HBS Leaders on HBS | Alumni on Leadership | Community Memories

Community Memories

A collection of poignant, humorous stories and reminiscences on the HBS experience from our community members, including alumni, staff, and MBA students.

1-37 of 37 listed alphabetically by storyteller's last name

CLASS OF2008

Shilpa Bhandarkar Story VIDEO: RT: 06:21

Story regarding how the effectiveness of the case method exceeds that of a lecture-based educational approach because of students' contributing their viewpoints to the discussion and analysis. The commitment of HBS to training for leadership is "authentic" as the School expects students to grow into leaders and provides the support for them to do so.

 

CLASS OF1977

John Bunce Story VIDEO: 4.5 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1970s, which was a routine of study group, then section, then Pub. He discusses how learning came out of this routine as much as the courses. Teaching of ethics was intrinsic to most courses, as demonstrated by the examples of Professors John Matthews and Ben Shapiro. And, finally, HBS is "not a bad place" to fall in love.

 

CLASS OF1957

Dan Burack Story VIDEO: 6 minutes

Story regarding his experience at HBS in the 1950s, including the rush to get papers in on time for WAC (Written Analysis of Cases), and the demographics of the 1955 class.

 

MBA2010

Shaohui Chen Story VIDEO: RT: 05:57

Story regarding his view of the Pre-MBA Program as an invaluable mini-MBA Program and his summation of the steps of preparing, studying, and discussing a case. Participating in the Pre-MBA Program acclimated him to life at HBS and in the United States in numerous ways, especially introducing him to the curriculum, methods, and faculty of the MBA Program. He analyzes the stages in the life cycle of a case: researching and investigating on your own; reviewing your findings with your learning team and exchanging feedback and ideas; presenting your interpretations in class and attempting to influence and convince your classmates; comprehending the professor's take-aways and absorbing the lessons of the case.

 

MBA2010

Yinan Du Story VIDEO: RT: 07:08

Story regarding his first impressions of HBS through the Harvard University reputation, his adjustment to and total engagement with the case method, and his entrepreneurial pursuits. Growing up China, he became acquainted with the Harvard name and observed the respect accorded to those who attend the University. The transition from the lecture style of instruction to the case method was challenging until he fully understood the model of students learning from each other with the professor as guide and leader. He finds the additional types of teaching modes at HBS to be complementary to the case method, such as the Best Reflected Self exercise in his Leadership and Organizational Behavior course. His original goal of coming to HBS was to develop his entrepreneurial acumen and so he has availed himself of the School's numerous resources, the faculty's guidance, and his classmates' knowledge and expertise.

 

CLASS OF1957

Mead Ferguson Story VIDEO: 13 minutes

Story regarding his experience as a rancher attending HBS in the 1950s, the flexibility of thinking engendered by the case study method of teaching and the operation of study groups, developments in business reflected by changes in the cattle industry, and a comparison of the HBS he knew with today's school.

 

CLASS OF1957

Bob Fetter Story VIDEO: beginning 6 minutes, second half 13 minutes, total time 19 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1950s, including the "black period" that all HBS students endure. He discusses how attending the new Creative Marketing Strategy course impacted his life in terms of understanding the psychology of group effort and discovering a way to make a career in the railroad industry. He discusses the "ministry of encouragement" that section mates provide each other throughout a lifetime.

 

CLASS OF1942

John W. Fisher Story VIDEO: 8.5 minutes

Story regarding his experience at HBS during World War II, his impressions of the modern campus, and his business directives to improve the declining status of the United States as a world power.

 

CLASS OF1997

Jennifer Scott Fonstad Story VIDEO: 6 minutes

Story regarding her experience attending HBS in the 1990s, as a member of the committee that launched the Business Plan competition.

 

CLASS OF2009

Luke Fuszard Story VIDEO: RT: 03:50

Story regarding how international scope of HBS infuses the learning process. On his first day, he was impressed by the array of flags representing the countries of the student body. He especially values the unique forum at HBS for students from across the world to exchange ideas. This sharing of perspectives will shape his conception of leadership in a global society.

