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On March 15th, the Evening MBA Association hosted an event featuring a talk by CEO John J. Nora of Workplace Transformation Inc. The goal of the event was to give MBAs the opportunity to interact closely with a CEO of a very successful, international consulting firm, allowing them to ask questions and seek advice. Drawing approxi-mately (40) MBAs, the event was a great success as the CEO focused the seminar on his business experience, thoughts on International Consulting, business leadership and Workplace Transforma-tion’s “Pillars of High Performance.”
Workplace Transformation Inc. ( www.workplacetransform.com ) is an International business consulting firm that offers expert personalized services helping clients successfully meet the global competitive challenge facing all industries today. They specialize in comprehensive, custom-designed change leading to measur-able bottom-line results. By applying these principles in nearly 20 industries and 150 facilities all over the world, John J. Nora and his team have built a very successful firm which we as future business leaders can learn from and emulate.
After sharing his personal experiences, thoughts on consulting and leadership, the speaker pro-ceeded to give the MBAs a peek into his formula for business success—5 Pillars of High Perform-ance. A steady, firm and pleasant gentleman, John J. Nora made a clear and energetic presenta-tion using Power Point and many, many Flip charts much like a University Professor with an ever-present, results oriented/practical approach. (cont. on page 3)
John Shelburg— Ann Arbor Section
Venkat Reddivari—Wayne County Section
Jack Nora Visits the Ross School of Business
I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :
Message from the President
2
Meet the Lead-ers
4
Fall Recruiting Guide
5
Rosie’s Corner 10
Student Show-case
11
Contact Info 16
2007 Football Schedule
15
REG IONAL GOLF OUT ING WINNER S ! ! !
E V E N I N G M B A A S S O C I A T I O N
R O S S S C H O O L O F B U S I N E S S
The Evening News S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 7 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
S P E C I A L
P O I N T S O F
I N T E R E S T :
• Check out our
website at bus.umich.edu/evemba
• Fall Recruiting
Guide inside
• Don’t forget to check out Rosie’s Corner
P A G E 2
Message from the President
T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
I would like to welcome all of the incoming Evening MBA students to the Ross Community. Congratulations! This is the first step in a once in a lifetime experience. I am sure that all of you will get a lot out of the school, and I know that the school will be enriched by having you as part of our community. I would like to take this op-portunity to encourage you to get involved as soon as possible. While going to classes is a big part of the education, there is much to be learned from joining the myriad clubs on campus and interacting with the diverse student body. Take this opportunity to challenge yourself and meet the students that are around you. Do not limit yourself to associating solely with Evening MBA students; the school is filled with interesting Day students who have experiences much different from yours. Meet as many people as you can, and participate in as many clubs and organizations that you feel passion-ate about. Do not limit yourself to the business school as we have the good fortune of being part of one of the best educational institu-tions in the world, with renowned faculty and talented students from different disciplines from Law to Dance. Take advantage of every-thing the University has to offer, this is a great school and I am sure you will love it here.
Welcome!
Marwan Rateb
President
Evening MBA Association
Jack Nora (cont. from page 1) P A G E 3 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
The crash course on “Transforming the Workplace” started as John J. Nora established a few term definitions and then led into the practical models (“Pillars of High Performance”), which he uses to transform any given client. The systems discussed included:
Leadership Development
Continuous Improvement (“C.I. Process”)
Workforce Development (“JOBS System”)
Short Term Directed Improvement (“PRIDE Process”)
Structure and Support Systems
The students were quick to learn that “Workplace Transfor-mation” is not magical or necessarily quick—it must be understood, believed and fully implemented using the right combination of systems at the right time and in the right way.
After reviewing the 5 Pillars of High Performance, John J. Nora proceeded to quiz the students on the material he had presented to ensure that the principles were understood. The quiz which he facilitated consisted of mini-cases (similar to consulting case competitions) which could be solved by applying some of the models he presented. This was an interesting experience because one could observe the Ross B-School training for critical thinking and practical application in action!! Any student who solved a case cor-rectly was awarded with a FREE signed copy of the speak-ers’ new book, Lead the Way, courtesy of the Tauber Insti-tute for Global Operations.
