diversity pipeline.” Pay it forward The DDI study also found one of the main reasons women struggle to find female mentors is because women fear they don’t have enough expertise to serve as a role model for others. But in most mentoring relationships, it is not subject matter and technical expertise with which less-experienced professionals struggle. They most often need help with core leadership skills like influencing, problem-solving, and negotiation. Emilie emphasizes the importance of supporting one another in the workplace, stating, “It sounds very cliché, but we have to pay it forward and help each other. I think it's part of my job to take every single recruiter call I get, even if I'm not looking for a job—which I'm not—but to say, ‘Here are five people who I know. You should call them.’ I also make a point to take every LinkedIn call I get, especially from women, to have a coffee with them or have a 15-minute phone call and see how I can connect them." “It’s my belief that each of us can play a powerfully positive role in shaping the cultures of the organizations for which we work, persistently nudging them in the direction of gender equity while dismantling policy and organizational obstacles that stand in the way for women in the workplace," Kellie adds. "There are a variety of ways that women—and men—can accomplish this." 
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13 Mar 2020, 10:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: A focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion and allyship drives this Berkeley MBA |
What Nuhamin Woldemariam, MBA 22, remembers best about landing in Chicago from Addis Ababa at age six, and speaking no English, is that the Windy City’s air was so humid she felt she could hardly breathe. She also remembers hating American food. Neither pizza nor Happy Meals® appealed to her, not even with the toy. “I just wanted Ethiopian food,” she says. But through the journey of assimilation, Nuhamin adjusted, learning English, graduating from Chicago’s Northside College Prep, then DePaul University with a degree in business management. Her early career was in training and instructional design at the Leo Burnett agency and then PricewaterhouseCoopers. Getting on the corporate culture track Her aha moment–the experience that showed her what she really wanted to do–was when, as a consultant, she was at a client meeting with a company that wanted to develop onboarding training. “Ninety percent of the executives we interviewed were men who worked in the financial industry,” says Nuhamin. “The way they communicated was about who was the loudest, who spoke the fastest. I noticed that a lot of decisions were led with egos. They focused and invested in solutions that would make them look good and help save the company money in the long run. It would have been more advantageous for them to focus issues dealing with the people in the organization. The culture of the organization is a key component of a company's success.” Those insights drew Nuhamin increasingly down the corporate culture track. Today she’s at LinkedIn as a Global Program Manager on the Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging team. She’s also an evening & weekend MBA student at Berkeley Haas with her sights set on a top HR job eventually. "I want to be well rounded in my business acumen and think the MBA is most likely to prepare me for this position." Choosing Haas Haas was the right choice, not only because the evening & weekend program allowed her to continue at LinkedIn, but also because “Berkeley aligns with my values,” she says. “Berkeley focuses on the whole person. In addition to the academic rigor, it’s also about whether, and how, you are challenging yourself to grow beyond yourself to help others. It’s about how you treat people.” Nuhamin has a list of some 30 courses she’d like to take–leadership, people management, negotiations, corporate strategy–though she admits she can’t possibly take them all. So far, one of her favorite courses has been Rebecca Portnoy’s Leading People course. “I’ve had some experience in learning and organizational development,” she says, “but the best part of the course was seeing how others approach this practice and what they face in various industries. It allows me to think bigger.” The toughest course, she says, was Data and Decisions. “It’s about how you use statistics and other data to make better business decisions,” she says. “From the beginning, Professor Conrad Miller said the course isn’t designed to make us data scientists but for us to have a solid understanding as leaders and to be able to manage and support professionals in this growing field.”  Creating an environment of belonging Nuhamin’s focus at Haas is on leadership and the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). “DEI isn’t about just people of color or veterans; it’s about creating an environment of belonging,” she says. “I’ve always been a connector, aligning people, creating economic opportunity.” A key concept of DEI–which is called DIBs (diversity, inclusion & belonging) at LinkedIn–is something called allyship. “It's about understanding your own power and privilege and a lot of that work deals with unlearning a lot of what we've been taught and comes to us consciously and unconsciously,” she says. “As we come to an understanding of the privilege we hold, it's about how we could use that to be better allies to others. This could range from race, ethnicity, religion, education, sexual orientation, economic class, citizenship status, ability, etc.” At LinkedIn, Nuhamin developed an Allyship Academy that is globally focused. “We have an Allyship program including 14 different countries,” she says. “so we need to talk about things like bias, cultural humility, power and privilege, and broadening our views. A lot of my work is about developing managers to be inclusive leaders.” But, she emphasizes, DIBs isn’t about instant change; it’s about influencing. Having the patience for change “The work as a DIBs practitioner can be challenging because you don't see a major change in six months,” she says. “It doesn’t work like that. It takes patience. You are an influencer who works to develop others to see the value and practice of inclusive behaviors with their teams. And the work starts with yourself because everyone who has a pulse has biases. You can’t avoid them. You have to understand yourself, unlearn some of the things that you've been taught, so you can have a better understanding of how you can show up as a better colleague and manager.” The biggest influence on Nuhamin was her mother. “I know it’s an easy answer,” she says, “but it’s true. She was a single mom and she taught me to be solutions-oriented. Whenever we kids started crying over some problem she’d say, stop crying and find the solution. So whenever I have an issue, that lesson immediately clicks in and I ask myself, ‘What are three options that could solve this problem?’” 
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19 Mar 2020, 13:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: MBA admissions process continues remotely during COVID-19 measures |
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With current health and safety recommendations designed to slow the spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) and to protect the health and well-being of students, faculty, staff, and guests, UC Berkeley has moved all instruction and other functions to remote operations. At Berkeley Haas, community means everything to us, whether it’s coffee before class in our courtyard, hiking in the hills just behind campus, or having Dialogues over Dinner to discuss identity and inclusion. Unfortunately, in light of the public health situation, we are taking steps to shift how we approach community-building until public health leaders tell us it's safe to bring people together again physically.  All admissions events, class visits, and in-person new admit events are canceled for the time being. We will be working over the coming days to convert as many in-person events as possible into online events. Once those plans have been finalized, we will share the details with you. Employees in the admissions offices for all MBA programs are now working remotely. Despite the changing circumstances, we’re here for you and continue to be available virtually for any of your questions. Please know that despite the worldwide disruption caused by the current health crisis, all of us remain available and look forward to staying in contact with you. Thank you for your patience and flexibility. Take care of yourself and your own communities—it's the Haas way. Read below for program specific updates. We'll be posting updates here as the situation evolves and we have more information to share. We will also be sharing updates via email. Full-time MBA Application review continues for fall 2020, and we are on schedule to receive Round 3 applications. Admissions interviews have been transitioned to virtual formats. Throughout this time, we are available to connect with you virtually:
Application review and processing continues on schedule for all application rounds. Round 2 applicants can still expect a decision on April 10. Round 3 applicants will receive their decisions as planned on June 5. Round 4: A new application deadline of April 7th has been announced. Applicants are encouraged to complete and submit their application, and decisions will be sent on June 5. If you are unable to complete part of your application by the deadline due to COVID-19, please contact our admissions office at ewmbaadm@haas.berkeley.edu or call us at 510-642-0292. Throughout this time, we are available to connect with you virtually:
Application review and processing continues on schedule. Round 2 applicants can still expect a decision on March 26. Throughout this time, we are available to connect with you virtually:
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24 Mar 2020, 11:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Physician leader uses MBA skills to transform the patient-provider experiences |
As Chief of Hospital Medicine for Oklahoma City-based INTEGRIS Medical Group, Kate Mansalis, MD, EMBA 18, treats patients, leads physicians, and strengthens patient-provider relationships. She uses the skills and business savvy gained in theBerkeley MBA for Executives program to continuously improve her part of the healthcare landscape. What attracted you to working in healthcare? I’m drawn to two things about it. One, I’m a lifelong learner, and working in healthcare requires you to continue learning to stay on top of your game. Two, it’s a service-oriented field. From my military service to working in healthcare, I’ve always been interested in helping others. If I wasn’t doing this, I’d be working in another form of service. Why did you want to move from being an individual contributor to a leadership role? Healthcare is a big ecosystem of policies, procedures, and strategies. Often the rules and regulations that affect how we do our jobs are generated by people without a clinical background. Without good clinical leadership, we can lose sight of the fact that there is a patient at the center of any changes we make. Our industry is changing so much, and I believe we need more leadership from physicians and nurses to steer it in the right direction. What challenges do physicians face when moving into leadership? As a physician you’re accustomed to playing the short game. You make a change—either a patient medication or procedure—and very soon afterward, you see a result. The challenge of moving into a leadership position is that your mindset has to shift to the long game. Tactics and strategies you implement today may not produce results for months. Another challenge is that the soft skills vital to being a good leader are not modeled in medical school. Many physicians were trained in the era of ‘the doctor is the boss.’ That doesn’t work when you’re leading a group of sentient adults who have opinions of their own. Healthcare is becoming more of a team model where soft skills such as communication and change management are needed. Which Haascourses and faculty helped to prepare you for the work you do now? Healthcare is becoming an increasingly data-driven field as we move toward evidence-based medicine. Data and Decisions, taught byLucas Davis, showed me how to interpret the data that comes out of the daily operational analysis of our system. Peter Goodson’s class, Turnarounds: Effective Leadership in Crisis, covered strategy, operations, and finance. Outside of my clinical work, those are the three areas where I spend most of my time—developing strategy, observing our system operations, and evaluating budgets and then using that finance background to develop business plans around service lines. WhatCareer Management Group services helped you achieve your goals? Luke Kreinberg helped us explore what was important to us and what opportunities were available based on our interests and backgrounds. He connected me with career counselor Joni Minault, who helped me identify my perfect job. When interviewing for the position I’m in now, I had reservations about it. Joni helped me realize that this was the job I had wanted to do. That helped me feel more confident about my decision.  How are you working to improve the patient-provider relationship? I manage a group of hospitalists, which are general internists who see only patients admitted to the hospital. One hospitalist may have patients on six different floors. That requires interacting with a variety of nurses, care managers, and other members of the healthcare team. So we’ve started unit-based rounding, which places one physician, one nurse, and one care manager in a single unit that tends to the same patients. That team is then able to provide more continuity for patients and their families, as well as the bedside nursing staff. It’s really improved communication within the care team and made a difference in efficiency and the provider-patient experience. We’ve been doing this for about six months, and we’re already seeing an increase in patient satisfaction scores. How has your son Connor’s rare genetic disorder informed your view of the patient side of care? It’s shown me the vulnerability experienced by someone reliant on a broken and fragmented system. Connor has all his care in one network, but there’s still no streamlined process to get care when he needs it without jumping through hoops involving insurance, scheduling, and coverage changes. My husband and I are physicians, so we can just text someone if Connor urgently needs to see a pediatric neurologist. Without our professional connections, we probably would have to go to the ER and have him admitted to the hospital or wait weeks to months to get an appointment. That’s just criminal in my mind. We also have the financial resources to pay for his therapy. But, for many patients, that would be nearly impossible. What advice do you have for those seeking to be physician leaders? I think you need a solid clinical background and experience in order to have a true understanding of the system and the caregivers you will lead. Establish yourself in that first. There’s also the need for an advanced degree. I chose an MBA because I wanted to step back from the healthcare system to see what the rest of industry was doing to solve their problems. 