 

CLASS OF1982

Grandon Gill Story VIDEO: 10.5 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1980s, colored by his previous experience, working on a naval nuclear submarine. He explains how HBS changed his name. His unlikely road to being chosen a Baker Scholar is told, in terms of his interest in just having fun and taking pleasure in disagreeing with any statement given in class. As a professor, he believes that Harvard should not keep its secrets but become an educational "evangelist" to other colleges.

 

CLASS OF1943

Frederick Golden Story VIDEO: RT: 05:57

Story regarding how he applied the analytical and report writing skills he learned in his Business Problem Analysis course throughout his World War Two military service, professional career in the clothing industry, and personal life. He explains how he utilized his deductive reasoning and problem diagnosis techniques in his work developing pantyhose production at the Warner Brothers Corset Company.

 

CLASS OF1958

Bruce Johnson Story VIDEO: RT: 08:31

Story regarding his progression from HBS graduate to business school teacher. After managerial experiences in the Navy, he was drawn to attend HBS by his uncle who was a faculty member, and he was amazed at the exceptional quality of his classmates. As a business teacher, he emphasized the importance of decision making skills and defending one's positions, which he had learned at HBS. At reunions, he relishes the opportunity to meet with recent graduates and current students.

 

CLASS OF2008

Constance Jones Story VIDEO: 9 minutes

Story regarding her experience attending HBS in the 2000s, including opportunities for international travel, especially a personally meaningful trip to Jerusalem. She discusses organizing a Black History Month presentation for her section, and the personally revelatory method of learning in the Authentic Leadership Development course.

 

MBA2010

Nana Kankam Story VIDEO: RT: 04:10

Story regarding her pride in her capacity as a student at HBS of representing her parents' achievements and ensuring that all students' voices are heard. Her mother and father immigrated from Ghana to the United States, and she sees her being an HBS student as "the fruit of their hard work." In the year when Barack Obama is elected president of the United States, her family's accomplishments show the possibilities of this country. Aiming to attain the highest echelons in the new media field, she will invest all she has learned from her classmates from around the globe about how they use new technologies to achieve that goal. One of her great pleasures at HBS is to observe the diversity of the School and to amplify the ideas and concerns of minority and women students.

 

CLASS OF1983

Section C Singers Story VIDEO: RT: 01:41

Story regarding how the Section C Singers exhibited their section pride by performing skits during their run at HBS. For the HBS Centennial, they retrieved a musical number based on the song, "Do Wah Diddy", from the HBS Archives in their inimitable style of expressing their section harmony and gratitude to the School.

 

CLASS OF1967

Phil Lamoreaux VIDEO: 7.5 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1960s, encapsuled in his lucky gamble to enroll in a new course, Interpersonal Behavior, taught by Jay Lorsch. He notes that learning to listen to and understand another's point of view has enabled him to make good investment decisions based on interpreting senior management aims and ability. His personal relationships have also benefitted from this course he took some 40 years ago.

 

CLASS OF1992

Margaret Langan Story VIDEO: 5.5 minutes

Story regarding her experience at HBS in the early 1990s, from the perspective of the classroom, study groups, and a field study in Belgium.

 

CLASS OF2009

Lauren Mehler Story VIDEO: RT: 09:41

Story regarding her flourishing in the challenging atmosphere of HBS and the School's nurturing of her vision of transforming the business model of agriculture and the food industry to improve people's health and the state of the environment. At her interview, the recruiter contested her intention to uproot the old methods of the food industry and make it into a more socially and environmentally responsible and still profitable enterprise, and this provocativeness cemented her desire to study at the School. The fertile and rapid evolution of the social enterprise movement and the complete dedication of the School to these principles have inspired her to actualize her dreams for the future.

