Meet Minnesota Carlson’s MBA Class Of 2021

Heather Stanislawski 

University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management

“Don’t let the blonde hair and high-pitched voice fool you – I am tough, compassionate and determined to succeed.”

Hometown: Pasadena, CA

Fun Fact About Yourself: I have broken my nose three times – twice at Disneyland.

Undergraduate School and Major: Southern Methodist University, Cox School of Business – Accounting.

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Tax Accountant and Recruitment Manager at Stanislawski and Company, Inc.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: While at Stanislawski and Company, I was afforded the opportunity to own projects that I never would have been exposed to at any other firm. The project that I am most proud of was a complete revitalization of one of the most-intangible factors in any business – company morale. Through change management initiatives, I created a hiring process from the ground up that supported our revitalized culture, worked to update the company pay structure to better reward employees based on performance, improved our workflow processes to provide a better product to our client in less time, developed a virtual-machine environment to streamline productivity, and set up bi-weekly status updates to provide a platform to communicate feedback. Additionally, I sprinkled in a bit of fun when possible by introducing a company step challenge, an ax-throwing trip, and monthly treats to keep team members engaged and allow them the opportunity to get to know their co-workers better.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? Inspiring. My classmates have already accomplished so much. They have owned their own businesses, served our country overseas, and have taken true, viable steps to solve some of the greatest issues facing our world today.

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 opportunity for hands-on, experiential learning through the Enterprise system was one of the key factors that led me to choose the Carlson School. In fact, it was Carlson that was one of the first schools to introduce this revolutionary approach to learning and has been supporting this way of thought for the past 100 years. One of my biggest concerns about picking a career is choosing a path that I might not actually enjoy. This format of immersive learning will provide me with enough information to be confident in my choice, which is exactly what I was looking for in my MBA program.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? As a Forte Fellow, I am excited to get involved promoting Forte as an Ambassador, join the Graduate Women in Business Club and work to support, motivate and inspire women to pursue their goals in business.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? What was the hardest lesson you had to learn during your career experience, this far?

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? Simply put, I got turned down for a job that I was really excited about. I had made the decision that although I love the analytical side of tax, I could not see myself in that career path for the rest of my life, so I started looking around. After facing rejection from a job that I knew that I would be able to do well, I started noticing a pattern within the descriptions of the positions I was interested in: They all required an MBA, which became the next step in my career plan.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? In addition to Carlson, I also considered Ross, Tuck, Wisconsin School of Business, Notre Dame, and William and Mary.

How did you determine your fit at various schools? In true business school fashion, I had a fairly extensive spreadsheet that I used to evaluate each program that I was considering. My criteria ranged from courses offered, geography, ranking, and case competition offerings to the number of students sporting school gear around campus. It got to the point where (on an academic level) there were a few stand-outs but overall, most business schools would provide an excellent education.

The factor that I stressed above most, however, was where students seemed the happiest. I did quite a bit of research into this subject and found student reviews of schools through Poets&Quants and GMATClub surprisingly informative. Not only did the Carlson School check every one of my boxes, but I knew that I would be surrounded by kind, supportive, and impressive peers. And, of course, there is the tried and true cliché: once I walked on the University of Minnesota campus, despite the fact that it was 23 degrees below zero the day that I interviewed, I couldn’t imagine myself going anywhere else.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? When I was two years old, my parents got called into my pre-school for a parent-teacher conference. This is not a common occurrence for a two-year-old. My teacher wanted to inform my parents that I was already exhibiting clear signs of being a “people pleaser.” Throughout my life, I have struggled with this trait only to realize that transforming this obstacle of needing to please others into leading with empathy has helped me develop my greatest strength: building relationships. Whether meeting new people or working on a team, cultivating dynamic relationships is one of my key assets as a leader.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? In 10 years, ideally, I hope to be working in the C-suite of a Fortune 500 company helping to make decisions that not only benefit our bottom line but that positively contribute to the lives of our clients. Regardless of where I am, however, I know that I will be happy as long as I am helping others.

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