At first we expected that Nora was going to spout off a bunch of consultant jargon (like other consultant counterparts we've seen), but he actually went into the details of applying Leadership concepts and his Pillars of High Performance in a highly practical and understandable way. Just like the "Transformers" . . . CEO John J. Nora showed us that when it comes to transforming the workplace, there is “more than meets the eye.”
There were many positive comments about the event and John J. Nora (a Spartan, U of D MBA & J.D.) expressed that he also enjoyed the event, even though he was on “Wolverine soil” during the football season. The board would like to thank all of the students who came to this event and our co-sponsors for their contributions (Consulting Club and Tauber Institute for Global Opera-tions). The Ross Business School would also like to thank CEO John J. Nora and his team for making the time to pro-vide an inside perspective on consulting, leading a business and for “Transforming” our minds as MBAs and future business leaders.
T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
P A G E 4
We make great leaders... There are several Evening Students holding leadership positions on campus. Please see the list be-
low of Evening Students and their offices. Their contact information has been included so please
feel free to reach out to them with questions
Planning to recrui t in the fa l l???
Want a head start on the dos and don’ts???
Automotive club
Neeraj Singhal, Director of Corporate Relations/Recruiting
Lesli Agcaoili, VP Evening MBA,
Asia Business Conference
Latha Arabandi (Co-Chair) - ([email protected] )
Murali Arcot (Director - Logistics)- ([email protected])
Black Business Students Association—BBSA
Ante' Britten - Evening MBA Rep and The Alfred L. Ed-
wards 32nd Annual BBSA conference Co Chair,
Tiffani Moses - Historian, ([email protected])
Community Consulting Club
Jaydeo Kinikar (VP of Evening MBAs)
Jay Nayegandhi (Director of Technology)
Consulting Club
Tom Lytle, VP for Evening MBAs
Enterpreneur and Venture Club
Jason Townsend— [email protected]
Evening MBA Relations Chair
Finance Club
VP Evening MBA – Hemant Gandhi ([email protected])
VP Research – Anurag Tandon ([email protected])
General management club
VP Corporate Relations, Madhu Barman
VP Evening Students , Jaspinder (Jesse) Singh
Health care and Life Sciences Club
Shantanu Dhamija - VP Education
Marketing Club
Carolyn Ceccoli VP of Corporate Trips)
Net Impact Evening MBA Liasion
Bala Arunachalam ([email protected])
The Evening MBA Association would like to extend a warm welcome to the in-coming class for Winter 2006.
We hope you have a fruitful and stimulating experience here at Ross. We’re looking forward to seeing you at some of the Evening MBA events.
P A G E 5
Fall RECRUITING GUIDE
With the fall recruiting season fast approaching there is a significant amount of preparation that students should have done over the summer. Below is a suggested timeline for what should have been done over the summer to get ready for the upcoming recruiting season, so if you are planning on recruiting this season, make sure you have done all of the following; for those recruiting next year, this is a preview for what you can look forward to before recruiting:
Timeline
Step 1: Early May: Self-Assessment (goal: pick 1 primary function)
Step 2: Late May: Research companies (goal: ranked list of 15 companies to approach)
Step 3: June: Resume (task: get it reviewed 1 to 2 times by OCD)
Step 4: July: Interview (task: go through 1 or 2 OCD mock interviews)
Step 5: August: Planning for Sep to Nov
Step 6: May to Sep: Case practice for those interested in consulting
Self-Assessment The question: “Why consulting” or “Why high-tech” is THE most important one in the interview. You are not going to be able to answer it well without lots of research and soul-searching during the self-assessment phase. Most students move too quickly through this step. They pick something because it sounds interesting without really thinking it through. In the fall, they are not able to really articulate why this career function fits them. Then they don’t get the job. Then it’s back to Step 1 (self-assessment). You don’t want to be back at self-assessment in November. The question is: do I feel passionate for this function? If you don’t, you are not done with self-assessment. If you DO feel passionate, are you able to articulate an answer in a personally genuine way? Most MBA’s spout a very generic answer. Chances are, you answer isn’t good either. So work on it. Can you also relate why your past work experience and MBA degree points you towards this function? You need passion. Self-assessment is the process to figure out what you have a passion for.
