Sebastian Fischer

Harvard Business School

“Fun, down-to-earth, engineering leader who wants to get some business chops to solve impactful technical issues.”

Hometown: Piedmont, California.

Fun Fact About Yourself: First-generation American and fluent in German.

Undergraduate School and Major: Massachusetts Institute of Technology – Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering.

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Amazon – Aerospace Systems Engineer

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I was the lead systems engineer for Amazon Prime Air’s first public customer delivery drone. This role involved defining and coordinating the engineering development of all of the different hardware and software components of the drone (think along the lines of performing engineering trade studies to determine the size of the airframe, the engines, the radios, and the battery, as well as defining which software features needed to be developed and to what specifications they needed to perform). Then once individual component development was completed by the respective engineering teams, my job was to define the simulation, ground, and flight testing that needed to occur with the drone system to ensure that the functionality, performance, and reliability of the drone met the business need of safely and autonomously delivering a 5lb package, 15 miles, in 30 minutes or less.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? Delicious.

Jokes aside, what has struck me about my MBA classmates that I have met so far compared to my non-MBAs acquaintances is that the people here are absolute go-getters. If something needs to be done, nobody will sit back and say that that is not their job. They will do everything in their power to make whatever needs to happen, happen as soon as possible.

Also, the people here love talking (and also listening). Before coming to HBS, I had never been in an environment with so much constant chatter and plentiful genuine conversation. To be clear, these aren’t superficial conversations; these are emotional, controversial, insightful, educational, humorous, high fidelity conversations that inspire and result in actions.

What makes the case method so attractive as a means to learn and become a better manager? From what I’ve gathered so far, I believe that the case method will force us to think on our feet. No matter how much we prepare for the class, we will be put in situations where we need to formulate and articulate a decision or point of view immediately given new information that we could not possibly have prepared. I imagine that the discussion environment that the case method fosters will allow us to test out different communication styles, new techniques to interact with others, and teach us to become more fluent and comfortable in contentious and ambiguous forums.

Aside from your classmates and cases, 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? My objective with coming to Harvard was to not only get the MBA, but also the MS in Engineering Sciences from the joint MS/MBA degree program. This was critical for me because I want to remain engaged with technical matter after graduation and position myself to provide value and bridge the business and engineering portions of whichever organization I decide to form or join.

What was the most surprising thing you discovered about Harvard Business School during the application process? After completing my application, I looked back upon the experience and was surprised that I thought it was an extremely healthy process. Yes, it was a lot of work between taking the tests, writing the essays, asking for letters of recommendation, and preparing for the interview. However, the entire process was also extremely introspective. It helped me take a step back from my day-to-day job and allowed me to realign my personal objectives with the fundamentals of what I actually want to accomplish in my life.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? I’m not dead set on a single club just yet. I think that I’m going to explore the Aerospace Club, the Energy and Environment Club, the Outdoors Club, and the Tech Club. I’m hoping to stay in shape through some combination of going to the gym, running, biking, soccer, and maybe even rowing if I can get checked out in one of the rowing boats.

More than any specific club or activity, I am most excited to get to know my fellow classmates. When I look back at my undergraduate experience, it was the people that I got to interact with every day who made it amazing. I am hoping for a similar experience at HBS of meeting new people, making lifelong connections, sharing mutual interests, challenging each other with differing perspectives, learning from world-class professors, and having the opportunity to interact with inspirational guest speakers.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? The most challenging question during the admissions process was definitely a question that was asked by my interviewers. They asked me about how there were two conflicting viewpoints about my skills presented by the two different letters of recommendation that were written for me. It was something along the lines of: “Recommender A mentions that you had trouble bubbling up technical engineering specifications to the relevant business level, while recommender B mentions that you over-indexed on the business need and oversimplified an engineering problem. Can you explain these very different critical perspectives?”

On the spot, I had to describe why those two different viewpoints were valid without discrediting my recommenders and simultaneously maintaining my own credibility by explaining the specific moments in my career where I thought that these examples might have come. Definitely a challenge, but I thought that I handled the question well and now it’s one of the fun memories I have of the application process.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? For me, I thought that it’s the best time of my life to do it. I had gained four years of industry experience and had seen what life was like having a job, but I noticed that I was also hungry to take on a larger leadership position and differentiate myself from only being an engineer.

Additionally, I think that your 20s are an opportunity to take strategic risks, be ambitious, and get uncomfortable challenging yourself. I thought that going to HBS would be the best way to have those experiences while setting myself up for success afterward.

(Also my GRE scores were expiring and there was no way that I was taking that test again).

What other MBA programs did you apply to? I also applied to the MIT Leaders for Global Operations program and the MIT System Design and Management program. These are also both awesome programs and I highly recommend them to anyone who is interested in a technically rigorous education along with an MBA.

How did you determine your fit at various schools? For me, I did not want to lose touch with my technical skills while doing an MBA. The three programs I applied to were the best programs I could find through word of mouth and internet searching that all maintain a rigorous technical education along with the MBA classes. Through my professional and social network, I was able to find people who had done all of these programs. I asked them about their experiences, what the program’s benefits were, what made the programs unique, and how the different programs would fit in with my personal career goals.

I also noticed that I found myself looking at the backgrounds of people whom I considered successful and impactful. I identified these three programs as having a strong correlation with the backgrounds of the people who were in the positions that I was hoping to see myself in in the future.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? I don’t think I can say that I had a single moment that defined me. I’ve been shaped by the close relationships that I have formed with friends, family, mentors, coaches, and colleagues – and the challenges and successes that I have experienced with these individuals over my entire life. I have them to thank for molding me into who I am today.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? I envision myself leading an organization that is solving some of the world’s toughest engineering challenges, be it related to climate change, sustainability, enabling access to resources, improving safety, or increasing access to information and services. I want to be significantly contributing to an organization that is reducing inequity in the world through conceiving, designing, implementing, testing, operating, and scaling complex technologies.