Shaivya Vashishtha

University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business

“I believe in competing with self so my improvements are not limited by any benchmarks.”

Hometown: Kota, Rajasthan, India

Fun Fact About Yourself: As a kid, I was very into science experiments. I once tried creating a diamond when I was around 8 or 9 years old. My mother was teaching my sister, who is four years older than me, about how a diamond converts directly to carbon dioxide upon burning as it is nothing but carbon. It was the same time I studied respiration in class and I knew we exhale carbon dioxide, so I applied reverse engineering and blew air in a polybag and kept it in the freezer. Obviously, my plan did not materialize but this incident still manages to entertain people.

Undergraduate School and Major: B.Tech from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Chief Marketing Officer at CropConnect Enterprises Pvt. Ltd.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: As CMO of a social enterprise, I worked to manage revenue and maximize social impact for smallholding farmers. During one of my field visits in a village on mountains of the Himalayas, I got to know that local farmers were growing commercial crops such as wheat, which is grown in abundance in the plains where the productivity is much higher. Thus, those farmers were unable to fetch fair prices for their produce. I thus decided to do a market analysis for crops native to the village. After distributing samples and collecting feedback on new products from our existing customer base, we introduced some of those products in our main product list and they became instant hits.

Thus, the following year I addressed local farmers to create awareness about the market opportunity; attended meetings with the ministers of that state and the bureaucrats to set the right infrastructure; and created awareness of the market potential of local produce. As a result, I was able to get more farmers to join the movement, which increased production by about 100%. And the farmer’s income on those products rose to as high as 100% as new markets and demands were identified. CropConnect was also covered in local newspapers for helping farmers realize their strength and increase their income.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? Extremely helpful and cooperative. This is something that I have found in every McCombs student whom I have come across. Be it seniors or be it my batch mates, everyone has helped me become so comfortable with them so that I do not hesitate in asking the smallest of things. It is especially important for me, as I am an international student and knowing that I have such amazingly helpful peers really makes it easy to settle in a new place and focus on my curriculum.

What makes Austin such a great place to earn an MBA? As an MBA student, the thing that really stands out for me is the myriad of networking opportunities that exist in the city especially in the technology space which is booming in Austin. I completed my undergrad from New Delhi in India and my first job was also there. I remember how the city really helped me connect with people from analytics and consulting in an around Delhi. This gave me an edge during the placements and even after I started to work. Thus, I value the experience of studying at a place that provides a mix of academics and industry experience.

Aside from your classmates and location, 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 other thing that really stood out for me was the concentration around brand and product management. After my MBA, I want to get into tech product management space and thus I wanted to opt for schools that offer specialized curriculum around product management. Aside from the courses, there is also the Graduate Marketing Network that facilitates students with resources to further enhance skills in marketing space.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? Given my prior experience in marketing and my future interest in both tech product marketing and entrepreneurship, I look forward to becoming part of the Graduate Marketing Network and Entrepreneurship Society. I am a foodie at heart and I enjoy cooking. Thus, I really look forward to the food tours and cooking contests offered by the Graduate Epicurean Club.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? The most challenging question was one of the essays where I had to imagine my graduation day and write about the two years at McCombs. It was challenging because I had to write about the entire experience without actually experiencing it. But it was the most exciting question too and it really helped me get a good clarity on how I wanted to spend my time at McCombs and what I wanted to take away from after two years of my MBA.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? During my last stint, my work entailed laying down marketing and sales strategies. It was during this time that I worked with some online marketplaces and realized how technology has the potential to help millions of small and medium enterprises reach larger markets. Also, having an engineering background and working in data analytics and consulting, I started to feel that given the right platform and training I could use my existing skills and knowledge to create a bigger social impact by creating tech products for emerging markets. Thus, I decided to pursue an MBA in order to achieve my next goals.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? I applied to Marshall Business School, Foster School of Business and Kelley School of Business.

How did you determine your fit at various schools? I wanted to pursue an MBA to get into tech product management and I was very focused on schools that are known for career opportunities in the technology sector and are located in areas that offer good industry exposure.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? My defining moment came at the time when I was volunteering at an NGO called Sewing New Futures, an NGO that provides alternative livelihood opportunities to women caught in intergenerational prostitution. At the time, I was working as a consultant in a boutique management consulting firm but during my volunteer stint. I met some very courageous and talented women who wanted to change the course of their lives with their hard work but lacked the opportunity to do so. It was then that it dawned on me that a lot of people at the bottom of the pyramid have the skills and talent to make it big in their lives; all they need is the right means and opportunity. It was then that I decided to quit my job and work with social enterprise to create such opportunities for the underprivileged section of the society. I have been on this journey to identify better ways to create more and more opportunities through my work and I am determined to continue this journey going forward.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? In 10 years, I see myself leading penetration of tech products in emerging economies and helping more and more small and medium-sized businesses find bigger markets. I see myself facilitating tech platforms that can promote entrepreneurship at not only different economic levels but also different geographies.