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24 Mar 2020, 12:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Physician leader uses MBA skills to transform the patient-provider experience |
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As Chief of Hospital Medicine for Oklahoma City-based INTEGRIS Medical Group, Kate Mansalis, MD, EMBA 18, treats patients, leads physicians, and strengthens patient-provider relationships. She uses the skills and business savvy gained in theBerkeley MBA for Executives program to continuously improve her part of the healthcare landscape. What attracted you to working in healthcare? I’m drawn to two things about it. One, I’m a lifelong learner, and working in healthcare requires you to continue learning to stay on top of your game. Two, it’s a service-oriented field. From my military service to working in healthcare, I’ve always been interested in helping others. If I wasn’t doing this, I’d be working in another form of service. Why did you want to move from being an individual contributor to a leadership role? Healthcare is a big ecosystem of policies, procedures, and strategies. Often the rules and regulations that affect how we do our jobs are generated by people without a clinical background. Without good clinical leadership, we can lose sight of the fact that there is a patient at the center of any changes we make. Our industry is changing so much, and I believe we need more leadership from physicians and nurses to steer it in the right direction. What challenges do physicians face when moving into leadership? As a physician you’re accustomed to playing the short game. You make a change—either a patient medication or procedure—and very soon afterward, you see a result. The challenge of moving into a leadership position is that your mindset has to shift to the long game. Tactics and strategies you implement today may not produce results for months. Another challenge is that the soft skills vital to being a good leader are not modeled in medical school. Many physicians were trained in the era of ‘the doctor is the boss.’ That doesn’t work when you’re leading a group of sentient adults who have opinions of their own. Healthcare is becoming more of a team model where soft skills such as communication and change management are needed. Which Haascourses and faculty helped to prepare you for the work you do now? Healthcare is becoming an increasingly data-driven field as we move toward evidence-based medicine. Data and Decisions, taught byLucas Davis, showed me how to interpret the data that comes out of the daily operational analysis of our system. Peter Goodson’s class, Turnarounds: Effective Leadership in Crisis, covered strategy, operations, and finance. Outside of my clinical work, those are the three areas where I spend most of my time—developing strategy, observing our system operations, and evaluating budgets and then using that finance background to develop business plans around service lines. WhatCareer Management Group services helped you achieve your goals? Luke Kreinberg helped us explore what was important to us and what opportunities were available based on our interests and backgrounds. He connected me with career counselor Joni Minault, who helped me identify my perfect job. When interviewing for the position I’m in now, I had reservations about it. Joni helped me realize that this was the job I had wanted to do. That helped me feel more confident about my decision. How are you working to improve the patient-provider relationship? I manage a group of hospitalists, which are general internists who see only patients admitted to the hospital. One hospitalist may have patients on six different floors. That requires interacting with a variety of nurses, care managers, and other members of the healthcare team. So we’ve started unit-based rounding, which places one physician, one nurse, and one care manager in a single unit that tends to the same patients. That team is then able to provide more continuity for patients and their families, as well as the bedside nursing staff. It’s really improved communication within the care team and made a difference in efficiency and the provider-patient experience. We’ve been doing this for about six months, and we’re already seeing an increase in patient satisfaction scores. How has your son Connor’s rare genetic disorder informed your view of the patient side of care? It’s shown me the vulnerability experienced by someone reliant on a broken and fragmented system. Connor has all his care in one network, but there’s still no streamlined process to get care when he needs it without jumping through hoops involving insurance, scheduling, and coverage changes. My husband and I are physicians, so we can just text someone if Connor urgently needs to see a pediatric neurologist. Without our professional connections, we probably would have to go to the ER and have him admitted to the hospital or wait weeks to months to get an appointment. That’s just criminal in my mind. We also have the financial resources to pay for his therapy. But, for many patients, that would be nearly impossible. What advice do you have for those seeking to be physician leaders? I think you need a solid clinical background and experience in order to have a true understanding of the system and the caregivers you will lead. Establish yourself in that first. There’s also the need for an advanced degree. I chose an MBA because I wanted to step back from the healthcare system to see what the rest of industry was doing to solve their problems. 
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31 Mar 2020, 10:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Confidence without attitude: how women lead at Haas |
In late 2019, Business Insider reported on Kohl’s joining an “exclusive club” of Fortune 500 companies with females in both the CEO (Michelle Gass) and CFO (Jill Timm) roles. Only General Motors and Williams-Sonoma can also make this claim. The trend is not so rare at Haas and Berkeley, however. Haas’ Dean, Ann Harrison; Chief Strategy and Operating Officer, Courtney Chandler, MBA 96; CFO, Delphine Sherman, MBA 06; and Chair of the Faculty, Catherine Wolfram, are all female, as are UC Berkeley’s Chancellor, Carol Christ, and CFO, Rosemarie Rae. Not to mention UC President Janet Napolitano. Among the top 15 business schools nationwide, none have women in this number of key leadership roles. Two—Kellogg and Wharton—have female deans, and a handful have women in a CFO or similar role. Dean Ann Harrison says she did a tremendous amount of homework before accepting the position. “I talked to a lot of other deans and got a strong sense of what I’d be doing, so there were no big surprises,” she says. “One of the things I was told over and over again is that being an academic leader requires a lot of grit.” While that is true, Dean Harrison has been delighted at how much she has been able to move the needle on some of her planned goals in her first year. “Berkeley’s very much a shared governance place, so you would think it might take a long time to get things done,” she says. “In fact, one can get things done here fairly quickly. That’s been a really great thing.” She attributes the quick movement, in part, to the incredible staff at Haas: “We have this incredible staff where people truly go beyond themselves.” Chief Strategy and Operating Officer, Courtney Chandler says her time at Haas has taught her that careers aren’t linear, and you have to make choices that create opportunity. She’s referring to the risk she took when she stepped into her previous role back in 2014, leading the Evening & Weekend MBA program office during a time of huge disruption. She received some of the best advice during that time: take on the jobs and projects no one else wants.  “It was tough but rewarding work. It often felt like building a plane while flying it,” she says. It taught her she didn’t need to have all the answers to take on bigger leadership roles. “I relied on a lot of people to provide information and learned to come with solutions, not problems.” She credits that role for getting her to where she is today. It also taught her to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. Courtney says the most rewarding part of her current role—where she’s been for three years now—has been watching decisions she’s made positively impact others—whether it be students, faculty or staff. “It’s also been satisfying to solve really tough problems that almost seemed unsolvable,” she adds. Take that next role and trust you'll figure it out." The biggest challenge has been knowing there’s always more to be done. She cites some advice she received from past dean, Laura Tyson: don’t let great get in the way of good. “Sometimes we need to think that way,” Courtney says. “Don’t get trapped in trying to make a solution too perfect. Sometimes you need to try things and then iterate and adapt.” When asked if it’s important for women to serve as mentors for other women, Dean Harrison says it’s critical. “You think you can’t do it until you see somebody who looks like you doing it.” She also emphasizes the importance of finding diverse role models, which Courtney agrees with. “I approach it more as a board of mentors rather than one-on-one relationships. Your most diverse group of mentors is your best bet,” Courtney says. “I also think there’s a lot you can gain from people who are junior to you, equal to you.” Dean Harrison’s advice for finding these mentors: “Be more aggressive, speak up, lean in, don’t be afraid, never give up.” Courtney’s advice to women aspiring to high-level leadership: “Take that next role and trust you’ll figure it out. Women are too hard on themselves. Too often they wait to acquire all the presumed or listed skills and experience needed for that next step in their career. I say don’t wait, and instead look at the experience and skills you do have and think about how they can be viewed as transferable skills.” 