No job search is completely effective until you know what you want to do and why. A lot of people go to the office of career development already clamoring for resume reviews. But do these students have a strong sense of what they want to do with their life? If so, then let’s look at your resume. If not, let’s continue to do self-assessment.
You see, creating a resume makes people feel that they’re doing “something” about their career. However, it really doesn’t help with your goal of finding the right job. In fact, it’s sometime a hindrance in that when you start at Step 3, you may find out too late that you’ve been chasing after the wrong thing.
When you’re 18, chasing after the wrong thing is OK. You get the job, you hate the job, you quit and find something else. When you are in your 20’s, that’s still OK, sort of. When you are in your 30’s, people view your functional career switches with suspicion. You do not have the luxury of “trying something”, because if you hate it and you want some-thing different, you are going to need a pretty darned good explanation. What this means is that you better pick wisely now because from now on, change is getting more difficult. So do your self-assessment !
V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
The Evening MBA Association would like to extend a warm welcome to the in-coming class for Winter 2006.
We hope you have a fruitful and stimulating experience here at Ross. We’re looking forward to seeing you at some of the Evening MBA events.
P A G E 6
Fall RECRUITING GUIDE
Research Companies
Hopefully, you have picked a primary function. You should be devoting at least 75% of your recruiting efforts to the primary function. Students with one primary function generally out-perform students with two primary functions (or, gasp*, three functions). Now is the time to develop a list of companies to research. By the end of the summer, you'll have narrowed down the list of "companies to research" to "companies to approach".
You can start out with as many companies on your "companies to research" list as you want. Just make sure you have time to do the research. By the end of August, you'll probably want to have a ranked list of 15 (plus or minus) "companies to approach". Some of these companies are on-campus and some are off. This list of companies will help keep you focused during the crazy September days. If a company is not on your "company to approach" list, don't go to their presentation.
Let me play out a typical scenario for you. You start with 50 companies to research. (30 in your primary function and 20 in your secondary function) By September, you have narrowed down your list to 10 companies in the primary function and 5 companies in the secondary function. Let's say that all the companies in the secondary function are off-campus. So, you'll deal with them later. For September, you'll plan to go to as many events for those 10 companies as possible. By December, you decide that you want to apply for positions in 7 of the 10 companies. So you drop your resume for those 7 companies in Dec/Jan. You get close listed with 4 companies. You bid for the 3 other companies and receive 2 interviews. You go to the interview process with those 6 companies. I'll explain later why having fewer interviews may actually benefit you.
In the summer, how do you narrow down the companies? You have to identify the factors that are important. Some factors include, culture, health of company, geographic location. If it's important to you, include it as a factor. Then gather as much information as you can about those factors through reading and talking to people. At the end of the summer, have a ranked list.
Resume
You should now be focused on your resume. You should plan to have one resume per functional focus. I don't sug-gest a one-size-fits-all resume. A consulting resume looks different from a marketing resume. Neither do I suggest hav-ing 15 resumes either. I think 2 or 3 are appropriate. If you're wondering what to put on your resume, please refer to the Resume Workshop recently completed.
http://www.bus.umich.edu/StudentCareerServices/JobSearchResources/HandoutsResources/WorkshopsPresentations.htm
If you want to look at example resumes from previous years, you can stop by the Career Center to look at old resume books. The deadline for having your resume "published" is July 14th. Although I recommend you do not wait until the last minute. I would recommend that you have OCD look at your resume once before you publish it.
T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
The Evening MBA Association would like to extend a warm welcome to the in-coming class for Winter 2006.
We hope you have a fruitful and stimulating experience here at Ross. We’re looking forward to seeing you at some of the Evening MBA events.
P A G E 7
Fall RECRUITING GUIDE
Interview
The interview is the most important job search skill. Your resume and networking may get you the interview, but the interview gets you the job. However, I've observed that students do not like practicing interviews; they spend a lot more time instead on their resumes, to their detriment. One of the biggest weaknesses observed in Evening students is that they do not interview well because of lack of practice.
I strongly recommend that you get 1 or 2 mock interviews under your belt before a real interview. If you're going into consulting, you'll have to practice many more cases of course. The interview tends to have 2 main components: Fit and Technical. Not all companies have a technical component, but all companies have a fit component. Let's talk about the Fit component today. In a fit interview, they are looking for the following:
Why do you want to work here?
