Danielle Hunsicker

University of Pittsburgh, Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business

Age: 42

“An enthusiastic business leader with a passion for developing high performing teams and driving results.”

Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Family Members: Husband – Greg; Children – Connor and Keira

Fun fact about yourself: I have traveled to 46 states in the US and 14 countries.  

Undergraduate School and Degree: Bachelor of Arts, Architectural Studies from University of Pittsburgh

Where are you currently working? Executive Vice President at Diverzify

Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles: Over the course of my career, I have consistently spent extracurricular time with company, industry, and community group activities.  Of the roles served, I have most appreciated my involvement with several Women’s Leadership Groups, including serving as the Executive Sponsor for the recent formation of the Women’s Leadership Group at Diverzify.  Additionally, I valued the opportunity to serve as a formal mentor to colleagues at PPG Industries and the TCU Executive Mentorship Program.

Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? Throughout many of the courses, we were encouraged to apply original thought and reflections of our experiences in our writing assignments. I found this to be both stimulating and challenging, as it is not my natural skill nor one that I use regularly in my job. I am most proud of my ability to successfully adapt to the needs for meaningful and creative writing in many assignments throughout the program.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? The people that I have had a role in developing across the years and their successes will always be my proudest accomplishment.

Who was your favorite MBA professor? While there were many exceptional professors supporting our program, I highly valued Professor Kim Abel and the Strategic Leadership course that she had instructed.  Kim provided both a strategic and practical perspective of the critical role that leadership has in business today and the competencies that leaders should possess. I found her instruction insightful and relevant. 

Why did you choose this school’s executive MBA program?  The Katz EMBA program has an excellent reputation for high-quality academic curriculum. Additionally, the program provided a mix of in-person and asynchronous learning which provided a schedule that could be incorporated into my home and work commitments.

What is the biggest lesson you gained during your MBA and how did you apply it at work? The biggest lesson I had gained was to maintain a focus on being a continuous learner. Exposure to the academic cases and articles that were offered throughout the program helped to widen my perspective on business. I have and will continue to look outside of my company and industry to increase my knowledge of business practices, case studies, and applied strategies.

Give us a story during your time as an executive MBA on how you were able to juggle work, family and education? Approximately 8 months into the program, I made the decision to change companies, electing to take an executive role with Diverzify. While professionally this change gave me the opportunity to work with leaders who I have admired over my career, it also represented personal challenges by diverting time from family and school due to additional travel and a focus on ramp up with my new company. To overcome the additional time constraints, I had to redefine my time management practices and lean on my family and support system to help navigate the change and balance of priorities.

What advice would you give to a student looking to enter an executive MBA program? If you are willing to balance your priorities and offer a strong a commitment to the program including the required focus, and effort, the result will be an extremely rewarding experience.

What was your biggest regret in business school?  My biggest regret is that at times I was extremely focused on the tasks at hand. I learned to appreciate the value of networking and engaging with my cohort more fully as the program progressed.

Which MBA classmate do you most admire? I most admire Matt Bucek, our unofficial cohort leader.  Throughout the course of our program, Matt balanced his family commitments with his four children, his role as a senior leader at Duquesne Light, and his academic work. Despite this, he still managed to be a strong unifying force for the members of our cohort. In and outside of the classroom, Matt brought our group together, led by example, and motivated others at every opportunity.

What was the main reason you chose an executive MBA program over part-time or online alternatives?  The main factor for my decision was that the executive MBA afforded an opportunity to engage in a cohort comprised of other senior leaders.  Prior to joining, it had been shared with me that the experience would be enriched by the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with the other cohort members. This was absolutely proven to be the case and was one of the most positive aspects of the program.

What is your ultimate long-term professional goal? My long-term goal is to work in a position where I contribute to the strategic vision for the organization while exercising my passion for developing people and driving performance through culture, leadership, and strategic initiatives. 

What made Danielle such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2023?

“As the Academic Director of the Executive MBA program at the University of Pittsburgh and a faculty member who teaches in the program, I am delighted to nominate Danielle Hunsicker for the Best and Brightest Executive MBA Award at Poets and Quants. My nomination is based on her outstanding performance as a member of the 2023 class of our Executive MBA program, her personal qualities and her professional accomplishments.

In my dual roles, I had the pleasure of interacting with Danielle over the course of her entire program of study. In the classroom setting, her contributions to in-class discussions were consistently insightful and perceptive. Her performance throughout the EMBA program was exceptional, demonstrating a deep understanding of business principles and a strong ability to apply them in real-world situations. Danielle has traveled extensively both domestically and internationally. Her experiences, gained from both her travels and working in the building products industry, often helped in providing valuable insights while discussing specific business challenges and opportunities.

Beyond the classroom setting, I found her to be mature and thoughtful. When any programmatic issues would arise, I would look forward to her feedback as it was always balanced and constructive. Due to these personal qualities and her professional accomplishments, Danielle is highly regarded by both her peers and the school’s faculty.

Danielle is currently an Executive Vice President at Diverzify, a billion-dollar commercial flooring company headquartered outside of Chicago, Illiniois. She joined Diverzify, after a successful stint at PPG, while she was a student in the program. Such career moves can be stressful. However, Danielle transitioned seamlessly into her new job even as she was tackling the requirements associated with a rigorous program of study and managing her own personal responsibilities. This is just one example of how she is able to balance various competing demands on her time and attention.

Based on what I have observed—her consistently demonstrating an ability to think critically and strategically, her motivation to excel, and her positive attitude, I am confident that Danielle will continue to make valuable contributions throughout her career.

I strongly recommend Danielle for the Best and Brightest Executive MBA Award at Poets and Quants.  She is truly deserving of this honor.”

Prakash Mirchandani
Professor of Business Administration
Director, Center for Supply Chain Management
Academic Director, Executive MBA Program
Katz Graduate School of Business
University of Pittsburgh

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