Cristian Dezsö, University of Maryland (Smith)
“At the Robert H. Smith School of Business, I had the pleasure of learning from some truly extraordinary professors. However, there was one professor who stood out to me: Dr. Cristian Dezsö and his macroeconomics class. His enthusiasm and humor made the class so enjoyable; not to mention his impressive professional insights on domestic and international economics. He had a unique ability to explain complex ideas in simple terms, all while tying in the bigger picture and showing us how it affects our society.”
Glen Martin, University of Maryland (Smith)
“Professor Nicholas Hays – Negotiations. As someone in sales, I found the course to be extremely practical and was able to apply the teachings immediately on the job. One of the things that stood out to me about the course was the way Professor Hays “gamified” his lectures. He provided clear roles and rules for us to follow, while also allowing us the freedom to create our own outcomes from the negotiation exercises. As a competitive ice hockey player since the age of 5, I appreciated the emphasis that Professor Hays placed on teamwork and collaboration in negotiations. In my experience, the most effective negotiations embody a win-win approach, which fosters mutual trust and respect between the parties involved. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from Professor Hays. The knowledge and skills that I gained from his class will benefit me throughout my career. Thank You, Professor Hays!”
Prenella Semma, Michigan State (Broad)
“Professor Vinayak Deshpande provided me with the foundation for understanding operations research, in addition to analyzing inefficiencies of numerous activities of life including queue management, bullwhip effect and passenger airline sales methodology. Beyond his expert knowledge on the airline industry and skilled creation of simulation programs to help understand key operations concepts, he has a thirst of knowledge in nearly all disciplines. He led our healthcare operations course, which dissected numerous healthcare inefficiencies and provided practical solutions to help avoid excess costs associated with poor management of patient care facilities. He further brought in numerous experts to provide an intensive and comprehensive healthcare operations course, which helped ignite numerous novel startup ideas during and following the course. He is truly committed to his students and has helped mentor numerous students as they develop ideas for improving operational inefficiencies and translate these into startup concepts.”
Rohan C. Wijewickrama, University of North Carolina (Kenan-Flagler)
Gianna Bern, Notre Dame (Mendoza)
“I hold Professor Gianna Bern in high regard as an accomplished female business leader who also served as my mentor both inside and outside the classroom. Through her own experiences in corporate finance and capital markets, Professor Bern brought the material to life and made Financial Statement Analysis and Global Finance engaging and understandable. This was especially beneficial for me, given my limited business background before starting my EMBA journey. Her passion and dedication toward her students were evident through her regular office hours. She provided guidance and support to ensure we had the knowledge and tools to complete our projects successfully. Her commitment to our learning and growth has left a lasting impact on me personally as well as professionally.”
Mary Kathryn Dow. Notre Dame (Mendoza)
“My favorite professor was Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta Rush. She taught Legal and Ethics. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the course, but immediately became interested in the content because of her teaching approach. We learned legal philosophy and how to interpret legal documents, but what I most appreciated about the course was that we learned how to form and defend a position. Chief Justice Rush helped me to enhance my critical thinking skills, which are essential in the business world. Personally, it was inspiring to learn from a woman with significant leadership accomplishments and that is committed to giving back to her community by teaching others.”
Deon Johnson, Purdue University (Krannert)
“Al Danto single handedly made me wish I had gotten my MBA immediately after the military when I was running my business instead of 15 years later as an executive. His experience and ability to communicate the fundamentals of business evaluation, acquisition and operation is second-to-none. In one class in particular, he posted a single slide of lessons learned and things to avoid in acquiring and operating a business. It encapsulated my own 10 years of battle scars from the trenches of running a business in a way that I’d never been able to articulate. It was shocking, humbling and enlightening at the same time. That class alone was worth the price of admission and the long nights doing homework after the kids go to bed.”
Kevin Doffing, Rice University (Jones)
“’Get comfortable being uncomfortable.’ This is a phrase that I heard Professor John Krajicek say to me in my first semester in the program. This phrase has stayed with me throughout my journey and will stay with me well into the future. To grow as an individual, you must embrace your weaknesses and consistently work on improving them. Professor Krajicek challenged me to embrace my weakness in public speaking. By consistently stepping outside of my natural comfort zone and challenging myself with new things, I continue to develop into a better husband, father, and employee.”
Ryan Wickham, Texas A&M University (Mays)
Sam Chun, Washington University (Olin)
“My favorite professor was Sam Chun, who taught Business Analytics and Decisions. We got our first dose of Sam during our Go! Week kickoff to the program, when he set the tone for how demanding the program could be. He set high expectations and didn’t let us get away with anything but our best. Sam taught us that business decisions could be difficult and often don’t offer us clear feedback; case studies are a relatively-low risk way of learning and practicing our skills. I really thrive in the analytical environment he created for us, and the group breakout work was a real challenge on tight timelines. His course set a standard in my mind for how I needed to approach the entire program.”
Eric Montgomery Lucas, Washington University (Olin)
“Each of my professors left an indelible mark on me as I learned and grew while at Wharton; they were all remarkable, and I am so grateful to have learned from these brilliant leaders in their fields. To name a few… Who inspired me? Exequiel (Zeke) Hernandez. Who stretched my intellectual curiosity? Gad Allon. Who challenged me to get outside my comfort zone? Kevin Kaiser and Ziv Katalan. Who showed the greatest understanding for me as an individual (and whose class was most fun)? Samir Nurmohamed. And who motivated me to become the best leader and version of myself? Stewart (Stew) Friedman.
Devika Varsani, Wharton School
“My favorite MBA professor was Amy Wrzesniewski because so much of her research and teaching was relevant and applicable to my role and to managing complex organizations. As a heath care administrator leading through post-pandemic burnout, it was so helpful to learn about how people find meaning in work and how to increase engagement. We also learned about different aspects of organizational design, building effective teams, and aligning incentives. She was also engaging, accessible, funny and thoughtful – I always looked forward to her lectures and was able to immediately apply much of what I learned.”
Alicia Hardy, Yale School of Management
DON’T MISS:
THE BIGGEST MYTHS ABOUT EXECUTIVE MBA PROGRAMS
THE BEST & BRIGHTEST EXECUTIVE MBAS OF 2023
THE BEST ADVICE TO FUTURE EXECUTIVE MBAS
THE BIGGEST REGRETS OF EXECUTIVE MBAs
THE BIGGEST LESSONS LEARNED BY EXECUTIVE MBAS
Questions about this article? Email us or leave a comment below.