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02 Apr 2020, 18:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Award-winning professor shares his thoughts on teaching |
Enthusiasm, listening and drawing students into participating in class are keys to becoming a successful teacher, says Professor Lucas Davis, winner of the Cheit Award for Teaching Excellence in the Berkeley Haas MBA for Executives program. What does it take to make a good teacher? Teaching is a continual challenge and I’m always trying to improve. I’ve found the classroom works best when everyone participates, so I’m always trying to find new ways to encourage that. If students are naturally quieter, I encourage them to step up and come more out of their comfort zones. If they’re more inclined to participate, then sometimes they need to step back and listen more. It breaks my heart, but at the end of every class I go through the list of students and note there are always a few who didn’t participate. Also, you have to be enthusiastic about your material, and I have great enthusiasm for statistics. Every day I try to find something about the material that I’m excited about, and I’m not shy about expressing it. Sometimes you think you’re going overboard. You have to step back and encourage others because I think the best moments in the classroom are when you’re not talking. When it works it’s really magical. How do you like teaching MBA students? I love teaching MBA students. The EMBA students are a particular treat. I’ve had attorneys, doctors, CEOs—amazing people. Here they are coming back to school. Many of these people haven’t had statistics in a decade. They’ve faced a choice. They could say, "I’m already successful, I’m a doctor, I’ve got a career. Why do I need to question the status quo, why embrace learning?" I think it could go either way. Those who come make a choice to commit to the experience, revisit their beliefs, and listen to one another. And I think there is something about Berkeley Haas. Our former dean, Rich Lyons, established our defining leadership principles. One is Confidence Without Attitude, and that really resonates here. There is a humility about Berkeley students. Also, this is a public university where another defining principle, Question the Status Quo, is part of its tradition. You’re an economist. What’s the hardest economic concept for MBA students to grasp? A key idea students struggle with is thinking on the margin. Whenever you face a question of how many—like how many years of schooling should I get, or how many units of this product should I produce, or how many drinks should I have at happy hour—people tend to focus first on a number. Instead, economists think about the marginal costs and benefits. Like kindergarten—the marginal benefit is huge, while the cost is minimal. Or look at happy hour. That first drink tastes delicious, loosens you up a bit, and doesn’t cost much at happy-hour pricing. And there’s no hangover. But what about that second or third drink? What are the marginal costs and benefits of those? This is how economists solve virtually all problems when they center on a question of “how many.” You teach courses in data analysis and decision-making. How are those important to executives? Historically, most firms haven’t used a lot of data analysis. Most decisions were made by experts, people with a lot of experience who understood the markets they worked in. They know a lot and make decisions based on experience, instinct and their gut. But industry across industry, we are in the middle of a revolution in which decisions are getting made less by experts and more through data analysis. It’s less about what experts think and more about what the data tells them. Right now we have more and more data, but the limiting power is the ability of managers to know how to use that data—to ask the right questions and understand the power of the techniques of data analysis. Any teaching techniques you’d like to share? Particularly now with COVID-19, everyone is excited about flipping the classroom. This means moving some of the theory and core material outside of the classroom through videos or stream casts. If you do that, it opens the class time for more interactive activities. If I’ve prepared a video lecture, students can access it at their own convenience. They can slow it down and repeat if they need to, or speed it up if they get bored. The idea is that when students come to class they’ve already been introduced to the core theory. This gives more time for in-class exercises and participation where they can apply the knowledge. The pedagogy is better. Read more from the Take 5 with a professor series:
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09 Apr 2020, 17:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Haas hooks EWMBA alum up to a career in sustainable food |
When it comes to innovation in the sustainable food arena, Ashley Kleckner, MBA 15, and head of global enterprise sales at Impossible Foods, doesn't want to make a little splash. She wants to make a big impact. "Before I arrived at Impossible Foods I had never worked in the commercialization or tech spheres, but I was super-passionate about sustainability in food and frustrated by the apathy I saw in the food industry around the issue," she says. "I wanted to move the needle in big ways, to be part of innovation that I wasn't seeing at the time–and Haas helped me do that." For someone like Ashley who's driven to make change, Impossible Foods is a good place to be. Established in 2011, the company seeks to revolutionize what we eat by making "meat" out of plants, using a molecule called heme. Heme is the building block of animal protein–it's what gives meat its satisfying taste–and is found not only in animals but also in some plants. The company owns a patent to use fermentation to produce heme from plants on a larger scale, Ashley says. The firm's market strategy has been to launch its product in partnership with high-visibility chefs like David Chang of Momofuku in New York City, rather than going directly to grocery stores. The Impossible Burger is now available in more than 15,000 restaurants across the U.S., according to Ashley. "We want to tell the story of what Impossible Foods is capable of rather than launching just another veggie burger, and we can do that with these partnerships," she says. It's not surprising that Ashley's career has arced toward the food industry since she grew up in a Southern California family passionate about nature, good food, and green values. "Sustainability and caring for our planet were always important to my parents, and they communicated that to us," she says. "They also taught us about California's unique gifts and challenges. Living here, you're exposed not only to abundant food and dramatic natural beauty, but also the ugliness of food production and natural difficulties like drought. Being able to work toward sustainability at Impossible Foods is a dream come true for me." Before enrolling in the part-time MBA program, Ashley earned an undergraduate degree in mass communications at UC Berkeley and established a robust career in marketing, holding positions at advertising firm Ketchum and consulting firm Culinary Edge. Her initial plan for pursuing the MBA was to round out her business skills. She started the evening and weekend program in 2012 and graduated in 2015. Not only was the evening and weekend program a perfect fit, allowing her to continue working while she studied for her degree, it also offered a direct line to her current position. In 2014 she participated in the Haas@Work experiential learning course, which connects student teams to business clients to solve a particular challenge the company is facing. Ashley's team worked with PayPal, and the experience resulted in Ashley landing a position at that company as global consumer products manager. At PayPal, Ashley met Dana Worth, now Impossible Foods' head of foodservice sales; a year later he invited her to join the company, where they brought the first product to market and executed the national rollout. "I wouldn't have gotten the job at PayPal without the Haas@Work experience, and I certainly wouldn't have met Dana," she says. As well as Haas@Work, Ashley cites the school's Defining Leadership Principles as key to her career development. "I went into Haas thinking I needed 'hard skills' – and yes, those are helpful," Ashley says. "I got some great education in areas like finance that I hadn't been exposed to before. But what I lean on most in my work are the Defining Leadership Principles. They have this almost protective quality, allowing me to stay grounded in the midst of working at a super intense, mission-driven company." 
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16 Apr 2020, 14:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: The MBA from the eyes of a hiring manager at Goldman Sachs |
If you dream of working in investment banking, you would do well to devote some of your waking hours to applying to a highly ranked business school, according to recruiters interviewed by US News & World Report for an article in October 2019. Fifteen percent of the Berkeley Haas class of 2019 sought and found jobs in the financial services sector, some of them with investment banks like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Barclays, or Credit Suisse. Overall, the median starting base salary for 2019 Haas grads in the financial services sector was $150,000. The posts in this occasional series highlight some of the employers whose relationships with Berkeley Haas run deep and strong. Hiring managers will share insights into the skills and traits they look for when interviewing for interns and MBA hires. Goldman Sachs is a leading global investment bank that provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base including corporations, financial institutions, governments, and individuals. Nils Hellmer, MBA 15, is an executive director in Goldman’s Investment Banking Division. He specializes in M&A advisory in the technology sector, a role that sees him helping companies on takeovers, mergers, and some of their most important strategic decisions. As his workload allows—we caught up with him on his return to San Francisco after a “day trip to London.” Since graduating from Berkeley Haas, he has actively participated in Goldman’s recruiting efforts at the school. Answers have been condensed for brevity and clarity. What does Goldman Sachs look for when recruiting MBA candidates? It’s really hard to generalize because each individual candidate is unique. We hire people, not stereotypes. The more diverse a team is, the better. An individual’s viewpoints are shaped by their origins and experience. Diversity—in all of its aspects—is essential here. That being said, if I had to name one characteristic we look for, it is being a team player. We have a very flat organization here at Goldman. It’s very common for me to find myself in a room with analysts, associates, and managing directors all brainstorming to solve an issue, so being a great team player matters. What makes an MBA candidate stand out from the crowd? I always want to see two things. First, and most important, I want to see your drive. One thing we all have in common at Goldman Sachs is that we are super motivated about what we do. Show me that you are interviewing because you really want to work here. You can do that through your understanding of our company and what distinguishes Goldman Sachs from others. Do your homework and be able to talk about what’s going on in investment banking in the moment: What deals is Goldman working on? Why is company X hiring investment bankers? Then I look for indications that you have strong skills in areas like communication and collaboration—that you would be a good addition to our team. When I was in the full-time MBA program, I found that Berkeley Haas was very good at getting me out of my ‘finance bubble’ and exposing me to different viewpoints. For example, I was the only finance person in my study group, and I found that challenged a lot of my ideas. It helped me form arguments and present my ideas persuasively. That built my leadership skills in a team context and is something I rely on in my post-MBA career. Basic technical skills like finance and mathematics actually are check-box items, and while critical requirements, are not as interesting in assessing a candidate. How would you describe the Goldman Sachs culture? After starting here, I was so struck by the overlap of Goldman Sachs’ culture and the Haas Defining Leadership Principles that I actually wrote a letter to then-Dean Richard Lyons commenting on it. Beyond Yourself is clearly seen in our focus on teamwork on every level. Because each client project is different, we are always Questioning the Status Quo, seeking out the nuances in a deal and seeking to improve the outcome for our clients. Working with the tech industry, I’m a Student Always because the landscape is constantly changing through things like technological innovation or market-driving events that impact my clients. You have to be a student of what you’ve already learned to continue to succeed. Here at Goldman Sachs, I get to work with people who have 20-plus years of banking experience, and I’m always struck by their Confidence Without Attitude. They are humble and approachable—exactly the kind of person I aspire to be. Why does Goldman recruit at Haas? It sounds like a cliché, but it is true that our people are our greatest asset. We don’t have an algorithm for our product; our ability to serve clients with the best advice depends on all of us, individually and as team members, doing our best. Berkeley graduates come well prepared and as a result it is one of our top San Francisco hiring schools. We have a strong representation of alums from junior analysts all the way up to the global head of Technology, Media, and Telecommunication. I always enjoy going back to campus to recruit as it reminds me of when I was in the students’ shoes: sweating through the interview process, determined to do my best, and knowing that I had—still have—the support of my classmates. What career advice would you give an MBA student? When deciding on your career path, be honest with yourself and listen to your inner voice. Only when you’re true to yourself can you have a career with impact. And while you’re in your MBA program, enjoy it! Read more from the From the eyes of a hiring manager series: 