What is your story (background)?
Why should we hire you? What skills or characteristics set you apart from other candidates?
For each company you wish to pursue, have a 30 second version and a 2 minute version that you can tell. If you took 30 minutes or less to develop the responses to the above questions, you probably will not do well in the interviews. This task requires some serious research and reflection. Hours. So before you show up at a mock interview, be ready to answer the 3 questions above, which are the main parts of the fit interview.
Interviews & Networking
The mock interview is the most important thing you can do to secure a job. If you are still working on your resume past July 14th, you are behind. I hate to be blunt, but that’s the truth. It’s time to move on from resumes to practicing interviews. Interviews are in 3 months and most of you are not yet competitive, in terms of interview skills, with the day students who already have extensive experience with MBA recruiting.
While networking is generally encouraged, please be judicious in your networking. Sending short emails to recruiters in July/August to request time to speak is not necessarily a good strategy. In fact, that recruiter is probably bom-barded with such emails. Make sure you don’t spam recruiters. I would actually recommend that you talk to friends and acquaintances first and then talk to recruiters in September. In the beginning, you are not likely to have a great grasp of the industry, and that’s actually not a good time to talk to recruiters. It’ll expose your lack of knowledge. Rather, talk to friends and acquaintances in the industry first to build your base of knowledge.
V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
The Evening MBA Association would like to extend a warm welcome to the in-coming class for Winter 2006.
We hope you have a fruitful and stimulating experience here at Ross. We’re looking forward to seeing you at some of the Evening MBA events.
P A G E 8
Fall RECRUITING GUIDE
Corporate Presentations
Each year, many students who go to corporate presentations are not prepared for the type of interactions they en-counter. Many students think that these events are informal Q&A type sessions. However, corporate recruiters put on these events with the expectation that students who attend will be highly polished and on their best behavior. The difference in these expectations sometimes cause recruiters and even other students to be offended when a student does not show the proper etiquette during these events (often in the form of asking improper questions, and show-ing up late).
These breaches in etiquette can cause the recruiter to have negative perceptions of the student, the program, and the school. We’ve recently had a few instances of inappropriate behavior at recruiting events from evening students. I ask that students who attend corporate events be familiar with the etiquette guidelines beforehand. Please read through the "Corporate Presentation Etiquette" slides under "Networking I" via the following link:
http://www.bus.umich.edu/StudentCareerServices/JobSearchResources/HandoutsResources/WorkshopsPresentations.htm This is especially important for students who plan on attending corporate presentations in the coming year. For stu-dents who observe inappropriate behavior during presentations, it is OK to respectfully point out poor behavior.
In the end, in order to conduct a successful career search, I would recommend that you treat all contacts with recruit-ers with care.
The above are excerpts from e-mails from Antonius Tsai Assistant Director of the Office of Career Development – Ca-reer Center. His e-mail address is: [email protected].
T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
The Evening MBA Association would like to extend a warm welcome to the in-coming class for Winter 2006.
We hope you have a fruitful and stimulating experience here at Ross. We’re looking forward to seeing you at some of the Evening MBA events.
P A G E 9
Corporate Presentations
Etiquette Guidelines
- Some students attend recruiting events lacking an understanding of etiquette for these events.
- When students exhibit inappropriate behavior, recruiters gain a negative perception of not only the student, but of
the school as a whole, affecting everyone.
- Read the following guidelines and follow them to enhance the success of your own career search as well as the reputation of the School as a good place to recruit.
WHY?
1 Show up on time. Do not leave early. People entering and leaving in the middle of a presentation is a distraction. It is also rude. If the
event is worth attending, it is worth showing up on time and staying until the end. If you are late, wait until the formal presentation is over to enter. If multiple presentations are simultaneously occurring, go to one only and find another channel to network with the other.
2 Do not use laptops or cell phones. Pay attention to the presentation. Lack of attention causes students to ask questions that are already
covered. Do not check email. Turn off cell phones. 3 Ask appropriate questions. Not everything that you are curious about is appropriate to ask. The answers to some things can be
had through alternate means and people. Think first before asking. There is an art to asking thoughtful questions.
