Full-time MBA Program – Page 12 – We empower you to create the future you want

A Few Things Don Draper Taught Me About Business

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Kelley School

by Jared Goldsmith, MBA’16

Jared Goldsmith

The ability to inspire and foster teamwork through writing is a trait of great leadership. Students in the Kelley MBA Leadership Academy, in collaboration with the Gotham Writers Workshop, have produced a series of blog posts to demonstrate these skills.

Don Draper was a big part of my life for several months while I powered through eight seasons of Mad Men on Netflix. The drama of his messed-up personal life made me cringe on a regular basis, but I loved watching him at work. Whether he was motivating employees through means of unnecessary force or delivering a solid pitch to potential clients, I loved every minute of it.

Although I could probably write a novel titled, “Things to NOT do like Don Draper,” there are some powerful lessons and words that he delivered that have helped me become a better leader and motivator.
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MBA Program Update for Kelley MBA Alumni

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Kelley School

By Jonlee Andrews
Faculty Chair of the Kelley Full-Time MBA Program
Kelley School of Business

As a Kelley MBA alum, you are a valuable part of the Full-Time MBA Program and our Kelley network. Your success is our success and vice versa. Our commitment to your future—and your relationship with Kelley—continues long after you receive your degree.

In this letter, I will tell you about some recent changes to the MBA program. I hope it will give you a new perspective on the program and what’s happening in Bloomington.

My Goals

My goals as chair are to bring in and train the absolute best MBA students; to support them while they’re here at Kelley, and to continue the relationship once they graduate. Our biggest measure of success is the success of our alumni—like you. These goals have resulted in a number of positive changes to the program (and many wonderful traditions remain). I’ll tell you about two of them below.
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The Imperative (& Art) of Challenging Assumptions

Posted on March 25, 2016 by Kelley School

Scott Mautz

Guest blogger Scott Mautz, MBA’94 is an award-winning keynote speaker and 20+ year veteran of Procter & Gamble, where he currently runs the company’s largest, multi-billion dollar business. He is also the author of the book Make It Matter: How Managers Can Motivate by Creating Meaning.

There is a silent, guiding force in your life that has more influence than you can imagine. We instinctively know the impact that friends and family have on how we live our lives. We know how powerful our dreams and aspirations can be for affecting how we carry on. We know how our desire to be healthy can affect our habits or how our romantic interest in someone can affect our behavior. All are forces in our world as seen and felt like a driving rain.

But do we ever stop to really consider how the assumptions we make shape and mold our actions, behaviors, and our lives? The impact is profound. Our assumptions can derail dreams, stop progress in its tracks, self-imposed limits, create self-fulfilling prophecies, distort motives and harm relationships, kill creativity, and lead us down unwanted paths. Some assumptions we make with great awareness, many are on autopilot running our lives and guiding our decisions like a subconscious consigliere. (more…)

Are You Networking? You Should Be

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Kelley School

Kendell Brown

By Kendell Brown, Associate Director of Alumni Career Services

I’m often asked, “What should I be doing now to prepare for my career in the long term?” Time after time, my response is “networking!” Staying in touch with colleagues, friends and classmates to catch them up on what’s happening with you and learn about what’s going on with them is the single best thing you can do for your career.

No matter how you network—email updates, lunch chats, Friday phone calls—touching base keeps you and your skills top of mind with your network. Simply put, networking is the best way to prepare for an advancement opportunity or overcome an unexpected job loss.

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Bloomington Audit: Dan Pickering, MBA’16

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Kelley School

Dan Pickering

Not only is the Kelley MBA program among the top in the world, so is our location—Bloomington, Indiana. A top college town with an amazing college campus, Bloomington boasts natural beauty, a low cost of living, and is nationally noted as a best place for food, theater, music, and adventure. In our ongoing #BtownAudit series, Kelley MBA students share some of their favorite things in Bloomington. Enjoy these top picks from Dan Pickering, MBA’16.

Memorial Stadium

Feeling the sun on your face on a crisp fall Saturday watching college football is a great experience, and Indiana Memorial Stadium is as good a spot as any to enjoy this. Don’t get me wrong, Hoosier fans definitely put basketball first, but they also love their football. The tree-lined, grass tailgate fields are full hours before kickoff, the team is on the upswing, and Coach Kevin Wilson has the team playing with record-setting offensive explosiveness that is really fun to watch.

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You! Go First.

Posted on March 22, 2016 by Kelley School

Ken Frankel

by Ken Frankel, MBA’16

Great leadership includes the ability to write in a way that inspires and fosters teamwork. In collaboration with the Gotham Writers Workshop, students in the Kelley MBA Leadership Academy have produced a series of blog posts to demonstrate these skills.

The room had gone silent. Sixty people were suspended in a momentary limbo of uncertainty. Eric Johnson, Kelley School’s director of Graduate Career Services and the Leadership Academy, had just initiated a role-playing exercise focused on leadership coaching. Someone had to volunteer to ask the first question.

To us amateur coaches, a coaching discussion felt like trying to have a conversation backward. After a long pause with Eric scanning the room, I raised my hand and cautiously strung together some coherent words that loosely resembled a question. While Eric graciously revealed that my question wasn’t the ideal starting point, at least it kicked off the exercise.