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24 Apr 2020, 00:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: From retail wine to Big Tech: Executive MBA spurs alumna’s career pivot |
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Berkeley MBA for Executives graduate Molly Zucker Carson, EMBA 19, attended Haas to grow her business and leadership skills. She planned to apply her new abilities to her work as director of the online auction division of her family’s retail company, K&L Wine Merchants. Instead, her academic journey led to a program manager opportunity via The Adecco Group with Google’s Go-to-Market team. Why did you choose Berkeley Haas over other business schools? I was an unconventional MBA candidate. Yet it felt like Haas celebrated diversity in background and experience and that my uniqueness would be an asset rather than something to hide. The Defining Leadership Principles also intrigued me, particularly Question the Status Quo. I’ve always been someone who incessantly asked why and pushed boundaries. How did the Haas network help you on your journey? Jeff Decker, MBA 17, was my biggest supporter. We had attended UC Berkeley together as undergrads. After graduation, he went into the culinary world, so it felt like we were kindred spirits. Jeff was incredibly generous with his time and spoke about the quality of the people in the MBA program. He also helped me combat imposter syndrome. He reflected this idea that you don’t have to work at a big tech company or startup to be embraced in the MBA world. A background in hospitality or food and wine was just as respectable. Which courses, immersions, and faculty influenced you most? Innovation and Design Thinking, taught by Sara Beckman, showed me how to dig down to a problem’s root cause. And that it’s okay to be wild and crazy with your ideas because there’s a kernel of genius in them. Peter Goodson’s Turnarounds: Effective Leadership in Crisis class was the best simulation I had for what leaders in crisis must consider to bring the best out in their team using available resources, with limited time and money. It’s an especially relevant skill set in this time of COVID-19 where businesses are dealing with extreme circumstances and figuring out how to save their companies. What role did Haas play in your decision to leap from retail wine to tech? Breaking away from my family business was not an easy decision. My team and I had built something very successful, and I was proud to be part of that. Plus, launching K&L’s online auction division revealed business instincts I hadn’t tapped into yet. But after eight years, I got to a place where I felt unable to take our business to the next level and was hungry to learn more. Growing up in the Bay Area, I was privy to the tech boom but felt like an outsider. Haas opened my eyes to that world. The Silicon Valley immersion was very pivotal for me. Every business I looked at had some principles of innovation and technology that could be applied to retail or a direct-to-consumer business. K&L has been such a privilege, but I thought I’d be a better leader if I broadened my scope and explored new experiences and technology. Haas gave me the confidence to do that, along with the network to make this pivot possible—most notably, my fellow alumna and Google senior program manager, Sara Davis, EMBA 19. For me, getting exposure at Google is an open-ended opportunity to dive into the deep end of one of the most innovative and respected technology companies in the world. How has your Haas experience transformed you as a leader? When you’re a leader in a company, you have a certain amount of status. So it can be hard to admit that you’re struggling or don’t understand something. Haas helped me get past that. I wouldn’t say it was an immediate transformation. It took some soul-searching and moments of picking my confidence off of the floor, but I felt surrounded by folks that really wanted to support me and help me learn. I’m now so much more open and no longer frightened of not being the expert in the room. What advice do you have for others deciding whether to pursue a Berkeley MBA? I would say to any females considering business school that, at Haas, you’ll be in the company of strong women who will embolden and strengthen you. If you’re someone who doesn’t see yourself as an MBA candidate because you have an unconventional background, realize there is a place for you at Haas. It’s a world-renowned institution that will value your diversity, perspective, and opinions. 
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30 Apr 2020, 22:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: The online GMAT/GRE/EA: what to expect and how to succeed |
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Prospective MBA students who have been unable to take in-person admissions exams due to the COVID-19 pandemic can now take all three tests at home. GRE at-home test-takers have been able to take the exam since March 27, and GMAT online test-takers have been able to take the exam since April 20. Registration for the Executive Assessment online test has now opened, and testers will be able to tackle it starting Tuesday, May 5. Here at Berkeley Haas, our full-time MBA program will accept the online GMAT or GRE. The evening & weekend MBA program will accept the online GMAT or GRE—or the online Executive Assessment as long as you have 8 or more years of work experience. The Executive MBA program will accept any of the three. Many prospective MBAs have expressed concerns about taking the exams online. There are certainly pros and cons to the situation. While some may be more comfortable taking the exams in an environment that feels familiar to them, others are nervous about all the changes that come with taking the tests online. Keep in mind that it’s a curved test. You’re still competing against other people who are dealing with these same disadvantages." Keep reading for a more in-depth side-by-side comparison of the three at-home exams, as well as some tips to help you prepare. The most notable differences between the online GRE, GMAT, and Executive Assessment
Change the way you practice for the exams If you find it harder to focus when you’re at home, try to trick yourself into feeling like you’re not at home. Make your space feel more foreign, more sterile, like a workplace. Experiment before the test, and try different things out to see what works. One major difference of the online GMAT is that it doesn’t allow you to select your section order. It’s fixed: quant then verbal then integrative reasoning with no analytical writing section. Make sure you’re practicing in that order. If you plan to take the online GMAT or EA, stop using scratch paper. Practice using an online whiteboard. Get used to doing online scratch work. Professional test-taker Stacey Koprince, content and curriculum lead at Manhattan Prep, provided insight into how to successfully use the GMAT's online whiteboard tool after trying the at-home test herself. “My whiteboard practice ahead of time actually worked,” Koprince says. She estimates spending up to seven hours with a similar tool recreated by Manhattan Prep in advance of the test and has urged everyone who takes the at-home GMAT or EA to practice with the tool, now made available by GMAT along with a tutorial, for a minimum of one week. “It would have been a disaster if I hadn’t practiced with the whiteboard before the test,” she concludes. “My score would have been 100 points or more lower than my typical score. If you don’t have the practice, [the virtual whiteboard] would be a huge time suck.” And yet, Koprince also could see how the virtual whiteboard could actually be turned into an advantage of sorts. “When GMAC moved from the paper test to the computer adaptive exam, people screamed bloody murder because you now had your scratch work on the table and had to look back at the screen to solve the problem. We just reversed that with the whiteboard. It changes what you choose to write down. When you were in a test center, I found myself having to write more than I needed to. So that was an advantage I wasn’t expecting. It’s not all bad.” Think about the quant section differently “Don’t forget: when it comes to math, for data sufficiency questions you should almost never need to write things out. You just need to know that you can solve it. You don’t need to know what the solution is,” says Noodle Pros Founding Tutor Dan Edmonds. “Even writing equations is often a waste of time. You just need to know that you could have an equation and how many variables it would have. You don’t generally need to know what the actual equation is.” “And a lot of problem-solving questions, you can arrive at the right answer using techniques like estimation without actually doing all of the crunching math. So one thing you might want to lean into a little harder while preparing to take [the GMAT or EA] test at home is some of those alternate ways of thinking about problems that will get you to the right answer without doing quite as much physical math.” “I hope that they will limit the number of questions that require a lot of crunching math. [If they don’t,] keep in mind that it’s a curved test. You’re still competing against other people who are dealing with these same disadvantages,” he adds. Side-by-side comparison of the online GRE, GMAT, and Executive Assessment GRE At Home GMAT Online EA Online First test date March 27 April 20 May 5 Cost $205 $200 $350 Scheduling Appointment times around the clock on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays Appointment times available 24/7 Appointment times available 24/7 Cancellation fee $102.50 (up to four days before test date) $100 (up to 24 hours before appointment) $100 (up to 24 hours before appointment) Reschedule fee No fee (any time before appointment) $25 (up to 24 hours before appointment) No fee (up to 24 hours before appointment) Time of test 3 hours, 45 minutes 2 hours, 37 minutes 1 hour, 30 minutes Downtime Optional 10-minute break away from computer after third section; 1-minute breaks between sections in front of webcam Optional 5-minute break before final section None Note-taking Notes on a whiteboard with an erasable marker or on paper with a transparent sheet protector and erasable marker No physical whiteboard nor paper, but on a virtual whiteboard No physical whiteboard nor paper, but on a virtual whiteboard Quant reasoning 40 questions over 70 minutes 31 questions over 62 minutes 14 questions over 30 minutes Verbal reasoning 40 questions over 60 minutes 30 questions over 65 minutes 14 questions over 30 minutes Integrated reasoning None 12 questions over 30 minutes 12 questions over 30 minutes Analytical writing Two tasks over 60 minutes None None Score preview after test Yes (with exception of analytical writing) No No Cancel score after test Yes No No Official scores Online availability within 10-15 days Sent by email within 7 days Online availability within 7 days Score reports Four as part of test fee Five as part of test fee Unlimited for free Retake policy Must wait at least 21 days; can take as many as five times within 12 months No retakes at this time No retakes at this time Test availability Iran & mainland China excluded Mainland China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Slovenia excluded Mainland China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Slovenia excluded Computer system Windows 10, 8, or 7, or Mac with Windows installed Windows 10, 8, or 7, or Mac with Windows installed Windows 10, 8, or 7, or Mac with Windows installed Browsers Chrome or Firefox Microsoft Edge, Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer 11 Microsoft Edge, Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer 11 Human proctor Yes Yes Yes Accommodations for disabilities Yes Yes Yes Refreshments None Water in clear glass Water in clear glass Some prospective MBAs are concerned that they can’t cancel their online GMAT and EA scores. "Score cancellations have always been more for the comfort of the test-taker than for the schools,” says Edmonds. “Business schools are very pragmatic about your [test] scores. They just care about your highest score. They don’t care about the day that you screwed up. And they certainly don’t care about the day that you got a lower score on an online test—that has never been given before—during a global pandemic." The only cost to it is the [money spent], but there’s no real opportunity cost here. I would strongly encourage people to at least explore the possibility of it.” 
