Class of 2015: The Best Executive MBAs

Penn State's Steve Ettinger

Penn State’s Steve Ettinger

A TOP DOCTOR…A FORMER HIP HOP ARTIST…AND A LEGAL ACE

But these nominees are just the tip of the iceberg. Want to know the caliber of professionals on campus these days? Duke’s Peter Saba, 54, boasts a Supreme Court victory as a corporate counsel. Penn State’s Steve Ettinger, 55, who earned his classmates respect for his insightfulness and helping hand, is ranked among the country’s top doctors,  And the University of Chicago’s Sebastian Cerezo Montañez, 39, has already founded a leading independent M&A house and served as CEO for two companies – before he even turned 40.

But it is how many of these students performed once they entered their programs that made them the best in their classes. Two quants – MIT’s Ashley Sager, 32, and Purdue’s Stacey Mueller, 47 – were celebrated by their peers for their high GPAs and willingness to coach their peers (at seemingly any hour). Despite the grueling hours expected of an investment banker, Columbia Business School’s Karl Blunden, 30, was known for his heavy involvement in campus life, winning the school’s distinguished scholarship and outstanding service awards.  And Northwestern’s Meera Atkins, 42, worked tirelessly as an ambassador for the program.

Of course, several students brought colorful backgrounds to the table.  The University of Florida’s Jonathan Tenanbaum, 38, has gone from hip hop artist to attorney to MBA. Columbia’s Jolly Mazumdar, 38, carried on a friendly competition with her husband – who was enrolled in the same program. IE Business School’s Dulce Altabella Lazzi , 43, completed the New York Marathon while pregnant (unknowingly). And Boston University’s Melinda Shockley, 45, finished a race dressed as a purple crayon.

From six sigma disciples to social do-gooders, here are 30 EMBAs who bear watching in the coming years. To read in-depth profiles on each of these candidates, click on the links below.

Class of 2015: The Best Executive MBAs

 

Student School Employer
Scott Gates Arizona State (Carey) Western Window Systems (President & COO)
Melinda Shockley Boston University (Questrom) Innolign Biomedical, LLC (Co-Founder and President)
Karl Blunden Columbia Goldman Sachs (Vice President, Credit Research)
Jolly Mazumdar Columbia GlaxoSmithKline (Manager in R&D Oncology)
Veronica Carrera Cornell (Johnson) Bloomberg Tradebook (Execution Consultant)
Peter Saba Duke (Fuqua) Centrus Energy Corporation (Senior VP & General Counsel)
Shanmei Yu ESADE Keewaymotor Spain (General Manager)
Kevin Smith Georgia Tech (Scheller) Coca-Cola (Commercial Leadership Finance Manager III)
Dulce Altabella Lazzi IE Business School IBM USA (Senior Engineer)
Flavio Palaci IESE PwC (Partner)
Satakarni Makkapati IMD Intas Pharmaceuticals (Vice President of Biopharma Manufacturing and Head of Plasma Business Operations)
Lars E. Carlson Michigan State (Broad) Youth Haven, Inc. (Executive Director)
Ashley Sager MIT (Sloan) Attivio (Director of Finance)
Shanise Anderson New York (Stern) Revlon (Director of U.S. Marketing)
Meera Atkins Northwestern (Kellogg) Renaissance Women’s Health (Founder/Owner)
Steven Mark Ettinger Penn State (Smeal) Penn State Heart & Vascular Institute (Director of Clinical Operations)
Stacey Mueller Purdue (Krannert) Blackfoot Telecommunications (CFO)
Freddie Barela Southern Methodist (Cox) Canaan Resoruce Partners (Partner)
Patti Fitzpatrick Texas A&M (Mays) Spectra Energy Corporation (General Manager/Marketing)
Derek Herrera UCLA (Anderson) Spinal Singularity LLC (Founder)
Robert Ford University of California-Berkeley Abbott Labs (Executive Vice-President of Medical Devices)
Sebastian Cerezo Montañez Chicago (Booth) Oneworld Packaging (CEO)
Jonathan Tenenbaum Florida (Hough) NameJet LLC (General Manager)
Gregory Fortner Michigan (Ross) ID Avatars (VP of Product Experience)
Erin Dady Minnesota (Carlson) University of Minnesota (Special Assistant to the President for Government and Community Relations)
Abhi Mehrotra North Carolina (Kenan-Flagler) UNC Medical Center Emergency Department (Assistant Medical Director) and Hillsborough Hospital Emergency Department (Medical Director)
Father Pete McCormick Notre Dame (Mendoza) Notre Dame (Director of Campus Ministry)
Jackie Dawson Pittsburgh (Katz) McKesson (Manager, Six Sigma)
Pierre-Marie del Moral Southern California (Marshall) Roche Diagnostics, (Sequencing Solutions Specialist
Jennifer Schretter Virginia (Darden) Goldman Sachs (Investment Management Associate) and KOLTON J (Founder)

Source: P&Q

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