4 Dress appropriately. Business casual is the recommended attire for most presentations. Casual clothing such as jeans,
shorts, and t-shirts are strongly discouraged at presentations and office hours. Wear clothes that are appropriate for a business environment. When in doubt, more formal is safer.
5 Let each person have a chance to speak. You are being evaluated on your social acumen. Good social acumen is a balance of assertiveness as
well as deference to others. Don't feel as if the presentation is the only opportunity to network. You can continue to network afterwards.
6 Eat and drink in moderation. Consuming in moderation facilitates social interaction. Remember, this is not dinner. When there is
alcohol, always be aware of your intake. Do not eat food at a presentation that you did not attend. Do not attend presentations just to eat food.
GUIDELINES
- Treat any contact with a recruiter as if you are being evaluated. (because you are) - Read and follow the guidelines above. - Students who observe inappropriate behavior should respectfully point out to the other that such behavior has
taken place.
YOUR ROLE
V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
Hello Evening MBAs!
Verify your “E-Mail Forwarding Address” please:
As you know, I send e-mails to all Evening MBAs and also receive undeliverable e-mails. Here's the link to ITCS's web page on email forwarding: http://www.itd.umich.edu/itcsdocs/s4279/
Course Locations:
Some of you will be taking classes in the Fall at the Oakland County or Town Center classroom. Please note that Oakland County hours are ONLY when there are classes. The classroom is located in the 3000 Building, Suite 82, Southfield, MI. 48075.
For directions to Commerce Park, Ann Arbor and Oakland County/Town Center classroom, please copy and paste the following link: https://www.bus.umich.edu/academics/eveningmba/MapsDirections.htm#CourseLocations
Please copy and paste the Town Center Website that also provides directions. www.southfieldtowncenter.com
Reminder about the “resources page” on the Evening MBA Website
http://www.bus.umich.edu/Academics/EveningMba/. At the homepage, just click on the “Current Students” link on the left hand side of the screen, and it will take you to many resources that appear in alphabetical order from left to right.
Throughout the academic year, I receive e-mails from students requesting “Core Course Waiver Information,” “Dropping/Adding Classes,” “Requests for Letters, Forms, etc.” These resources are available by just clicking on the selected link.
As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Best Regards,
Rosalinda (Rosie) Givens
Program Associate
Evening MBA Program
Stephen M. Ross School of Business
University of Michigan
Room #E2612
Telephone: 734-763-7233
P A G E 1 0
Rosie’s Corner
T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
Rosalinda (Rosie) Givens Program Associate Evening MBA Program Stephen M. Ross School of Business University of Michigan Room #E2612 Telephone: 734-763-7233 [email protected]
Student Showcase: Anurang Tandon
P A G E 1 1 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
The Big Decision When I first started the evening MBA program in the fall of 2005 I never thought I would quit work-ing to focus on the program ‘full time’. During my first semester I took 6 credit hours and created the same spreadsheets you all have detailing out how to best take advantage of my company’s tuition reimbursement program and how to complete the academic requirements of the program. At the time, DTE Energy Services offered $7,500 a year in reimbursement and a 2 year vesting timeframe. I figure 4 years was enough time to optimizes my interest, tuition reimbursement and allow for me to take the courses I wanted to. During my second semester I took 7.5 credit hours and with 13.5 credits under my belt, decided to take spring and summer semesters off.
During the summer of 2006 I finally built up the courage to quit and focus on the MBA process full time. I sort of woke up one morning with the realization that I was not getting the full benefit of the program, nor was I being able to give it my all at work and that I was finally willing to take the risk. I consciously and subconsciously agonized over the decision for months.
Like many of you I wrestled over the fear of uncertain employment prospects, lack of salary, being able to fit in and basically making the right decision. In the end here is how I thought about many of the issues:
• Money – although my current salary and benefits were probably above average for the evening program, I felt that that I could accelerate them by switching careers. Often times we look at starting salaries in absolute terms and don’t compare the NPV of future earnings. Five years from now are you going to be making significantly more in your current job or in another ca-reer? Will you salary be accelerating at 3-5% (if your lucky) or by 8-10%? Or 20%? How about bonus potential? Work life bal-ance? I felt the full time MBA career switching opportunities would help me double or triple my salary increase expectations and help me achieve a better work/life balance.