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05 May 2020, 06:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Why right now is the time to apply for a Berkeley MBA |
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At the start of 2020, innovating was something companies did to stay competitive. Now, in the midst of a global pandemic, it’s something that companies must do to survive. Strong business leaders are sought after now more than ever to envision and shape how organizations will survive and thrive post-COVID-19. Citizens everywhere are looking for ways to keep things as normal as possible, seeking guidance, a sense of confidence, and hope. If you’ve dreamed of becoming a leader who steps up and guides others through the difficult times, an MBA can help you acquire the skills you'll need — and make you attractive to hiring managers. Here's why you should pursue an MBA now: The world needs strong business leadership If the past few months have taught us anything, it’s that leaders must have a strong presence to provide a sense of continuity to employees and community members, despite disruptive events. By pursuing an MBA in the middle of an active global crisis, you will hone the skills necessary for calming your team, encouraging growth, and setting expectations during times of turmoil. This need is necessary in any time of crisis, not just COVID-19. Learning the art of business communication By observing the responses to COVID-19 across the world, patterns start to emerge. One is the critical need for direct and honest business communication. Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel is a great example of this in her blunt assessment of COVID-19: “This situation is serious. So take it seriously.” Judy Dempsey of Carnegie Europe says the chancellor's approach to handling COVID-19 "points the way forward to the unified, decisive response that is necessary and how democracies can best deliver it." MBA courses like Leading People and Leadership Communication can increase your ability to speak directly and meaningfully as a leader so that people listen and respond well. Soft skills go further Empathy, understanding, and patience are soft skills that can differentiate good leaders from great leaders. Haas Professor Jenny Chatman says great leaders, who can encourage productivity from their team, know how to temper expectations during chaos. “People are legitimately distracted. Children are home, dogs are barking. Members of your team may not have a good internet connection. And, they are grappling with new priorities that were not a part of their job before. You have to be realistic about what people can do in a day.” Showing empathy to your team can go a long way when it comes to long-standing relationships. Soft skills are a core component of MBA learnings. Cynthia Song, MBA 17, explains how she was able to learn the power of soft skills with an MBA. “I have grown to be a lot more assured of my own self-worth, and this cultivates a virtuous circle for wanting to achieve more – all coming from within rather than some external pressure or benchmark. Haas's four Defining Leadership Principles, especially Beyond Yourself, taught me about leadership. On multiple occasions, I saw how putting yourself last and watching out for others is actually leading.” Consistency is key Keep regular communication with your team so that all information can flow naturally without ringing alarm bells and your team knows what’s going on. Professor Chatman says, “Regular, predictable, and scheduled communication means that your people don’t make up the worst case scenario instead.” While these leadership skills may seem straightforward, they aren’t easy to carry out if you’re unprepared. For example, not everyone is naturally disciplined enough to showcase consistency. These skills come more easily to those who have training in business leadership and management, which are core elements of an MBA program. Real-time problem-solving in an active crisis Life as we know it is changing at an unprecedented pace, which makes now a truly unique time to be in an MBA program. Not only will you learn about managing a crisis as it unfolds, but you’ll be in the perfect position to explore the myriad opportunities of a post-COVID-19 world. For example, according to Haas professors Zsolt Katona and Thomas Lee, we have an opportunity to solve a new data crisis that COVID-19 uncovered. The professors explain in a video responding to COVID-19, that we have newly abundant data at our fingertips that we can eventually extract business value from. So what better time than now to team up with fellow students and professors to dig deeper and learn about this data and how it relates to a global economy? We are in a position to be on the forefront of innovation, which is incredibly exciting for Berkeley Haas and its dedication to a lifelong pursuit of personal and intellectual growth. Learning new skills that change your perspective, technical skill set and ability to become more agile during these unprecedented times is critical: See how an MBA can help! Be a part of positive change: you have an extra month to apply to Berkeley Haas! The best time to develop your leadership capacity is in the moment. A silver-lining to COVID-19 is that it gives us an opportunity to take a moment to uncover areas for growth, and take steps to course correct. After all, your leadership capacity is only as good as your experience, and what will test your skills more than leading a team through a global pandemic? “We’re only going to get through this together. That means we are required, more than ever, to work together. Leaders should ask for help and delegate more than usual. Allow others to step up and attack problems together. Ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things, in massive amounts,” says Berkeley Haas professor Maura O’Neill. The current microscope on management styles means now is the perfect time to address change head-on. And now, you have more time to jump in. The Berkeley Haas application deadlines for both the full-time MBA and evening and weekend MBA programs have been extended for an additional month to assist candidates who have been delayed in completing their applications due to issues such as inability to take the GMAT/GRE/EA/TOEFL, difficulty in obtaining letters of recommendation, or other setbacks arising during this uncertain time. While the Executive MBA program is only accepting new applications on a case-by-case basis, in the table below, you’ll find the new deadlines for our full-time and evening and weekend programs. Program Deadline to Apply Decisions from Berkeley Full-time MBA June 1, 2020 July 2, 2020 Evening and weekend MBA May 26, 2020 June 24, 2020 Not such which program is the best fit? Compare Berkeley Haas MBA programs today. 
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07 May 2020, 14:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Kellie McElhaney talks equity fluency, courage, and vulnerability |
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Starting from the position that “if you aren’t intentionally inclusive, you are unintentionally exclusive,” Kellie McElhaney helped develop the concept of equity fluent leadership™. In the classroom and as the founding director of the Center for Equity & Gender in Leadership (EGAL), she promotes the use of equity fluency in business to develop value-creating strategies. How did the concept of equity fluency get started? It started with five MBA students talking in my living room. They went on to become EGAL's student advisory board. Our core competency at Haas is educating leaders. We decided we wanted to elevate this concept of equity fluency into the Berkeley Haas leadership model. Every leader, at every level of an organization, has to be equity fluent. Equity fluent leaders understand the value of different lived experiences and courageously use their power to address barriers, increase access, and drive change for positive impact. EGAL’s core content is a series of evidence-based playbooks prescribing equity fluent leadership strategies across myriad business functions and areas. We want them to be used in the business world, not to only exist in an academic journal, which can take a long time in getting there. We run design-thinking sessions with our partners and other companies to make sure we are creating something useful and stress-test the strategies to see how they will work in real-life situations. The first playbook is about dual-career couples; another, addressing artificial intelligence and bias, is nearly done. Now, we are proudly working on one around an equitable recovery from COVID-19. How do you teach equity fluency in the classroom? I strive to create a “brave space” in my classroom by fostering a high degree of psychological safety among my students, such that they can be brave. This isn’t the same as creating a “safe space”—a term that frustrates me. Being in a brave space allows you to ask difficult questions or disagree in a way that, at first blush, might feel politically incorrect. I give students lots of opportunities to look inward and reflect, to understand their lived experiences, their own sense of power, privilege, biases, and blind spots. For example, I have students analyze what I call their “personal board,” meaning their closest group of non-family members. We then look at how closely students’ personal boards tend to resemble them. At the end of the course, students create their own personal equity fluent leadership strategy. These are often beautiful. One woman did the assignment with her husband in the form of letters to their future children, describing what they want their kids to know about their lived experiences, their biases, and their responsibility and power to create change. One student wrote a spoken word poem, another wrote a diversity and inclusion curriculum for a middle school class where she volunteered. When we were able to meet in a classroom, there were lots of small group and pair-and-share activities. That is where the real learning comes from, their peers. I’ve been pleased at how well this has translated into online learning using Zoom breakout rooms, for example. I feel that we have pressure valves of vulnerability, especially in the business world, that need to be released." What are the rewards of teaching Haas MBAs? When prospective students visit my classes, I choose three students to tell the visitors why they should enroll at Haas. I keep hoping someone will say “because of the brilliant professors,” but they always talk about the close-knit, collaborative nature of the student body and student-led culture here. I see that strong sense of community the students have created; how they hold space and support for each other. I also love to see them stretch their comfort zone to express views that might not seem popular and push through those discussions. It’s rewarding to see students in the executive and evening/weekend MBA programs so quickly attach our classroom discussions to their real work. They bring back stories about using a classroom exercise on the job and advance everyone’s knowledge. What is the most under-appreciated skill that leaders should be paying attention to? Recently I co-facilitated an MBA experience called Dialogues Over Dinner. The last question we discussed was what leaders could do to promote society’s equitable recovery from COVID-19. Everyone noted the importance of not assuming that we all are having the same COVID-19 experience. Instead, leaders have to ask their employees about their experiences, and members from the community in which they live and operate, to understand their lived experiences, many of which are quite tragic. The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified the lack of equity in the US. That’s why EGAL is rapid prototyping a new playbook on recovery strategies using equity fluent leadership. What new course would you design for the MBA curriculum? A course on the courage to be vulnerable. I would call it “Courageously Vulnerable Leadership.” I feel that we have pressure valves of vulnerability, especially in the business world, that need to be released. We include “courageous” in our definition of equity fluency on purpose. We’ve come through a period when leaders have not acted with courage. We in the business world tend to fixate on the word “powerful” to describe leaders. For years, I’ve asked my students which leaders they most admire, and I’ve kept track of the qualities that characterize those leaders. The top five are a high degree of self-awareness, empathy, authenticity, inspiration, and vulnerability. Those qualities are where real power resides. The expertise and insight your professors bring helps deepen and enhance your MBA journey. By selecting a top school with top-notch professors, you maximize your experience. Read more from the Take 5 with a professor series:
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12 May 2020, 06:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: 7 ways to maximize a suddenly remote work experience while you're earning an MBA |
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COVID-19 is changing how the world works, plays, studies, and communicates—at least for the time being. If you’ve recently shifted into a remote work experience, you’re not alone. While sharing your workspace with a partner or your children is certainly an adjustment, there are plenty of ways to make the most of working from home. Studies show that working from home increases productivity—and there’s no reason that can’t go for your MBA studies too. Since many part-time MBA-seekers work full-time jobs, we've seen many of our students use their newly remote work schedule to their advantage. Taking on a full-time, part-time, or executive MBA in addition to your job may seem daunting, but these tips will help you maximize the experience. 1. Up-level your virtual collaboration with creative tools We’ve all heard of Zoom and Slack for remote workplace collaboration. Why not go beyond the basics and incorporate tools to make virtual collaboration with colleagues even more valuable? They might be helpful for use with your MBA classmates too.
