Laura Kreuger-Najera
The Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University
Age: 34
“I am a resilient leader with a genuine and collaborative approach to real estate investment.”
Hometown: Campbell, CA
Family Members: Husband-Jose Najera, Daughter-Grace Pullen
Fun fact about yourself: I love to dance tango, and in college I participated in a program called Semester At Sea, a nearly 4-month journey circumnavigating the globe
Undergraduate School and Degree: Pepperdine University, Political Science with interest in International Studies
Where are you currently working? Principal Director Kreuger Properties
Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles:
CREW SV- Current Board Member and previous Director of Programs from 2022-2023 (while in the EMBA program)
Airbnb Community Leader: Silicon Valley Group: Leading and learning with hundreds of short-term rental hosts learn together and give back to their communities
Member of Women’s Development Collaborative: Participating in a network of women leaders who inspire, promote and support women who lead transformative real estate developments.
Rising Leader Mentor, 2022: Supporting young men and women new to the Commercial Real Estate industry through workshops and one-on-one mentorship meetings.
Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? I am most proud of leading programs at CREW Silicon Valley. CREW, Commercial Real Estate Women, is an international organization near and dear to my heart – a place where both men and women can support, elevate, encourage, and stand beside women. The Commercial Real Estate industry is not diverse by any standards and CREW does an exceptional job of supporting women through leadership, training and educational opportunities. The programs I organized as Chair varied in scale and purpose from 5-10 individuals connecting over coffee to nearly 150 local professionals enjoying a casino night raising money for scholarships. It was A LOT of work, but I am proud that I stood the course furthering the mission of CREW, that I gave it my all and grew both the number of programs and the involvement all while pursing my executive MBA.
What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? I am very proud of leading an organization, Kreuger Properties, that values its employees, provides educational opportunities, and ignores the paper and glass ceilings that are prevalent in Real Estate and Silicon Valley. During the early parts of my career, I was not exposed to organizational management and leadership styles that empathetically connected with employees. However, I have and will continue to strive to provide job opportunities that invest in both the personal and professional development of my team members and their families. Growing the organization and establishing values that include all stakeholders, employees included, is something I am very proud of doing.
Who was your favorite MBA professor? At Leavey, the professors are exceptional – I could write a few paragraphs about nearly ever professor I had the pleasure of learning from. For the sake of space, I can share my experience with Jo-Ellen Pozner. I had the privilege of working with and learning from Jo Ellen more than once on my EMBA journey. I specifically appreciated that Jo-Ellen creates a dynamic learning environment that is rigorous, engaging, and fun. She really values the personal connection with her students and focuses on practical application of the materials. Specifically, her negotiation skills course has been very useful in both my professional and personal life.
Why did you choose this school’s executive MBA program? The network at the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University is exceptional. In Silicon Valley specifically, there is such a strong group of alumni who really support each other and help each other succeed, both inside the Leavey community and, arguably more importantly, in the day-to-day career arena. I looked at other schools, but decided on Leavey at Santa Clara because I wanted a personal relationship with my professors and a network I could leverage both while in my EMBA journey and afterwards.
Give us a story during your time as an executive MBA on how you were able to juggle work, family and education? I think that part of the EMBA journey is specifically time management skills and squeezing out every last minute of your day. As an executive, this is an important skill to have and the Leavey EMBA program definitely gave me a lot of opportunities to fine tune this skill.
For example, my daughter dances ballet competitively and was cast in the Nutcracker over the Holiday season. December is also the end of the academic quarter therefore my schedule was overflowing. I became quite adept at dropping my daughter off for ballet rehearsals, booking a study room in the library, taking team project zoom calls until closing, and then setting up shop in my car to complete class readings… all in time to meet with the parent volunteer group for the Nutcracker front-of-house management which I lead. This happened two years in a row! It wasn’t comfortable, but prioritizing tasks, time blocking, and learning to keep class readings with you at all times (so if someone is late for a lunch meeting or other appointment you utilize the 5-15 minutes while waiting) are all keys to finding success. When looking back, I am amazed how I found the hours to get my projects done. With anything in life, we prioritize what is important, and for me, an EMBA AND being an active mom were both at the top of the list.
What was your biggest regret in business school? That my schedule was so full. Many times, I felt like I was drinking through a fire hose, and I would have liked more time to sit with the information, digest and have more of an opportunity to apply it on a daily basis in my organization.
Which MBA classmate do you most admire? Thomas Mathews- Thomas already has an MBA and he came back for more knowledge, more learning and more experience quite late in his career. He is a humble and genuine guy, but we call him “professor” because of his extensive knowledge and experience. I admire his dedication to his family and his dedication to himself. I do feel like I could write something quite personal though and truly heartfelt from each member of my cohort, as there was not one person that did not inspire me.
What was the main reason you chose an executive MBA program over part-time or online alternatives? I knew in person learning and collaboration better fit my personality type and career goals. I do not do well with online learning, so that was out of the question. I knew that the collaborative aspect and experiential learning were keys for my success both inside the classroom and out in the real world– I wanted my peers to be my teachers as well. I wanted to be surrounded by others with extensive experience.
What is your ultimate long-term professional goal? I want to open a Real Estate Investment Fund or Syndicate. I have extensive experience in property management, and I have the perspective of a broker who has represented both buyers and sellers as well as an experience as a property owner and investor. I want to combine all my skills and support others who know that real estate is a vital part of their portfolio, retirement and wealth growth but don’t know where to start or what to do.
DON’T MISS: BEST & BRIGHTEST EXECUTIVE MBAS OF 2024