• Career Path – with 9 years of Corporate Finance experience, I felt that if I didn’t at least try something different I would re-gret it the rest of my life and be stuck in my pre-MBA career path. I didn’t want to be one of those bitter old guys with thousands of ‘would of’, ‘should of’ and ‘could of’ stories. No excuses became my motto. I decided to at least give myself the opportunity to create a change. I thought that worst case I would know who I was, what I had the potential to do and would be doing the same type of thing I was pre-MBA. Like they said at the end of the GI Joe cartoons, “knowing is half the battle”.
• Ability to Fit In – I had the opportunity to take a Friday all-day course (World Economy) that was primarily made up of day MBA’s. This gave me the opportunity to get to know the culture of the day MBA program, helped me become more comfortable with my decision and to ‘step out of my comfort zone’. One pet peeve I have of actually both programs is that we are very ‘clicky’. Once we find a group of individuals we like to form groups with we stick with them. The day MBA’s are the same and it was tough to initially break in. That is one thing I wish both programs would focus on changing. I have seen some really mean stuff go down with group formations.
• Career Mobility – With an undergraduate degree from Wayne State University and 9 years of work experience at DTE En-ergy getting a job outside of Southeastern Michigan was going to be a challenge. Having a Michigan MBA would help immensely but being able to network and travel would help as well. I felt that quitting work to focus on the MBA was a clear signal to employ-ers that I was not only limited to the SE Michigan geographic region.
• Networking Opportunities – Another reason I decided to quit working was the ability to network with individuals with differ-ent backgrounds and with different career experiences. The day MBA program is not constrained by geography.
• Challenge/Believing in One’s Self – How many of us really feel challenged in our current positions at work? By focusing on the program full time I felt that I would be forced to challenge myself and really push the limits of my skill set. I also felt that if I didn’t believe in myself to quit working and pursue an MBA full time how could anyone else ever believe in me as a leader?
• Ability to Travel – While working full time it is nearly impossible for us evening MBA’s to attend Wall Street Forum, West Coast Forum, visit London, participate in an international exchange or learn about the European Union in Koblenz, Germany. Having only traveled to England, India and Canada (does that even count?) as my international adventures, I am eager to see the world. (More on this in another article).
P A G E 1 2
T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
(Cont. from previous page)
• Clubs and Other Stuff – Since Monday through Friday are devoted to work and taking classes; the weekends devoted to group projects and family time, when can we find time to get involved with club activities or to pursue career opportunities. I felt that I could get an academic education from picking up books but the real value of the Michigan MBA was the ‘other stuff’ like clubs and career events. By quitting I could get a better value for my time and dollar. Also when I took days off work I felt bad about trying to enrich my life. If my employer frowned on me for taking Friday off to attend Entrepalooza or leaving at 4.30PM to attend a corporate presentation or leaving at 6.50 to attend a 7pm course, was this really the environment I wanted to spend my career in?
about trying to enrich my life. If my employer frowned on me for taking Friday off to attend Entrepalooza or leaving at 4.30PM to attend a corporate presentation or leaving at 6.50 to attend a 7pm course, was this really the environment I wanted to spend my career in?
• Learning on the Job – The benefit of being able to directly apply what one learns in class on the job the next morning can not be replicated by quitting. Even with MAP or I-Map or the internship, this is one aspect that I disliked giving up. For both Pro-fessor Browns Marketing course and Professor Ziedonis’s Strategy course I was able to directly apply and integrate the course material.
• Health Care Insurance – The university does provide health care insurance but at an expensive cost. I believe there are different contract terms, but it was around $1,000-$1,500/ month depending on the size of one’s family, maybe more.
• Financial Aid/Student Loans – Don’t worry about money. Period. Well, not period, there is plenty of money available for student loans so making ends meet won’t be a problem. There is enough money that you won’t have to live on a tight budget unless you choose to. Also I believe an investment in our education will appreciate significantly faster than the depreciation in the Michigan housing market.
