Devanshu Ganatra

Duke University, Fuqua School of Business

“My life mantra – Be kind, be passionate, smile, work hard, forgive, and go diving (scuba).”

Hometown: Somnath, Gujarat, India

Fun Fact About Yourself: At nine years old, I was among the youngest karate black beIt holders in my state in India. I started practicing martial arts when I was five years old and practiced every day for 12 years.

Undergraduate School and Major: (Include Graduate School if Relevant) – 

• School – Indian Institute of Technology, Patna
• Major – Mechanical Engineering

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: 

• Employer – Dunzo
• Job Title – Associate Director, Business Planning

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? Team Fuqua holds a unique significance for each individual. Among the Fuqua principles, the one that resonates with me the most is “supportive ambition.” I thrive in an environment where everyone supports and uplifts each other, creating a positive culture rather than engaging in cut-throat competition. Fuqua embodies this philosophy, thus making it an ideal fit for me.

A Fuqua student’s recruitment story left a profound impact on me. The student described help she received from her roommate in the recruitment process, even though the roommate was also interviewing with the same company. The story of teamwork and friendship at Fuqua gave me goosebumps and further solidified my interest in the school.

I want to be able to spend my time at Fuqua in the same way—being extremely ambitious, but also taking my peers along and helping them grow—whether it’s through introductions to my network, sharing interview tips and resources, conducting mock interviews, or providing genuine constructive feedback. The “supportive ambition” philosophy to me is to have a stake in my peers’ success and thus contribute towards making it happen.

Aside from your classmates and school culture, what was the key part of Duke Fuqua’s MBA curriculum programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Fuqua’s focus on health care and the health sector management certification, backed by the Duke’s unparalleled leadership in this field, played a key role in my choosing Fuqua.

MBA programs, with their plethora of courses and electives in multiple fields, tend to become highly stretched and all the learning about a particular topic stays on a surface level. I really enjoy myself when I am getting into the details and exploring the depth of a topic or industry. The HSM curriculum spread over different terms perfectly fits my preference for in-depth exploration (scuba pun intended).

I have co-founded a nonprofit that works with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. I have had a chance to work on the awareness and special education side of mental health and mental disability sector through the nonprofit. With the HSM certification, I will gain insights into the medical and business facets of the health care industry, providing a comprehensive and well-rounded perspective on the field.

What has been your first impression of the Fuqua MBA students and alumni you’ve met so far. Tell us your best Fuqua story so far. When applying to Fuqua, I requested feedback from a first-year student on my essays very close to my application deadline. I didn’t expect him to respond on such short notice. To my surprise, he offered to jump on the call the very same day. During the conversation, I came to know that he had his internship review the next day, which would decide his job offer, and he still found time for a call. I was stunned. This person, whom I didn’t know before was putting in effort, probably inconveniencing himself only because he felt that Fuqua’s culture would be a perfect fit for my personality, and that I would be a valuable addition to the community. The conversation we had and the relationship built was a perfect show of authentic engagement from him.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Duke Fuqua? I learn best through experiences and Fuqua has so much to offer in terms of experiential learning opportunities. I am very excited about Fuqua Client Consulting Practicum (FCCP). It will allow me to take my learnings from class and apply them to real-life situations. I spoke to a second-year student, and one of them got to work on the development of a COVID-19 vaccine with a pharmaceutical company in the U.S. That is so cool.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I helped turn around a tech-based hospitality startup that had a fatal funding failure at the very end of a venture capital deal. The company needed a reset to survive. I was promoted to the role of head of revenue strategy and given the responsibility of turning around a highly unprofitable business, which had an annual revenue of $60 million. It was challenging—I had to devise and execute a very difficult strategy. I had to convince my colleagues (who were very senior to me) and ownership to buy into my plan. As a 26-year-old, I had to manage the aspirations and motivations of my 20-person team. It took our company eight months—a lot of grinding and failures, both big and small, and hard negotiations, —to get us through. From a monthly loss of around $1.5 million, we turned around the business and made it break even.

Looking ahead two years, what would make your MBA experience successful? I would count the next two years of my MBA to be successful if I am able to push myself out of my comfort zone at every stage and significantly raise myself up from where I was before as a person—physically, emotionally, academically, and professionally. I want to do this daily and constantly. I also want to be able to build relationships with people who become my cheerleaders for the future, and also have a small group of people who make me feel at home in this amazing foreign country and become my friends for life.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Duke Fuqua’s MBA program? I would suggest you do the “25 random things” essay not for Fuqua, but for yourself. It’s an incredible way to self-reflect, look at your life from the very beginning and feel good about yourself. I am sure you have forgotten so many interesting things about yourself. Once you have a list, reflect on it. Understand how each of these things or experiences has shaped who you are today. That will help bring clarity to your goals and probably will strengthen your resolve to achieve them. Also, reach out to current students and alumni, you will be surprised how much people are willing to help.