Nick Wong

University of Wisconsin – Madison (Wisconsin School of Business)

“I’m an Asian American Wisconsinite who loves to achieve meaningful goals in collaboration with others.”

Hometown: Brookfield, Wisconsin

Fun fact about yourself: During my MBA, I worked for the Posse Foundation as a mentor to nine UW undergraduate students from the Los Angeles area during their freshman and sophomore years.

Undergraduate School and Degree: University of Wisconsin – Madison, Communication Arts: Communication Science & Rhetorical Studies

Where was the last place you worked before enrolling in business school? Venzee Technologies

Where did you intern during the summer of 2024? Baird

Where will you be working after graduation? Baird

Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School: 2024 Graduate Business Association President, Consortium for Graduate Study in Management UW Liaison, Posse Foundation Mentor

Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? The thing I’m most proud of during my MBA was serving as our 2024 Graduate Business Association President. As a small, shy kid, I never thought of myself as a leader growing up, but my leadership skills have consistently grown throughout my early career. Being able to put them to use in collaboration with a group of my good friends in service of a community I love very much was the most rewarding and enriching part of my MBA experience.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? I’m most proud of being End Use Training Success Owner for the Emergency Department, Interoperability, and Nurse Triage modules at Epic Systems. In that role I was responsible for the success of the development & maintenance of curriculum that would be used internationally to train end users of Epic’s software across its hospital system customers across the globe.

Why did you choose this business school? I chose the Wisconsin School of Business MBA Program for its incredibly positive and collaborative culture, phenomenal return on investment, and proximity to home.

Who was your favorite MBA professor? My favorite MBA professor was our marketing professor, Jan Heide. Jan always facilitated great discussions that challenged us to view the marketing world around us in different ways and was always a true champion of WSB’s culture, especially at our main charity fundraising event of the year: the Polar Plunge.

What was your favorite course as an MBA? My favorite course during my MBA was Brad Chandler’s Cryptocurrency & Blockchain course. Brad organized the course so intentionally to always remain relevant as the content was focused on a hybrid of current events and foundational concepts. He also offered the ability for a few of the best final papers to published in a top student perspectives journal which I’m very proud that my co-author Reza dad Mohammadi and I had our final paper published here.

What was your favorite MBA event or tradition at your business school? My favorite tradition of the WSB MBA is our On, Wisconsin! Weekend. In April On, Wisconsin! is our prospective student weekend where both students who are accepted and committed to attending WSB and students who are still deciding between a few schools come to campus to experience what it’s like to attend Wisconsin. The weekend starts out with a networking cocktail hour and trivia followed by current and incoming students alike attending our weekly social at a local venue. Friday, the incoming students have some additional programming to get a taste of what business school is like, there’s a campus tour for them on Saturday, and then the weekend culminates with our GBA Spring Ball put on by our student government. This is my favorite event for many reasons. I love the excitement for the new students just beginning their MBA journeys, I love talking about what makes the WSB such an awesome experience, and I love meeting new people, and that weekend is full of all of those things.

Looking back over your MBA experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently and why? If I could do my MBA again, I would’ve slightly reduced the number of the activities I was involved in and really focused on making a more profound impact on the activities I cared most about.

What did you love most about your business school’s town? Ah, I love so many things about Madison that it’s hard to choose! I’d probably say the walkability/bike-ability. I love being active and Madison is very conducive to an active lifestyle.

What surprised you the most about business school? The thing that surprised me the most about business school was just how many of the hours in my schedule were filled. I knew I’d be busy, but between two jobs, multiple extracurricular roles, and the coursework. I found myself leaving school past 9:00 – 10:00pm & beyond regularly during some stretches which was a definite challenge.

Which MBA classmate do you most admire? The classmate I admire the most is Shuting Zheng. I had the privilege of working closely with Shuting during our second year as fellow UW Consortium Liaisons and am so grateful for that opportunity. She is scrappy and does all the little things that often go unnoticed. She’ll do whatever task is required to benefit a team. This includes being a point of contact to a client/other organization, project managing and keeping us organized, and helping cleanup after events. She has been a true champion of our program, promoting it to whoever will listen, posting about it on social media, and consistently going above & beyond for our WSB community. I feel so fortunate to be able to call her a great friend.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list? The top two items on my professional bucket list are the following:

1) Help as many families/individuals as I can to achieve their financial goals and live life on their own terms.

2) Help the firm I work at adopt and implement the artificial intelligence technologies that will revolutionize our industry.

What made Nick such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2025?

“Nick Wong is an exemplary MBA student, whose dynamic background and leadership skills make him a remarkable candidate for the Poets & Quants MBAs To Watch nomination. Nick is smart, kind, thoughtful, and works tirelessly to ensure everyone feels included, while effortlessly juggling multiple responsibilities and consistently delivering results. His commitment to leadership is evident through his roles as President of the Graduate Business Association (GBA), a mentor with the Posse Foundation, and Fellow/Liaison for the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management (CGSM).

Nick demonstrated exceptional leadership qualities during his time as GBA president. GBA is the largest and most active graduate organization at the Wisconsin School of Business. Nick began as GBA President at a time when the organization needed correction. He established a clear vision, communicated openly and effectively, and fostered an environment of trust and collaboration. His leadership inspired his classmates to take action and innovate, which ultimately put the organization in a healthier financial and organizational position.

In addition to serving as the GBA president, Nick is a Posse Mentor, where he supports the academic and social success of UW undergraduate scholars from the Los Angeles area who are recipients of the Posse Foundation Leadership Scholarship. He facilitates group discussions, provides mentorship and advice, and supports their overall personal growth and success.

Nick also is a fellow and liaison for the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management (CGSM). He supports incoming consortium fellows and serves as an ambassador for prospective consortium students, where he attends national meetings and coordinates events on campus to further support their mission. In addition to his leadership and mentorship responsibilities, Nick works part-time and maintains an impressive academic schedule. His ability to balance all these roles while excelling in each is a testament to his dedication and work ethic.

As a rising second-year student, Nick volunteered to be a mentor for the incoming first-year students the summer before starting their MBA program.  He set up meetings with each student and as a group and was available to them as they had questions, needed advice and navigated their arrival to campus.

Nick consistently goes above and beyond to support his peers. His calm and positive attitude makes everyone feel at ease, and his dedication to fostering a fun, productive, and inclusive environment has impacted our school and program immensely. His genuine care for others and his involvement in nearly every aspect of our MBA program is truly inspiring. After his MBA, Nick will be joining Robert W. Baird on their Wealth Management team.

Nick Wong’s leadership, dedication, and kindness make him an invaluable asset to any organization. We wholeheartedly recommend him and are confident that he will continue to make a significant impact wherever he goes.”

Barb Bolens
Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance and Investment Banking

DON’T MISS: MBAS TO WATCH: CLASS OF 2025

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