Remote employees save an average of 8.5 hours per week by not having to commute. Add to that the time gained by avoiding distractions from your boss or coworkers, and you’ve suddenly freed up a significant amount of time. You can leverage that newly freed-up time to pursue a Full-time, Part-time, or Executive MBA. For example, since you're working from home, you can listen to a recorded case study or lecture during the time you'd usually be commuting. Or, inspire fresh ideas for the next class by listening to a business podcast while running or doing chores. 3. Establish boundaries If you're suddenly working at home more due to COVID-19, it pays to establish clear boundaries for your work and study time. It can be easy to let work and study bleed into each other when it's all happening in the same place, which is not always ideal for productivity and concentration. If possible, create a designated workspace and a separate, designated study area. If you don’t have that much space, optimize the area to create a distinction:
4. Discover where (and when) you’re most productive While establishing a workspace is important for avoiding distractions, you may find that you need to mix things up every once in a while. Experimenting with your study and work environment can help you get the most out of yourself:
Time management is critical for productivity on the job, especially if you’re simultaneously earning a degree such as an executive MBA. One of the best ways to stay productive at home is to create set working hours. The same goes for working on your MBA studies. This will help you feel more structured, and the more structured you are, the more efficient you can be.
Mounting evidence shows multitasking is ineffective. To make sure you stay focused on one task at a time, use the Pomodoro Technique (or a version of it). Many people find success using the structure of the Pomodoro Technique:
7. Set daily and weekly goals If you feel overwhelmed between the demands of work, home life, and your MBA coursework, setting goals will help you prioritize and make the best use of your time. Before you go to bed, write down what you wish to accomplish the next day so that you can jump right into work or study in the morning. You can also set weekly goals and adjust your daily list as you go through the week.
Remember that change is the only constant in life, and while we can’t control events like COVID-19 and the “new normal” that goes along with it, we can control how we handle them. Your new work-from-home life may be the perfect opportunity to pursue the MBA program you’ve been considering. Not sure which program fits you best? Compare MBA programs today! 
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14 May 2020, 06:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Learning from the female leaders spearheading the global pandemic fight |
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Women account for 51% of the U.S. population, but only33% of business owners with employees, and just 7% of all global leaders. But, during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is affecting 100% of the world’s population, despite their small numbers, women are making an impressive impact on mitigating the crisis. Exploring key characteristics of female-led COVID-19 responses Men and women are equally capable of global leadership. Recognizing equality should include a conversation about how the two genders have different leadership traits and behaviors that make them each successful. After all, the balance of inclusion and diversity is what can make our global economy thrive. But during the current global pandemic, female-led responses are having an especially incredible impact on flattening the curve of COVID-19 and protecting communities. Let’s explore what global leadership characteristics have helped these leaders tackle the crisis and the stand-up responses that are making a difference. Decisiveness One response tactic that has proven successful during COVID-19 is acting quickly and decisively even if the decisions go against the ‘status quo.’ Look at Singapore's response to COVID-19, which is spearheaded by Singapore’s first female president, Halimah Yacob. Medical experts say Yacob’s “early diagnosis, isolation, contact tracing, and some very targeted mitigation steps" allowed the country to avoid the accelerated expansion that countries like South Korea, Italy, and Iran face. Yacob was among the first leaders to take action, starting her response in early February. Yacob stood out as a renegade, as she took action while other governments were still debating whether COVID-19 was even real or not. One example of this hesitancy is shown in the United States’ response. President Trump initially failed to take the advice from top scientists for months, and now the U.S. is an epicenter of the pandemic. Helpfulness One of the Defining Leadership Principles at Berkeley Haas is Beyond Yourself, which means to shape our world by leading ethically and responsibly. As stewards of our enterprises, we take the long view of our decisions and actions. For that reason, the exceptional efforts Taiwan’s leader Tsai Ing-wen has shown during COVID-19 are especially impressive to us. Taiwan’s early intervention measures controlled COVID-19 so successfully that Ing-wen and her team have been able to focus on helping other nations as well. Currently, Taiwan is exporting millions of face masks to help the European Union and others combat the pandemic and flatten the curve, globally. Honesty The current state of our world is uncertain: we don’t know how long the pandemic will last, we don’t know the rippling effects COVID-19 will have, and we don’t know how to stop the crisis. Citizens are increasingly looking to leadership to answer difficult questions like:
Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel has been a model example for handling COVID-19, and much of her approach is based around honest communication; just think of her televised response to COVID-19 when she declared, “This is serious. Take it seriously.” Her honest communication and swift action have held the fatality rate of German citizens at 1.5%, which is significantly lower than other European countries: Spain (9.5%) and Italy (12%). Conversely, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has admitted to deliberately withholding information about the outbreak to his constituents. Widodo said he did this to prevent panic. However, the approach may have set the country up to be under-equipped with medical supplies, and ill-equipped to collect accurate data on COVID-19 or assess the damage on its citizens. Empathy Maya Angelou famously said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Berkeley Haas Professor Jenny Chatman reminds us of this quote when reflecting on COVID-19 and crisis management. Chatman says, ”When people are faced with this kind of uncertainty, where bad things can happen, they want to know that you understand as a leader how difficult things are for them.” That’s why the strongest leaders show reassurance, optimism, and hope, letting citizens know:
While addressing her concerns over COVID-19, Arden said New Zealand needed to “unite against COVID-19" and called the country "our team of five million." Her empathetic communication, ability to encourage togetherness, and swift action have limited coronavirus casualties in her country to just nine deaths. A non-politically charged example of empathy during COVID-19 is evident in the SheEO network of investors. This group of female business leaders was recently featured in The Oprah Magazine for using empathy to support female-led businesses during economic uncertainty. By joining together to help one another, this network of women is “loaning each other money, resourcing how to crowdfund ways for them not to have to lay off their staff, supporting each other online and becoming each other’s customers.” Exploring leadership at Berkeley Haas While navigating this global pandemic has been challenging for many, we find encouragement by looking to the positives. Specifically, we want to celebrate how women have stepped up as strong, effective leaders during this time. We’re also excited to celebrate the women at Berkeley Haas who also showcase strength and determination every single day. Berkeley Haas’ core values, Defining Leadership Principles, and Women in Leadership club are just a few ways that we help advance the path to leadership for women and make the celebrations for equality even louder. Do you want to be a part of the movement too? Learn why The Financial Times named Berkeley a top-ranked MBA Program for women (#2 among U.S. schools and #3 in the world for women.) Discover the Berkeley Haas difference. 
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19 May 2020, 06:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Economic uncertainty as catalyst: how an MBA helps you to pivot in unpredictable times |
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Thanks to economic shakeups caused by COVID-19, many Americans are bracing for a recession. Berkeley Haas professor Laura Tyson says the depth and duration of the recession will be tough to predict, but there's no doubt we're facing economic turmoil in the years ahead. The good news is, a recession doesn’t hold back innovation. On the contrary, it fuels it. Berkeley Haas professor Henry Chesbrough says innovation will have an important role to play in recovering from the aftermath of the coronavirus. He recently published a paper that discusses how to manage innovation as part of that recovery. “Good ideas can come from anywhere, making openness imperative in these times of crisis. Opening up will speed up your internal innovation process, and allow you to take advantage of the knowledge of others in your business (outside in), even as you allow others to exploit your knowledge in their business (inside out). This will create more experiments, generate more knowledge, and explore more ways to apply that knowledge for customers’ businesses.” As COVID-19 has swiftly changed our lives for the foreseeable future, the concept of “pivoting” is driving survival in business culture. We’ve already seen it as luxury hotels turn into quarantine centers and textile companies shift to making masks. One Berkeley Haas startup has even made a quick pivot to deliver hand sanitizer to the needy. Another startup was founded by 20 of the 67 executive MBA students in the 2020 class to connect donors with people and organizations in need. The nonprofit startup, One Link, aims to build a marketplace platform for desktop and mobile devices that connects donors and recipients—and scales beyond the current crisis. You might be asking yourself “is an MBA right for me” or more likely “is an MBA right for me now?” Whether you’re an entrepreneur or you’re looking to grow your career, an MBA from UC Berkeley positions you for a pivot that could change your life, or even the world. How a Berkeley Haas MBA prepares you to lead in times of uncertainty If history teaches us anything, it’s that difficult economic times are the perfect breeding ground for progress: Iconic companies like Airbnb, Netflix, Mailchimp, and Warby Parker all started during a recession. When it comes to job skills that will likely be in high demand in a post-coronavirus world - innovation, leadership, adaptability, and critical thinking top the list. Innovation For example, because of COVID-19, your business might need someone with a design-thinking background to reassess the business plan. This enables you to reinvent yourself and change your business course - perhaps something that wasn’t available before. One way an MBA can help is with courses like Innovation and Design Thinking, taught bySara Beckman. This course will test your analytical skills and teach you how to dig down to a problem’s root cause and find solutions for change. Leadership In times of uncertainty and disruption, companies require bold leadership to capitalize on opportunities and solve difficult problems. Courses like Peter Goodson’s Turnarounds: Effective Leadership in Crisis will get you thinking like a leader in crisis and teach you how to bring out the best in your teams, even with limited resources. Additional core courses like Leading People and Leadership Communication will prepare you to lead effectively in any situation. Adaptability Adaptability will be another critically important skill in the post-coronavirus economy. In these unprecedented times, many well-established industries are struggling, while others are on the rise. Established businesses must adapt their models as well. For example, one of Seattle’s high-end restaurants switched to serving burgers and offering drive-thru service. The Experiential Learning and Applied Innovation components of the Berkeley MBA program give students a chance to put new ideas to the test. Critical thinking Critical thinking and the ability to objectively evaluate information from diverse sources will be essential as we rebuild our global economy. As part of our Defining Leadership Principles, questioning the status quo is embedded into every aspect of the Haas MBA program experience, from curriculum to faculty and research. Network Collaboration and ideation are needed more than ever, and that’s not likely to change. An MBA gives you access to a broader network than you have now - during and after your MBA program. Your fellow Berkeley Haas MBA students bring a diverse mix of life and work experience from all industries and corners of the world. Many of them are established business people with on-the-ground management experience. Others are passionate leaders who are building legacies that go beyond themselves. The connections you make and the ideas you share during your MBA program will be critical to making an impact after graduation. Invest in yourself now to help reinvent the future Having an MBA gives you an advantage in an increasingly competitive marketplace. Given the current economic climate, hiring managers now have more candidates competing for fewer jobs. Hiring managers from major companies recruit at Haas specifically, and so do alumni. That’s because, aside from traditional business skills, they know that MBA grads from top business schools have the drive, communication, and collaboration skills to thrive. Now is a good time to take stock of your job, career, and industry. If your current line of work is on shaky ground, consider taking time to focus on your personal and professional development. If you’ve been thinking about a career pivot, now could be the perfect opportunity to act on it. As businesses (and individuals) pump the breaks on spending, growth, and development, the ones who push forward and find new ways of doing things will be the ones to inspire greatness. Find out if a Haas MBA can help you reinvent yourself. 