• Changing Classification – The biggest advantage to changing classification from an evening MBA to a day time MBA is the ability to drop your resume for the internship process. (I will elaborate on this in another article). But as an evening MBA you can take part with everything else and it’s not that big of a deal if you are well prepared. Also there are many advantages to stay-ing classified as an evening MBA.
• Proper Preparation for Interviews – Bottom line - it is extremely difficult to compete with individuals who spend day and night preparing for interviews. Contrary to popular belief, day MBA’s don’t spend all there time drinking and screwing off, many work very hard to obtain jobs and internships, it is tough to compete while trying to balance work, school and family.
Why Can’t I? –Are the constraints and problems I perceive really much greater than someone from India or China or Brazil who is not fluent in English and has a husband or wife and children to support in a country they have never visited more or less of an excuse to quit everything and go for an MBA? No matter what roadblocks we perceive to success someone always has a tougher path and is making it work.
So that is basically why I decided to quit working and to focus on the MBA process full time. I feel that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for all of us and I wanted to maximize my benefit. Since I am trying to write a number of these articles, I probably failed to mention something. Feel free to email me at [email protected] and we can discuss. Also, I believe that the Michigan Evening MBA program has the potential to be the best; it is up to the students to find a way to make it the best!
Good Luck and Go Blue!
P A G E 1 3 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1
Mark your calendars for the 15th Annual Women in Leadership Conference on
Friday, September 28th.
Registration details will be forthcoming.
Ann Arbor's Linux Box, last year's sponsor, came back this year to sponsor Evening MBA Association Annual Case Competition. In the event, 15 teams of Evening MBA students submitted growth strategy proposals designed for Linux Box's future Chicago, Ill. office. "The open source movement is characterized by a spirit of giving back and sharing insights," said Linux Box CEO Elizabeth Ziph. "We've sponsored this competition for two years with that spirit in mind. We welcome the opportunity to interact with the MBA students and University of Michigan faculty and hope to maintain this partnership into the future." The top three proposals were presented to Linux Box representatives, who judged the recommendations based on industry understanding, creativity and usefulness of implementation. Students Mark Birac and Anil Jacob, members of the Maximus team, were awarded the grand prize, dinner for two at The Earle in Ann Arbor. Team ADAPTECH (Narayan Vishwakarma and Amarnath Gudlavalleti) was the first-runner up. Team Evergreen (Steve Sullivan and Michael Charette) rounded out the top 3. "Cases like these help sharpen our analytical skills, apply learned business knowledge and teach us to solve problems and deliver solutions to CEOs of businesses under extremely tight deadlines," said Mark Birac, evening MBA student and winner of the 2007 case study competition. His teammate, Anil Jacob, added, "the Linux Box competition is particularly exciting because we got to work with a local growing business, to meet with the people involved, and to provide strategic recommendations for their growth and expansion plans." Reference: http://www.glitr.com/Article.asp?id=451102&spid=
Evening MBA Case Competition
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T H E E V E N I N G N E W S
International Exchange Program at Ross School of Business - Minas Mezedur, Evening MBA 2007, Bain & Company
Each year, the Center for International Business Education at Ross selects approximately 20 MBA students to par-ticipate in the International Exchange Program—a semester long study-abroad program with partner business schools in Europe, Asia, and Australia. This is a great opportunity, particularly for Evening MBAs, to experience the full time MBA life, interact with students from other top programs worldwide, and pursue international opportu-nities across the globe. As a part of this program in 2007, I took a four-month educational leave from my full-time work and represented Ross at the London Business School (LBS) in the UK. In the following paragraphs, I am happy to share this great experience with you. I joined the Ross School of Business in the fall 2004 with a dream of working at a top tier strategy consulting firm in Europe. Thanks to the International Exchange Program, I expanded my personal horizons, reached my profes-sional goal, and completed my