I share this scene not to highlight the need for courage, but rather to highlight my extroversion, which leads me to think more after I speak instead of before – for better or for worse. Fortunately, this extroversion has actually been a critical factor in enabling me to successfully transition from being a follower to being someone that can lead, which in this case, meant speaking first. (more…)

Bloomington Audit: Cying Wu, MBA’16

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Kelley School

Cying Wu

Red Restaurant

Looking for an authentic Chinese food, Red Restaurant is the place to go. The restaurant does not have a noticeable sign outside. Most people would drive right pass by it. It’s a nice cozy restaurant that hides many delicious dishes. The diverse menu at Red Restaurant can definitely satisfy every flavor that you are craving that day – from braised fish with tofu, sautéed greens, and beef with hot and spicy cumin sauce to the hot pot, fried rice, and Asian sweets. If you have not had a chance to travel to China, Red Restaurant would certainly bring out the authentic Chinese vibe through their delicious food and welcoming staff.
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Bloomington Audit: Ashley Sprawls, MBA’16

Posted on March 16, 2016 by Kelley School

Ashley Sprawls

Vibe Yoga

I love yoga. It gives me energy, diffuses stress and is one form of exercise I actually really enjoy! Vibe Yoga Studio is my favorite place for yoga in Bloomington. Vibe offers a variety of classes – Vinyasa and Hatha styles, heated and non-heated, Pilates, yoga sculpt and meditation classes. And, the instructors are excellent. With such a busy schedule, I appreciate that the studio offers classes throughout the day (6 a.m. to 9 p.m.) as well as student discounts!

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Early-Career Communication Part 3: Leading Without Authority

Posted on March 10, 2016 by Kelley School

Kendell Brown

By Kendell Brown, Associate Director of Graduate Career Services

Articulating a vision and getting people to work toward that vision is formidable for many. Motivating clients, peers and other key stakeholders can be particularly challenging for someone who doesn’t have a title that commands action. However, for you to be personally successful, that success has to come as part of a broader effort. I am going to highlight 4 characteristics that can help you lead despite having no specific authority to do so.

Speak confidently.

If you speak confidently and in a manner that underscores a belief in what you are saying, you are likely to get others to agree. Meaning people want to follow the lead of someone that appears knowledgeable and self-assured.

It is necessary to note that sometimes people will undermine their own confidence by saying things like “I’m not sure, if you’ll agree” or “Is that in line with what you were thinking?” When you are rallying people and getting them to do what you want – refrain from using qualifying and confirmatory language, it will weaken you and your ideas. Instead focus on speaking with certainty and assurance.

Present a clear vision.

Another way to ensure that stakeholders listen to and respect your ideas is to present a clear vision. The vision is the compass for your project and the keystone of your idea.

What can you do to ensure colleagues will adhere to your vision? First, provide an end goal – it helps people get on board. Think of the end goal as a destination. When everyone shares a common goal, or destination, they are likely going to also share an understanding of why a certain path is necessary. Consequently, when everyone knows the end goal they will begin to appreciate how their contributions will support that goal.

Be flexible.

The third way to be a strong yet informal leader is to be flexible. While you may be the one with the great idea, you must admit that you don’t know everything. So while it is key to state your point of view, it is equally critical to be receptive to the opinions of others. Listening to others is valuable because an outside idea may be just what is needed to make a good idea, a great one. Additionally, when you give people an opportunity to include their viewpoint in your plans, they are more likely to support the vision and goal you’ve laid out.

Be open to feedback.

Lastly, be open to feedback and solicit it regularly. Without feedback, you won’t know how your leadership is perceived by others and by extension whether it is effective. Therefore, take time to ask how things are going and check-in to see if people are still engaged. Getting feedback often, gives you time to course correct, if necessary. Furthermore, periodic feedback gives you a chance to know what’s working well and thus what you want to continue.

So while you may not have formal authority to get some things done, the strategies I’ve described are always available to you to informally and indirectly influence.

Why Kelley School Is Great Place to Get A Finance MBA

Posted on February 19, 2016 by Kelley School

Rebecca Cook

Rebecca Cook, MBA’96, is the Director of Coaching and Development for Kelley School’s Graduate Career Services. Prior to joining IU in 2009, Rebecca Cook was a portfolio manager and senior equity analyst with Voyageur Asset Management. She has over 13 years of investment management and non-profit experience.

Sometimes we spend too much time buried in the weeds and not enough time looking at the big picture.

Deciding to get an MBA is a big decision – I know it was for me when I went through the process. We look at rankings, review various publications, and get advice from friends and family. It is easy to get lost in the minutia of this ranking vs. that ranking, why one says one thing and another says something else, yet we really need to take a step back. What should someone be looking at when they evaluate MBA programs?

Make Your Campus Visit Count

I knew I wanted to get a degree in finance but wasn’t sure where the best place was to do that. I spent time evaluating rankings and getting advice on one school vs. another, and realized that I needed to look at what the school could provide for me throughout my career.

I visited all of the schools that I applied to (as well as a few that I didn’t), which was really the best way to see a program. My future classmates were going to be the people that I stayed connected to for my career. I met with students, staff and professors, sat in on a class, reviewed the alumni presence and wandered around the campus. I also met with the career counselors to see how the school could really help me to be successful.

I found that the culture of a program and the ability of that program to help me define who I wanted to be and then help me get there were THE most important things.

Seek Key Indicators for A Successful Finance Career

Kelley really fit everything I was looking for, as it has for countless other MBAs since I graduated:

The finance faculty is amazing and does a great job of teaching you both the academic side and the experiential side of learning.
The career services team works with you on an individualized basis to help you figure out what companies you are interested in and helps to connect you with companies and key alumni in the finance industry.
Top firms consistently recruit Kelley MBAs because of their knowledge, humility and adaptability.
Your academy directors help to expand your experiential learning through projects, visiting companies and alumni presentations, so you are ready on “day one” for that internship.
Kelley School is recognized as a leading school where MBA graduates can earn $100k-plus in finance.

I chose Kelley for these reasons and have never had a moment’s regret on that decision. The program helped me to have a very successful career in finance and then pulled me back “home” to work for it now.

My Goals

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