Jonathan Lautaha 

Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business

“Easily excited lover of tech and marketing. Devoted husband and cheesy dad.”

Hometown: Laie, Hawaii, U.S.

Fun Fact About Yourself: I won a national judo competition where there were only two people in my weight class. I am technically a national champion.

Undergraduate School and Major: Stanford University, History

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Solutionreach, Business Analyst

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far:  In 2018, I started a career networking group in Utah aimed at providing mentoring for those with limited resources. We partnered with some of Utah’s best companies to host networking events for 100-plus people, helping to build relationships and placing numerous people into jobs where they found more meaningful work.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why?  Caring. My classmates have been very generous and helpful. They are genuinely invested in and excited by my success. They are also committed to making sure we have the best MBA experience possible.

Aside from your classmates, 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? The community. The first person I spoke to about Fuqua was a second-year student in the program. While we were on the phone, an unexpected storm passed where I was and we struggled to speak or hear each other for 30 minutes. After the call, the person was completely understanding and offered to chat another time. I was embarrassed for taking so much of his time, but what struck me was how calm he was, and how willing he was to help me in my application process, despite not knowing me.

I’ve since had many experiences at Fuqua where I feel the spirit of the community and where I feel the support of classmates, alumni, and faculty. These experiences not only make me better prepared for the business world but also drive me to use business as a means for serving and helping others.

The MBA program is renowned for its “Team Fuqua” culture, which is predicated on six paired principles: Authentic Engagement, Supportive Ambition, Collective Diversity, Impactful Stewardship, Loyal Community, and Uncompromising Integrity. Which of these resonates most with you – and what does that principle demand of you as a Fuqua MBA? Supportive Ambition. We all have our individual MBA goals, but understand that we’re more likely to reach those goals by drawing from the expertise, talent, and experience of our peers. As we receive support, we eagerly want to pay it forward and give back to our classmates. This paired principle especially resonates with me because of how I’ve been able to bond with my classmates as we help each other build the best career and life for ourselves.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school?  Fuqua is renowned for its marketing program, and I look forward to participating in the Duke MBA Marketing Club, the marketing case competitions, and learning more about CPG marketing (as opposed to B2B tech marketing, where I come from).

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? The most challenging question for me was about how an MBA would help me fulfill my long-term goals. This question forced me to be introspective and think of how an MBA would affect not just my career, but the rest of my life. An MBA is a huge investment, but I ultimately felt that it would help me develop the skills, experience, and network I needed to make a positive impact in my community.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? Throughout my career, I’ve worked in sales and marketing operations at tech startups. I wanted to make the switch to marketing to be able to have a more creative and strategic role within an established company.

What other MBA programs did you apply to?  Kellogg, Haas, Anderson, and Stanford

How did you determine your fit at various schools?  I first prioritized my career interests, which lie in marketing, and specifically my interest in learning more about CPG marketing as well as marketing at big tech firms. This led me to choose schools that were strong in marketing and tech. I then prioritized schools whose culture was collaborative and where there was a strong spirit of community. Duke checked those boxes in a big way. It also doesn’t hurt that we have the best college basketball program in the nation!

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are?  A defining moment for me was during my undergraduate studies at Stanford, when I made a career pivot in my senior year, away from academia towards tech. It was a difficult transition. I had to take more classes per semester than I had prior to that point, and I had to learn a new industry and essentially a new language.

In addition to my history degree, I finished a minor in economics and I secured a job at a unicorn (privately valued at over $1 billion) tech startup. The job was essential, but the real accomplishment was pushing myself outside of my comfort zone, being resilient through many rejections from companies, and growing as a person.

Where do you see yourself in ten years?  I see myself starting my own company, leveraging my background in analytics and marketing to provide data-driven systems and strategy consulting.