transformation into a global leader. In Business, as the world's leading center for international commerce, London provided me with unrestricted access to the world's most prestigious consulting firms, and enabled me to foster relationships with key companies that I targeted for recruiting purposes. I was liter-ally within a cab's ride of the headquarters of some of the largest global companies in Europe. Plus, all of the school's career service resources; such as, access to online job/CV databases, industry/consulting career fairs, and presentation materials were available to me even before I became a student at LBS. These resources, coupled with the support I received from the Office of Career Development (OCD) at Ross, helped me bridge the gap between classroom discussion and real-world application. As a result, I secured offers from all of the top three consulting firms during the on-campus recruiting process, and I will join Bain & Company in London. In academics, the International Exchange Program offered me the specific coursework needed to develop my exper-tise in two subjects I am most uncomfortable with—finance and entrepreneurship. I still remember my 1:00 a.m. discussions with fellow exchange students from Michigan, NYU, Kellogg, and MIT to complete our excel-based valuation model to estimate Vodafone's "Weighted Average Cost of Capital and finalize our case write-up due 9:00 a.m. If you don’t know how to calculate WACC, don’t worry because you will soon learn it in FIN551! These hours certainly helped me to hone in on the latest valuation techniques in mergers & acquisitions, and prepared me for the long nights I would soon be enjoying in consulting. With over 200 museums and galleries, five world-class symphony orchestras, two opera houses and 150 theatres, London also offered me an exceptionally rich cultural experience. At any given time, there were a number of events planned by the school's truly global student body comprised of over 85% international students from 75 countries. For example, most weekends, I joined the photography club members and wondered around Portobello Road Mar-ket in Nothing Hill with my camera to catch one of many postcard-perfect moments created by the city's dynamic crowd buying second-hand clothing or vintage jewelry. Alternatively, I sailed my radio controlled yacht (depending on wind conditions) on the Round Pond in Kensington Gardens to relax before hitting the library and getting ready for my New Venture Development class the following week when I would pitch my business plan to a panel of European venture capitalist and angle investors. Whether you are looking to gain a more global perspective, planning to switch careers, or looking to make a change to another geographic location, the International Exchange Program at Ross School of Business is an invaluable opportunity to co-create your MBA experience and to take ownership of your professional and personal develop-ment. For more details and to apply to The International Exchange Program, please visit The Center for International Business Edu-
cation website at http://www.umich.edu/~cibe/students/exchangeMBA.htm
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2007 Michigan Football Schedule
DATE OPPONENT SITE TIME TV
Sat., Sep. 1 Appalachian State Ann Arbor Noon BTN
Sat., Sep. 8 Oregon Ann Arbor 3:30 p.m. ABC
Sat., Sep. 15 Notre Dame Ann Arbor 3:30 p.m. ABC
Sat., Sep. 22 Penn State* Ann Arbor TBA TBA^
Sat., Sep. 29 Northwestern* Evanston, Ill. TBA TBA^
Sat., Oct. 6 Eastern Michigan Ann Arbor TBA TBA^
Sat., Oct. 13 Purdue* Ann Arbor Noon TBA^
Sat., Oct. 20 Illinois* Champaign, Ill. 7:00 p.m. CDT TBA^
Sat., Oct. 27 Minnesota* Ann Arbor TBA TBA^
Sat., Nov. 3 Michigan State* East Lansing, Mich. TBA TBA^
Sat., Nov. 10 Wisconsin* Madison, Wis. TBA TBA^
Sat., Nov. 17 Ohio State* Ann Arbor TBA TBA^
Evening MBA Association
Corporate & Alumni Relations VP
Rashinderpal Gill
Satish Kalala
Events Co-VPs
Nikhil Gupta
Lauren Rosinski
Finance Co-VPs
Nikhil Apte
Emmanuel Legbeti
President
Marwan Rateb
Academic Affairs Co-VPs
Adrian Fortino
Murali Arcot
Career Development VP
Amit Upasani
Community Service Co-VPs
Robin Chacko
Sreenivas Vedula
Marketing & Communications VP
Tiffani Moses
Technology Co-VPs
Vamsi Chenepalli
Akshay Kamath
Gopal Kamat
Primary Goals of the Evening MBA Association:
•To provide professional, academic, and social networking opportunities for Evening MBA students.
•To ensure continual Evening MBA student representation and perspective in Business School affairs.
•To contribute to the enrichment of the larger Business School community by partnering with other programs and clubs within the school.
Committees and Contact information
Connecting Evening MBA’s with each other and the Ross community!
We’re on the Web!
example.microsoft.com
