Meet Minnesota Carlson’s MBA Class Of 2019

Shannon McCormick

Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota 

Describe yourself in 15 words or less: I am a driven, level-headed team player who rolls up her sleeves to get work done.

Hometown: Danville, CA

Fun Fact About Yourself: I played water polo competitively for 10 years.

Undergraduate School and Major: Harvard College, Organismic and Evolutionary Biology

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation:

Optum – Senior IT Systems Analyst

Modis – Contractor as Project Manager and Business Analyst

Epic – Application Manager

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest career accomplishment to date has been performing risk mitigation on a highly escalated IT healthcare systems project. The goal of the project was to implement a new revenue cycle management system for a 260-clinic health system with over 3,000 providers. I was assigned midway through the project as a program manager. Shortly after onboarding, I discovered the project was much further behind than anyone knew and that these issues were not being properly escalated. I first escalated how off track the project really was and then worked with my colleagues to strategize ways to remediate the project issues from a scope, resource, schedule, and budget perspective. After revising the project scope and budget as well as creating resolution plans for known issues, we were able to develop a new program plan that leadership signed off on and that ultimately provided us the roadmap needed to deliver a satisfactory product to the customer in a timely fashion.

Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Be authentic in why you are applying to business school and what you hope to get out of it. This will enable you to write a compelling essay and have a conversant and memorable admissions interview. 

What was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you?  I chose Carlson because I was impressed by the number of professional development resources and highly personalized experience the school offers. The key resource I am interested in is the Medical Industry Leadership Institute, which provides students the opportunity to research complex healthcare issues, partner with the many medical companies in the Twin Cities, and tailor their MBA toward a healthcare specialization. I believe MILI will provide me the tools needed to take my career to the next level and enact greater change in the healthcare industry.

What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? I’ll consider myself successful after my first year of business school if I know my classmates and professors well, have a solid understanding of financial principles, and had a productive summer internship.