Meet IMD’s MBA Class Of 2018

Nancy Phelps

IMD Business School

Describe yourself in 15 words or less: Passionate builder of all things from new industry technology to flowerbeds for my mom.

Hometown: Santa Barbara, California

Fun Fact About Yourself: I grew up on a cattle ranch and would spend most weekends herding and branding cattle.

Undergraduate School and Major:

Stanford University, Energy and Infrastructure Engineering (BS 2012)

Stanford University, Communication (MA 2013)

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: Facebook, Program Manager

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Defining and delivering the technology development roadmap for Facebook’s data center division. Executing on that roadmap by building custom products, tools, and automated systems that made internal teams more efficient and effective.

Looking back on your experience, what one piece of advice would you give to future business school applicants? Before choosing which schools to apply to, put pen to paper and list out your explicit MBA goals. Have 5 major goals and 5 secondary goals. This will help you clearly and quickly identify which school is right for you. You want to make the most of your MBA, and the first step in doing so is ensuring the program’s goals align with your own.

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 IMD for its emphasis on C-level leadership development. I also wanted a rigorous program that would train me to be one of the most analytical, strategic, and comprehensive entrepreneurs in the room.

What would success look like to you after your first year of business school? My time at IMD will be a success when I gain the confidence and ability to lead a future team through any business challenge that might come our way. After IMD, I want to know that I have the tools to be a high impact leader that delivers, inspires, and pushes the boundaries of what is possible.