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26 May 2020, 07:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Berkeley Haas alums help feed the community in the midst of a crisis |
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Kirsten Tobey spent a decade in education before pursuing her MBA at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. She knew when her students did not have access to healthy meals, it hindered their ability to focus, feel confident, and participate fully in the classroom. When Kristin Richmond, an investment banker turned education entrepreneur, met Kirsten in Berkeley Haas’ MBA program, the two became an unstoppable force in delivering healthy, delicious meals to students across the Bay Area. What began as a research and development project in their New Product Development class at Haas turned into a mission to reimagine how schools can deliver nutrition to their Pre-K through 12 students. Kirsten and Kristin used their class as the springboard to found a new organization: Revolution Foods. Operating since 2007, their model is as much about healthy food as it is a call for educational equity and accountability for schools that provide meals to their students. “What we know is that healthy meals drive not only health outcomes but also student outcomes in the classroom,” Kristin said in this article. “Providing kids of all income levels healthy food sends a message of respect. It sends a message of empowerment.” Now, in the face of a global pandemic, these two business leaders shifted the focus of Revolution Foods to serve thousands of children and families in the Bay Area whose food security is impacted by school closures. Ready for anything Kristin and Kirsten’s passion to deliver healthy meals and close equity gaps inspired them to fight food insecurity during this crisis. And, their MBA training provided them with the skills to confidently and quickly transform their business model from school-based meals to family meal delivery during a global pandemic. Berkeley’s MBA programs equip business leaders like Kristin and Kirsten to:
A social innovation incubator The Berkeley Haas MBA program’s Defining Leadership Principles encourage students, like Kristin and Kirsten, to question the status quo and look beyond themselves to develop sustainable solutions to complex problems. By gathering a strong network of dedicated, smart, and experienced colleagues, partnerships like Kristin and Kirsten’s solution to underserved students’ nutritional gaps naturally occur. Another reason that Haas MBA grads are so prolific is their access to a network of thousands of entrepreneurs, non-profit leaders, and public servants that call the Bay Area home. Confidence Without Attitude is another Defining Leadership Principle in the Berkeley Haas MBA program. With this in mind, Kirsten and Kristin knew they had some great ideas for change, and then collaborated with stakeholders in the local San Francisco Unified School District to inform their direction. As students at Haas, they spent weeks polling teachers, students, parents, and administrators from over 50 schools to find out what the people most invested in a better school meal program wanted. As they dove into the research, they realized that the project was much bigger than a business school assignment. As Kristin recalls, one principal saw the promise of their ideas and pleaded with them, “Please don’t make this another business school project. Please start this company when you graduate.” Dedication to success and service Kirsten and Kristin’s dedication to serving the children and families in the Bay Area paired with business leadership skills developed in the Haas MBA program helped them build Revolution Foods. Over two decades since their company’s inception, Kirsten and Kristin are proving that they can continue to innovate, serve the community, and thrive even during a global crisis. Find out what an MBA from Berkeley will help you do for your community. Apply for the Berkeley Haas MBA program today. Currently Accepting Applications for Fall 2020 through June 1st. Apply Now! 
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04 Jun 2020, 11:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Marco T. Lindsey: Thoughts from your Black colleague |
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Published with permission from Marco T. Lindsey, associate director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Haas School of Business. His LinkedIn post can be found here. --- I'm writing this now, but to be honest, I really don't want to be bothered. I don't want to write, I don't want to talk, I don't want to work, I don't want to socialize. Many of you have reached out to me personally, and I appreciate it. I do. I just feel like **** right now. I find myself crying often, and I haven't cried outside of a funeral in many years. Because I am a community activist, I am receiving numerous requests to speak to our community and our youth in Oakland on what we should do next or how we should move forward. But I'm at a loss. I have no f**king idea on where we go from here. Voting seems like the most productive choice, but we've voted for a long time, and this problem has never subsided. And me casting a ballot in November does not make my son any safer today (or in November for that matter). Within the last week, even Black politicians have been assaulted and arrested while PEACEFULLY protesting... There's social unrest happening in our country. And whatever side you are on regarding looting and/or protests, what's happening is that people are fed up, disgusted, tired, hurt, afraid, angry, and in mourning. If you read no further, understand this. Black Lives Matter = if anyone kills a Black person, their punishment should be the same as if they killed someone from any other race. No matter if they are White, Black, or Blue. If anyone kills a Black person, they should be arrested, tried and convicted of murder. We don't hold the false belief that murders amongst humans will stop. If you read the bible, when there were only 4 people on earth (Adam, Eve, Cain and Abel), a murder occurred. We live in a cruel world. The request is that when someone Black is killed, the murderer gets treated the same no matter their job, race, gender or nationality. This is what people are protesting. This is what people are upset about. A quarterback attempted to peacefully protest this by taking a knee, and he was black listed (it's unfortunate that so many negative connotations are associated with the word "black"), called an SOB by the president, and called disrespectful to our flag/nation by many of our fellow Americans. People... Black people are at our wits end because we have no idea what to do to fix this. There was a time when I was afraid for my life as a Black man. But that fear subsided when I became a father. Because now, for the rest of my life I live with the fear of my children being murdered by someone from an over-represented group, without consequence. I live with this burden daily. Daily. The true problem with the recent videos of Black people being slayed is that there are thousands of others who experience the same fate, but because they aren’t recorded, you’ll hear nothing about it. Even George Floyd’s “official” report from the police says that heart disease and “potential intoxicants” in his system played a part in his death. So many people who look like me are dying REGULARLY by those who are sworn to serve and protect us, and it goes unnoticed except by the fatherless children and broken families left behind. I don’t have faith that we will see a change in my lifetime. I was alive to see Rodney King viciously beaten and have the officers deemed not guilty. That was almost 30 years ago and we are still watching Black men and women be assaulted and killed on camera by the people meant to protect them. I am sending this to you because I think of you as a friend, but feel free to share (if you didn’t receive this directly from me, please charge it to my mind and not my heart, as I am not remembering or thinking straight much these days). But many times it’s easier to deal with these tragedies because the Black man killed is a stranger. But you know me. As hard as it may be to do, imagine me on the ground, handcuffed, begging for my mother (her name is Dorothy Louise) while an officer has his knee on my neck until I stopped breathing. Until I was dead. I need this to hit home because it not hitting home for so many people is the reason it continues. I need you to think of me lying there dead. Because when I saw this video (like too many others), I see my sons. I see my sons… In my current state, I won’t and can’t ask much of you. But I do have simple requests. Talk to your children about anti-Blackness. As a father I know that we want to keep them innocent and naive for as long as we can. But unfortunately they are bombarded with anti-blackness in cartoons, the media, at school, at the park, while shopping and online. Whether you notice it or not, it is embedded in our society. This is why so often you will hear of someone who committed heinous acts, and their parent's saying that they didn’t raise them like that, or that they don’t know where they got that from. The world is teaching our children lessons that we may not condone. And You have the power to combat this but you have to be intentional. Because while I have very little hope that a change will come in my lifetime, I do pray that future generations get it right. But it starts with us doing something now. My second request is that if you see a Black person being treated unjustly, speak up. Whether it is by a store clerk, a fellow citizen, a peace officer, or any public official, please say something. Your silence is your approval of negative actions. I get it. Not everyone is an extrovert, and many times we want to just mind our business. But we all would want someone to speak up on our behalf (or our family’s behalf) if we were on the receiving end of mistreatment. Be that someone. Lastly, I’ll say get involved. I can’t dictate to you what that looks like, but it can be anything from writing an email to public officials, sharing a social media post, learning more about anti-Blackness, being an active ally at a rally, donating, or just sharing this message. But do something. Please don’t sit idly by while I am being murdered. Make no mistake about it. I am dying. 
