What are the "Rights" of an MBA student?

Dr. Beatty forwarded this to us today.  More than anyone else I've met in the program, Dr.Beatty is focused on trying to get across the point that regardless of any concepts that come up in class (theory, rules, etc.), none of it is useful unless you can truly understand it and apply it to the real world.   He was definitely trying to send a message to the students with this, I believe for all the right reasons.

To be completely honest, after reading a few of the posts on that page, it made me consider no longer telling friends and colleagues that I was pursuing my MBA.  Were those people serious? Just because they have an expensive piece of paper hanging on their wall, they somehow think all the things they learned about competitiveness, strategy, differentiation, etc.. are not relevant to them? Just because they did something yesterday means they are entitled to something today, or tomorrow?  Considering all the MBAs working on Wall Street, maybe that explains some of the reasons we're in the economic mess we're in..??

I'm afraid that this MBA culture is pervasive at many schools, and with many students.  And its not just graduates, but unfortunately it's also prospective MBAs.    

One of the things I really like about an executive MBA program is that most of the students are at an age where they have been through a few bumps, and they have learned the value of doing, and taking actions.  For the most part, they are in this program because they realize they have some deficiencies and are hoping to find new areas to grow and learn.  I've spoken about it before, but this just seems like another example of setting goals needs to be about something bigger than yourself and needs to look farther ahead than your next trip to Starbucks.

Discussion of the Week (casual) - Where does the Value of the MBA come from?

Sitting a lunch with some classmates this weekend, the conversation revolved to job-hunting, resumes, networking and other things that become top of mind when you read about the economy and layoffs on a daily basis.  The conversation then turned to what value you get from an MBA, especially in terms of it's brand, it's rankings, it's connections, etc...

There were a number of opinions about Wake Forest vs. Wake Forest MBA vs. Wake Forest Executive MBA, and if there should be a distinction between those programs and brands.  There was discussion about how to create opportunities between the Winston-Salem programs and the Charlotte programs (Charlotte is a peer campus for MBA programs).  And there was discussion about how we needed to look for more ways to network and explore with the students within our program.  

My personal opinion is that it's a 30/70 split between the knowledge you learn, and the people/experiences you encounter.  Don't get me wrong, what we read in the books/cases/articles are all very interesting  and valuable, but when you compare that to the 400+ years of experience across 12-15 industries that exists in our classmates, I think that 30/70 breakdown is about right.  

With more focus on case-method learning this semester, I think we're all able to learn more from each other's experience.  I've made it one of my 2009 goals to really focus on learning from my classmates, and I hope that more people make that a priority for themselves too. In December, I think we'll all look back and find ourselves better for taking that approach.

Follow Up: Setting Goals - Part II

About a week ago, I wrote about a conversation I had with a classmate about his goals and concerns about doing something meaningful.  Since then, I've been thinking about that on almost a daily basis, trying to come up with suggestions or examples that he may want to investigate.  

The last night, as I waited on my wife to get ready for dinner, I found myself watching movie previews on TV.  One came up for "Horton Hears a Who", with Jim Carrey providing the voice of Horton.  In an interview, Jim Carrey is talking about his mental approach to the character, and the character's viewpoint on the world.  (NOTE - I wish I could find the interview video online, but I haven't had any luck yet.  Will post it if I can find it.)

About half way through the interview, Carrey talks about making a difference in the world.  He said that people tend to get caught up in the notion that they must do something spectacular, but he disagreed and believe that each of us has the opportunity to make a huge impact by just doing small, positive things on a daily basis.  How we treat people at work.  How we treat our neighbors.  His point was the ripple effect of somehow making somebody's life a little better through a positive attitude, positive feedback and other little things. 

Makes sense to me.  It's funny where good advice or viewpoints can come from.  Sometimes it's a work experience.  Sometimes it's the classroom.  Sometimes it's a comedian and a cartoon.  

Don't be afraid to ask...

I was a latch-key kid in elementary school.  Not a big deal, both of my parents worked full-time and I learned very quickly how to take care of myself.  Good life lesson.  But when you start life like that, you tend to learn how to figure things out for yourself, and aren't inclined to ask others for help or advice.  Needless to say, it's a trait that I've carried with me for most of my adult life.  

One of the great things about MBA programs is that you're surrounded by people with very different backgrounds and experience.  You also tend to interact with them in an environment where some non-work behaviors come out.  Not to mention that you're with these people a lot. So after a while you realize that it might be a good idea to ask their opinion on something. What have you got to lose?  Hopefully their experience will give you a unique angle on something.