 

CLASS OF2008

Andres Meza Story VIDEO: RT: 11:08

Story regarding how his section jelled as a team when they organized their charity auction. On his student treks, he was moved by the need to balance and combine business and culture. He shows a picture of his younger self to represent how he has changed through his time at HBS.

 

CLASS OF1957

David Morehead Story VIDEO: 9 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1950s, including how an Army friend (later classmate) persuaded him to apply, enrichment of his retail background that enabled him to work in manufacturing and to become an entrepreneur, and how a working wife financially supported this "Doriot disciple" through graduate school.

 

CLASS OF1992

Joe O'Brien Story VIDEO: 13 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1990s, including the strong friendships he made at school, and the understanding of human behavior integral to conducting business, which he learned from the case study method. He also gives an account of influential professors and courses.

 

CLASS OF1972

William H. Ohm Story

Story regarding his learning experience in Written Analysis of Cases - - as a former engineering student, he carefully analyzed all the issues in a case about the New Yorker magazine, and thought his brilliant analysis would result in an "A", but was very surprised by a lower grade, and comments asking about other issues that he thought were "outside the case". This was when he realized that the scope of business includes consideration of many and varied issues.

 

CLASS OF2009

Marc Oman Story VIDEO: RT: 09:30

Story regarding his reaction to the contrasts in educational methods from his upbringing in France and his confidence in the strength of his connections to the School. Although he harbored concerns about the efficacy of the case method, his direct participation terminated any doubts and he discusses one of his favorite cases. He illustrates the entrepreneurial spirit of the students and the School. One highlight of his first year was assisting with the planning of the European Immersion trip. He details the differences between the first and second years of the MBA Program. Perusing his grandfather's student records reinforced his sense of membership in the HBS community which he is certain will remain vibrant throughout his life.

 

CLASS OF1988

Lisa Pelon Putukian Story VIDEO: RT: 03:46

Story regarding her feelings of being an outsider when she first came to HBS, but how the welcoming environment of the School and students soon dispelled her misgivings. She recounts an anecdote from a class with Prof. Andrall Pearson and the life lesson she learned. Today, twenty years after graduating, little incidents of her HBS days will bring a smile to her face.

 

CLASS OF2009

Anh Pham-Vu Story VIDEO: RT: 04:30

Story regarding his reflections on the first year of the MBA program, which has provided him with a framework to ponder his long-term interests and to take risks, such as in his choice of a summer job in Asia. HBS learning will serve him throughout his career. In the HBS whirlwind, he advises others to involve one's spouse or partner and take care of one's health.

 

CLASS OF2006

Sanjay Razdan Story VIDEO: RT: 05:47

Story regarding how his life-changing educational experience in the Advanced Management Program was crowned by the joyous occasion of the birth of his first child. He enumerates the steps in the process of directly applying business principles from AMP courses in his company and the consequential benefits. Prof. David Yoffie's single slide of how to research, understand, and meet the needs of your customers stands out as the most indelible memory of his program. His defining moment was the realization of the power of HBS as a center of knowledge creation and his participation as both sharer and contributor.

 

CLASS OF1998

Carolee Reiling Story VIDEO: RT: 04:28

Story regarding her applying to HBS, her experiences as a visually impaired student, and her approach to time management. On a whim, she decided to fill out an HBS application, which she did in pencil. She is blind in one eye and she appreciated the caring support from the School and her classmates. A second-year student's advice of taking afternoon naps to manage her academic and social lives let her down one day in her Accounting course, but she succeeded with her sense of humor and determination.

 

CLASS OF1957

Bill Riley Story VIDEO: 9 minutes

Story regarding his experience attending HBS in the 1950s, including the rush to get papers in on time for WAC (Written Analysis of Cases), and the founding, in California, of the Harvard Business School Bachelors for postgraduate professional development and society.