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15 Jun 2020, 22:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Dan Kihanya, MBA 96: Do you see me in this American crisis? |
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In response to the violence against Black and African-American people and the wave of protests and unrest across the country, we’re sharing some of the perspectives of our Black students, staff, faculty, and alumni. Dan Kihanya, MBA 96, is an entrepreneur and the founder of Founders Unfound, an online platform to showcase underrepresented minority founders whose startups are ready for seed funding. --- I am sad, frustrated, angry, and exhausted. I’ve wanted to write this for several days. I stopped, started, revised, and rewrote it a dozen times. In the meantime, I’ve been watching, listening, discussing, reading…and reflecting. As is my nature, contemplation overruled instant reaction. As an entrepreneur, I’m already in solution mode. But that is for another blog post. This one is about processing and being authentic. Now is the time. Do you see me? The death of George Floyd is devastating beyond words. It’s been pointed out so, so many times. This is yet another example of systemic racism that perpetuates within the dynamics of our American society. It’s heart-wrenching to know that his family and friends must forever be tortured by a video capturing his last moments while being murdered…by the police. And just as horrifying to me is the senseless repetition of these events, over and over — filmed or not. It is a gut punch, leaving me breathless. I pride myself on resilience. Getting back on the horse when I fall. Looking for the silver lining and moving forward. For the first time in a long time, however, I’ve been stunned and stopped in my tracks. Maybe I’ve been blind or in denial, but this just feels different. Do you see me? My parents raised me on the themes of education, religion, and service (If you want more on that, I’d encourage you to read my mom’s book). This foundation has given me so much. And I’m very keenly aware that the environment my family raised me in, and the sacrifices of those who came before me were immensely influential on my good fortunes. So I ponder…Am I: An educated BLACK MAN in America? A successful BLACK MAN in America? A servant leader BLACK MAN in America? A Godly BLACK MAN in America? A BLACK MAN in America who values relationships and community? A BLACK MAN in America who mentors and listens? Do you see me? As an African American, I’ve learned that my blessings don’t come without cost. While frustrating and at times exhausting, I’ve accepted that there is a price. The extra eyes on me in the store. The conspicuousness of being the only person of color in the room. Shouldering the burden of “representing” others who look like me, knowing that one miscue could spoil things for those who come next. Having to pace my walk to create distance between me and a young woman walking ahead of me. Or to present the least possible threatening posture on the elevator, so as to assuage the fears of the only other rider. And knowing that a certain percentage of business interactions where I’m the “seller” will be squashed… simply because the “buyer” holds unspoken bias to my background or skin color. I’ve come to terms with these disadvantages. I do hope to see these hurdles erode away for my kids and their generation. And so I work away at that cause, bit by bit, relationship by relationship, person by person. These are realities, however, I’ve learned to live with for myself. But then…Ahmaud Arbery. And Christian Cooper. And Breonna Taylor. And George Floyd. All in alarmingly rapid succession. This reveals something different. Do you see me? I can be simply bird watching in the park, following the rules as society requests. But I’ll be shown that any polite request for equal adherence, can result in a life-threatening outcome. Know your place. Jogging alone in my own upper-middle-class neighborhood could result in a life-threatening outcome. You don’t belong here. If the police are busting down my door, justified or not, there may be nothing I can do to avoid a life-threatening outcome. You fit the profile. Unintentional circumstances or coincidences like passing a bad $20 bill could result in a life-threatening outcome. You are assumed guilty until proven otherwise. So is it simply that I am A BLACK MAN IN AMERICA…no adjectives visible, no enhancing qualities need apply? Do you see me? I say all this not looking for personal sympathy. I recognize that I am blessed beyond measure. We are all unique. But I am not special. I am not an exception. EVERY black American is worthy of being viewed with full humanity and for the beauty and richness of the gifts endowed within him or her. My hope is rather that you recognize ALL, as you would me, with dignity and respect. I speak out now for my children, and their children, and for all those in the black community who have fewer opportunities and resources than I. As African Americans, we are citizens with ALL the rights entitled thereto. And we represent the full breadth of culture, professions, and society that is the American tapestry. And yet, I don’t wear my resume when I walk out the door. I can’t adorn my character like a shiny coat. I do wear my brown skin. When you are black in America, you wear your skin…always. I and all my black brothers…we are George Floyd. We are all Ahmaud Arbery. And all my black sisters are Breonna Taylor. They are all Sandra Bland. I am proud to be a black American. I am happy to have BLACK in all caps. But I know that I am not just that, nor are any of my African American brothers and sisters. Maybe we can move towards having EVERY INDIVIDUAL’S qualities, achievements, and gifts CAPITALIZED too… Now…which me do you really see? Read more perspectives on racism and the fight for social justice on the Berkeley Haas newsroom website. 
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15 Jun 2020, 22:00
| FROM Haas Admissions Blog: Bree Jenkins, MBA 19: Being Black at Berkeley Haas |
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In response to the violence against Black and African-American people and the wave of protests and unrest across the country, we’re sharing some of the perspectives of our Black students, staff, faculty, and alumni. Bree Jenkins, MBA 19, who now works at Pixar, wrote this perspective for the Berkeley Haas magazine Summer 2019 issue. --- I toe the line between compassion and anger. Or maybe it’s sadness or amusement. Probably all of the above. One of my professors, he’s smart and I like him, has called me by the other black girls’ name. She’s a close friend of mine, but she is not me. I know he doesn’t notice because when I nervously approach him after class and explain to him what happened, he looks distressed. I briefly wonder if I shouldn’t have said anything, if I’m being too sensitive or overreacting or putting a “racial lens” on something when it doesn’t need to have one. Sometimes all you want to be is just another student, but if you don’t speak, your voice won’t be heard. And your voice is representative." Under different circumstances, I may have just brushed it off. People mix up names all the time. But I feel the need to say something because we have just had a deep Haas-wide discussion on this very topic. It happened with another student whom I care deeply about, and he was brave enough to speak up. It’s not the action as much as it is the feeling of discomfort that has to be addressed lest it become resentment or hate or worse. My professor is apologetic and upset, embarrassed and empathetic. He is considerate of what I’m feeling but doesn’t say, I understand. I know. I appreciate that he doesn’t put words in my mouth. Later that night, he writes me an email. It is kind, thoughtful. Most of the people that I know at Haas are just that—kind and thoughtful. Being black at Berkeley Haas meant that I was surrounded by many students and faculty who were aware or wanted to become more aware. They took classes and even created classes; classes like Dialogues on Race. They were and are true allies, and I hoped to earn my title as ally from them and have their backs. What a beautiful community I found, starting with the Consortium and my incredible co-liaisons. I also built strong friendships and relationships from being a leadership communications graduate student instructor, a rep for my cohort, and participating in the International Business Development program with a fantastic team. But sometimes, even that didn’t feel like enough. One day in class, we watch a video about the civil rights movement. There is, of course, violence: hoses, beatings, lynching, death. Lives are changed and lineages destroyed. I soon realize that I’m the only one crying. The only one. Perhaps coincidentally I’m also the only black person in the class. Others are considerate and caring. My friends hug me and classmates and my professor check in on me after class. It could just be that they don’t cry easily, but it seemed like my classmates were observing something far away and long ago, that they weren’t connected to. Which made me feel like maybe they weren’t connected to me. Haas is diverse. We have 40% international students and many members of the LGBTQ+ community, veterans, women, men. We have diversity of thought and of experience. We openly celebrate this and our cultural backgrounds and gender fluidity. And yet there were only three black women in my class. Two in the class of 2020. I’ve heard people argue that, “Black people don’t understand the value of a graduate degree” or “It’s the pipeline problem.” Pipeline problems exist, but did we check to see where our pipes were connected to? If the line is faulty perhaps it’s connected to the wrong source. Where was our strong representation in Atlanta? In D.C.? In our own staff? How can we expect to attract this demographic without being intentional? This feeling isn’t new or limited to Berkeley, however. I felt the same in my undergraduate institution where I was one of the few black engineers in diverse Atlanta. Or in my first job after college, where for three years I was the only black person on a team of 70. It’s just getting old at this point. I was asked what it’s like to be black at Berkeley Haas. What is it like to be black anywhere in America? To be reminded that despite being integral to this country, you don’t exactly belong. To be the first in your household, your generation, maybe even your extended family to attend a place like this and be heaped with praise by how much you’re able to “overcome” and how you must be special and smart. All the while, you know at least 10 other people just as smart as you and even more hardworking who just couldn’t afford your undergraduate institution or the test prep or to take time off of work to come to a place like Berkeley. You don’t feel special—you feel lucky, considering that if your mom had not moved to a city with better schools, perhaps you would be another person with “lost potential.” Being black means being surrounded by people who don’t think about race every day and marveling at that. Marveling that they don’t talk about the injustices of a society that has already nearly forgotten its past and keeps repeating it with a fresh set of faces. It’s sitting on a panel, leading a small group discussion, or even writing an article— about being black at Berkeley Haas. Sometimes all you want to be is just another student, but if you don’t speak, your voice won’t be heard. And your voice is representative. You have to keep reminding people that you do not carry the perspective of everyone who happens to have your same skin color. You are an individual; sometimes you want to be treated that way. Then, when you write the article, you decide to tone it down so that readers will take you seriously and not dismiss you as an angry black woman when you decided to try vulnerability. And still you fear the reaction. Read more perspectives on racism and the fight for social justice on the Berkeley Haas newsroom website. 
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Hi Generic [Bot],
Here are updates for you:
ANNOUNCEMENTS
 Wednesday, Apr 24, 2024 11:30am NY / 3:30pm London / 9pm Mumbai Watch earlier episodes of DI series below EP1: 6 Hardest Two-Part Analysis Questions EP2: 5 Hardest Graphical Interpretation Questions
Tuck at Dartmouth
AGSM at UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE
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