Over the last 3-4 weeks, I've asked a few people for some feedback and the responses they gave me were refreshingly honest.  Not only that, they phrased their responses in a way that completely opened my mind to new viewpoints which have been extremely helpful....one on how I interact with classmates, and another on how I might interact with my daughters.  

So to those folks, I am extremely grateful....thank you!!  Maybe this asking concept just might work.  Maybe I need to update my goals to include asking a few more questions of my classmates.

Setting Goals - Part II

I've written about my goals for the MBA program here and here, often focused on how I sometimes struggle to get these well defined.  

Yesterday in class, I had a conversation with a classmate that I really respect. Smart guy, great leadership skills, confident and currently leading his company through some difficult changes. During the break, he made a comment about this blog and we started talking about hobbies, passions and ways that we'd leave our mark on this world.  The conversation basically boiled down to a simple question, "How do you know what you should be doing, and are we doing enough?"

Successful career, good friends, good health, happy marriage and trying like crazy to raise children so they become good members of society.  A lot of people would say that's something to be proud of.  But that doesn't seem to be enough in the MBA mindset.  Most of us are Type-A personalities and our natural inclination is to seek out more.  More of something. But what is that something?

What I've observed is that people at our age seem to fall into three buckets.  

1. Career Climbers - If they aren't running their own business already, they are laser focused on a title or a level.  The job is their life, it's what gives them their sense of pride and worth.  They are willing to make the major sacrifices to get to that desired level or title.
2. Manage the Bar on the Beach - Their end goal doesn't involve a corporation.  They realize that they can make a healthy living and move towards that "after corporation" life by making some sacrifices now, to get that long-term goal.  Their hobbies and personal lifestyle are building towards that next stage goal.
3. Where do I go next? - Smart, Successful, but 'tweeners in some category.  They are completely capable of being that great leader, but they've made sacrifices/decisions (usually family) where they aren't willing to give up everything else for the big job.  They have hobbies, typically activities with good friends, but they don't think of them as next-step-in-life activites.  

The only answer I've been able to find for people in that third group (which is often me), is to experiment and try new things.  Take a chance on failing.  And once you learn a little bit, and find something enjoyable or interesting, see if you can combine it with another or your experiments. 

For example, here's a couple things I'm interested in exploring:

1. I don't give back enough to charities, at least in terms of time (which I don't have much of with the MBA).  As a father, I'm always looking for ways to teach my daughters lessons about life.  And from a business perspective, I'm extremely interested in the alternative energy markets and technologies.  So at some point in 2009, I'm going to explore charities that are involved in alternative energies.  Maybe I'll find one where I can give of my time, involve my girls (or teach them something), and learn something that is business-useful for myself.
2. I've always loved to write, and I've been lucky enough to get some exposure to the publishing world.  Just as I'm doing with this blog, I'd like the opportunity to write about things on a personal level.  I'd love to write fiction, or children's stories.  And if I could find a way to combine that with learning for my daughters (or other children), that would be a bonus.  I've got 100s of thoughts, ideas and sound bytes collected in something I call "Letter's from Daddy", about things I've observed for my girls.  Maybe someday I'll publish these.  

I wish I had a better answer for my classmate, because I really enjoyed the conversation.  I suspect that we'll continue it throughout 2009, and I hope we both can make some progress on finding that something.  

A Welcome Break and a Place to Think

The last couple of weeks have been very strange in terms of activity levels.  MBA classes ended on Dec.6th, and don't resume until Jan.9th, so I'm able to shutoff my B-School brain for a little while. Throw in that my company has decided to shutdown from Christmas to New Year's, and this is about the longest stretch I've ever had of no school or no work.   One of the things I've been doing lately is to create some 2009 plans and goals, both for school and work.  With all the doom and gloom in the media these days, many people are worried that 2009 is going to be miserable, a 21st century depression.  I'm taking a different outlook on 2009.  I think it will be the beginning of huge opportunities for people willing to change the way they think about the world.  It's a year of re-investment in yourself, in education, in new ideas and in new ways of thinking about difficult challenges.   