 

CLASS OF1972

Alan Rogers Story VIDEO: 6.5 minutes

Story regarding his experience as an Air Force commander attending HBS in the 1970s, after serving in the Vietnam War. The discipline of thinking and exchanging ideas with others instilled by the case study method opened his eyes "to a world of opportunities." Diverse classmates and talented professors contributed to the preparation he received at HBS in how to approach life and work.

 

CLASS OF1998

Mary Teichert Rotelli Story VIDEO: RT: 06:51

Story regarding the educational and personal highlights of her HBS experience. She describes her defining academic moment when she opened a class discussion of a case which she had prepared thoroughly with her study group. She recommends making the MBA curriculum more flexible to facilitate completing the program for women with families. On an HBS High Tech Fellowship, she worked with Prof. Myra Hart and Prof. Lynda Applegate to research and write cases on the transformations wrought by the new Internet economy and the future of business.

 

CLASS OF1983

Alexandre Samii Story VIDEO: RT: 09:03

Story regarding how he came to HBS in order to bridge his field of civil engineering and business and to prepare for a renaissance life combining the arts and sciences as a path to creating innovative knowledge. He recalls the shock of being introduced to the case method in Prof. John Quelch's Marketing class and his bumpy yet rewarding road from the scientific mode to the HBS model of learning. Attributing his personal achievements to the "broadness of spirit" of HBS, he sketches the broad strokes of his career from McKinsey and Company through his teaching at the University of Louvain and honors from the Belgian government. His encouragement to everyone striving to achieve their personal goals is never to give up.

 

CLASS OF2008

Laura Seejattan Story VIDEO: RT: 03:52

Story regarding how Prof. Youngme Moon has been a mentor to her and how her course, Consumer Marketing, and her dynamic and engaging teaching style have inspired her to be a better marketer and person. She returned after a year off and became best friends with her classmate Keisha Adams, whom she admires for adhering to her personal convictions.

 

CLASS OF1998

Mark Selawry Story VIDEO: RT: 03:05

Story regarding the most noteworthy memory of his HBS years. At the end of each course, professors summarized the key lessons of their teaching, and students scrutinized these sessions for clues to exam topics. Instead of a summation, Prof. Clayton Christensen concluded his Managing Innovation class with a lecture on the social and moral responsibilities of leadership, which has left a lasting impression on him throughout his life and work.

 

CLASS OF2009

Tiffany Singleton Story VIDEO: RT: 09:17

Story regarding her excitement with the avenues HBS has provided to prepare her for a career in nonprofit management as her way of making a difference in the world and her anticipation of graduation as a joyful moment to share with her family. A fellow graduate of Dillard University and an HBS MBA recommended the program to her. Composing her application essays evoked profound ruminations on possible career courses and signalled the School's commitment to leadership development. In her interview, she spoke passionately of her pride in her alma mater and New Orleans, as both rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina. She was ecstatic at her acceptance, especially since her family could partake in the proud occasion. Currently she heads the student-led New Orleans Immersion initiative to aid in the recovery of the city, and in alignment with such work, she has designed her second-year curriculum to pave the way for a leadership role in the nonprofit sector.

 

CLASS OF1993

Mina Sooch Story VIDEO: RT: 06:03

Story regarding her pride and excitement to have her family with her on graduation day. She recounts how her father came from India to start his career, her being the first in her family to attend HBS, and how she has introduced her children to the School at reunions. She recalls her most demanding professor and class, Dean Kim Clark's Technology and Operations Management, and the analytical and evaluative skills she learned, and a frigid skiing adventure in Montreal.

 

CLASS OF2009

Aduke Thelwell Story VIDEO: RT: 04:16

Story regarding the two major surprises of her first year. By putting herself in the professor's role, she has drawn from the case method the lessons of asking the right questions and framing a dialogue effectively in the context of decision making, which she has put into effect in her work with the Board Fellows Program. She describes how she has utilized an exercise in her Leadership and Organizational Behavior course about career-life balance to manage her feelings of stress.