Mariami Beshkenadze

Duke University, Fuqua School of Business

“I am an energetic leader and great team player with questionable cooking skills.”

Hometown: Tbilisi, Georgia

Fun Fact About Yourself: I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I have read all seven of the HP books together over 70 times.

Undergraduate School and Major: Caucasus University, Caucasus School of Business, Finance

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: KPI Georgia, Financial Manager

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 resonates with me the most. Fuqua believes that the success of an individual member of the team makes the entire team better. There is no shortness of ambition among the MBA candidates. But this principle demands from us that we support each other’s ambitions as well because together we can achieve much more than any one of us individually.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of the school’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? The overall climate at Fuqua amazed me. From my first interaction with the Fuqua admissions team to every interview with students or alumni, I could see cherished Fuqua principles shine through these people. I wanted to be associated with the same qualities and same principles.

What quality best describes your MBA classmates and why? Needless to say, I am surrounded by astonishing professionals and overachievers. But going in, I kind of expected those qualities. What really amazes me about my classmates is their sense of camaraderie as well as their eagerness to help and contribute without seeking credit.

What club or activity excites you most at this school? There is no shortage of exciting clubs here at Fuqua, but I would especially love to help lead the Association of Women in Business. I want to be part of the great cause and help empower women. AWIB is a great resource for women at Fuqua, as it plays an integral role in fostering conversation regarding the unique challenges women face. I want to be among great future leaders who help pave the way for upcoming businesswomen.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: At KPI Georgia, I was put in charge of a poorly-functioning team. I always wanted to be a good leader. When faced with this challenge, I took on the task with great enthusiasm. Through tireless efforts and hard work, I invested in and coached my team to make sure people felt valued, challenged and motivated. In a couple of months, we managed to become one of the best-performing teams I have ever had privilege to work with.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? I feel that, at this point in my career, I have accumulated enough experience and knowledge to not only benefit from an MBA, but also to contribute to the Fuqua community.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University and NYU Stern’s School of Business.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? The most challenging question they asked was about my failures. As a candidate, you try to impress the interviewer as much as you can and you do not want to talk about your weaknesses and failures. But what you should keep in mind is that nobody expects you to be perfect. They expect you to be self-aware!

What have you been doing to prepare yourself for business school? I have been doing research, interviewing people who completed different MBA programs. I wanted to be prepared and have adequate knowledge and expectations of each program I was applying to.

What was your defining moment and how did it prepare you for business school? I got married. My husband and I both wanted to pursue an MBA and take our careers to the next level. There was nothing else to wait for. After our honeymoon, we started our application process. Currently, we are both Fuqua MBA 2022 candidates.

What is your favorite company and what could business students learn from them? I would say that one of my favorite companies is Google. It’s truly amazing how Google managed to transform multiple industries with its innovative technologies. I believe there is much to learn from Google’s business model. Its diversified investments in various projects give Google a strong presence in multiple industries and enable it to always be a step ahead of the competition and always deliver on the high expectations of its customers.

DON’T MISS: Meet Duke Fuqua’s MBA Class of 2022