These aren't minor tweaks I'm talking about here, so it helps to have a place to get away and think.  If you don't already have that place, wherever it might be (coffee shop, in a library, yoga class, rock climbing, etc.), I highly suggest you find one.   Mine is usually in the backyard (pictured above), overlooking the pond.  I find a great set of music on the iPhone, and periodically use QuickVoice to keep track of ideas.  Today was a great example.  Leaves from about 15 trees still needed to be raked and the kids were off with mom at the mall, which meant 2hrs of uninterrupted quiet time for me.  The combination of fresh air, some moderately hard work and nature are a great way to refresh your mind or think clearly.

btw - One of things I thought about today was sort of a combination of two things:  (1) an upcoming Strategic Marketing class, and (2) the 300,000 applicants for 3,300 roles in the Obama administration.  With the odds of success at no better than 1%, how would I go about creating a way to get myself noticed in less than 1 minute (probably less) as the applications are reviewed?  Thinking about this led me to think about all the noise we deal with on a daily basis and how any of us can get ourselves or our products/services noticed in today's world. Needless to say, it generated a number of ideas that I need to explore further in 2009.   

Orientation Week & Team Building - Part I

Most MBA programs are centered around a team-based curriculum.  The thinking being that you learn from others experience, help each other through new concepts, have a part-time support group, and learn how to make decisions in group settings.  In theory this is an excellent model, since the days of benevolent dictators running companies are long gone (even at Apple). 

In the WFU MBA program, you are assigned to a team at the beginning of the program and you stay with that team for the duration.  The teams are usually five to six people, and the administration does it's best to group people with a mix of skills, background, geographic location (for meetings) and any sense of personalities they could interpret from the interview process.  It's definitely not an exact science, and it leads to one of the biggest fears any MBA student has going into the program...What if I get a terrible team, or terrible teammate?  Unlike Fantasy Football, there are no trades allowed.  The team could go "Survivor" and vote a member off the island, but that is extremely rare and involves approval from the administration.  So let's just say, you're keeping your fingers crossed that the stars are aligned, because this group will become your second family for the next 18 months.  

I was assigned to Team 5, which is made up of myself, Matt Kirk, Matt Johnson, Marty Jones, Vish Manickam and Portia Mount.  Geographically were were evenly split between Raleigh and Winston-Salem, and had a decent mix of backgrounds (IT, Marketing, Operations, Healthcare, Banking, High-Tech).  I can say now that I believe we have an outstanding team and a great group of people.  But when we first started, I wasn't completely convinced that we were aligned enough in our goals and motivations to be a great team.  But as the week progressed, and we worked our way through several exploratory activities, it became clearer that we had a strong foundation and great potential for success.  

Prior to Orientation Week, WFU MBA administration sends out a personality survey called "The Big Five", and we got our results back (individual & team) during the week.  As you go through work and life, we all take a number of these surveys and it's always interesting to me to see if you change and how you change.  It's even more interesting to get your results back and have to review them within your team, a group of people that you've never met.  Here is your personality laid out in front of you, and everyone else is trying to slot you into a category or similarity to a previous co-worker.  As we made our way through the 5 traits, we found that we had a reasonable mix of Passive and Aggressive, Introverts and Extroverts, Type-A and Type-A(-), Leaders and Bridge-Builders.  This lead to the next stage in our discovery process...initial peer evaluation.

Instead of asking people to tell us about themselves, the program asked us to give everyone our initial assessment of each other.  What were their strengths, their weaknesses, and what suggestions did we have for each other to improve a strength or weakness.?  This was an interesting process, because not only did we need to read other people, but we also had to determine how we wanted to present this information.  Was it best to be cordial and friendly (maybe sugar-coating), or was it better to be direct?  Do we emphasis the strengths, or try and improve the weaknesses (see Prospect Theory in a much later post)?  Not knowing how anybody would react, there was a real possibility that you could be setting yourself up for a 18month nightmare if you burned a bridge at this stage in the process.   

Throughout the Orientation Week activities, we were alternating between team activities (5-6 people) and entire group activities (32 people).  The next phase was to determine how we prioritized work, life and school.  With the simple question of, "Which is the most important for you?", we broke up into three groups.  The goals here became obvious once we were asked "Why did you choose that priority?"  It wasn't a clear-cut decision, but it was important and would need to be balanced (or sacrificed) against the others.  It also showed us that not everyone had the same priorities, within our team or across the program.  I'll get into this in more detail later, but it was important to understand that we'd have to find a way to work with a group that didn't have consistent priorities, but would ultimately have to have consistent goals and deliverables.   

At this point, we were beginning to understand something about ourselves, a little about the people on our team, and the idea that one of the great challenges of this program was learning how to work well across the broader set of people.  The good news was that this is an incredible set of people, with diverse backgrounds, goals and experiences to share.  Figuring out the best way to blend that with individual learning will be one of the most interesting aspects of this entire experience.