Ryan Jewe

University of California-Berkeley, Haas School of Business

“Toby from The Office by day. SNL’s Bowen Yang by night.”

Hometown: Orange County, CA

Fun fact about yourself: One of my goals coming to Berkeley was to become more outdoorsy; I backpacked the over 80-mile O-Circuit in Patagonia with several of my classmates this year!

Undergraduate School and Degree: Azusa Pacific University, BS in Marketing

Where was the last place you worked before enrolling in business school? Kimley-Horn as a People Partner.

Where did you intern during the summer of 2024? Cisco in Chicago.

Where will you be working after graduation? Cisco as a People Consultant.

Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School:

• Consortium Fellow, Co-liaison/president
• Haas Student Ambassador
• Graduate Student Instructor, Undergraduate Business Foundation
• Berkeley Board Fellows: Selected to participate in a seven-month experiential learning program placing MBA students on local Bay Area nonprofit boards.
• Ray Miles Scholar: Awarded to one student per class who demonstrates excellence in campus leadership and academic achievement in the Leading People core class.
• MBA mentor for an undergraduate student-athlete
• Sole Student Representative, Haas Dean Search Committee
• Haas Tech Club
• Q@Haas

Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? I am most proud of co-organizing a retreat for our over 85 Consortium members focused on driving racial diversity, inclusion and equity. My co-liaisons, Travis Bautista and Lynda Negron, and I spent months working alongside our board and staff to plan an educational and community-building weekend experience. While I have been lucky to find amazing pockets of community in several places at Haas, Consortium is a special home to me—I am grateful to have been given the trust and opportunity to lead our family. While executing the retreat is not necessarily the most prestigious or visibly strategic achievement, it is meaningful to me because of the positive experience I was able to create for my peers and community.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? As a former university recruiting manager at an engineering firm, I am most proud of achieving historic records for increased representation of BIPOC (+100%) and women (+12%) new-grad hires. As part of trailblazing a new diversity recruitment strategy in our early careers program, I did a lot of research into best practices for equitable and inclusive recruiting and was able to implement several tactics: expansion of recruitment pipelines, reevaluation of current processes and changing communication and marketing campaigns, to name a few.

I am most proud of this accomplishment because of it will benefit employees and it reflected the hard work of inspiring large-scale change with agility paid off. While I am excited about all things HR-related, university recruiting holds a special place in my heart as team members are able to make unforgettable changes in someone’s life—you never forget your first internship or job out of college. Helping all my hires, especially ones with backgrounds that might be historically excluded from traditional engineering recruiting pipelines, was an incredibly gratifying experience. Secondly, implementing massive changes to a recruiting model requires a lot of trust, buy-in, and influencing power; I am extremely grateful to my previous mentors, leaders and partners who helped question the status quo.

Why did you choose this business school? Among the several reasons to choose Haas—the innovation, weather, food scene, diversity, outdoors, quality of education, (lack of) dress code—it is the people who won me over. In deciding where to attend business school, I felt other schools I applied to would provide me with similar academic experiences and professional outcomes. However, Haas was the only school I felt had people who would challenge me to question my assumptions and ultimately transform me into a more compassionate, strategic, and people-focused leader.

My classmates impress me in both big and small ways. I feel lucky to share the classroom with former founders, brilliant academics and industry leaders who have organized massive conferences, secured jobs at the most competitive firms and racked up several prestigious accolades. But I feel luckier to see and befriend the more personal, generous sides to these achievers. We’re meal-train organizers for new parents in the program; caretakers for family members in need; amateur chefs/dinner party hosts (some admittedly better than others); outdoor enthusiasts and educators; trip curators sharing global cultures; socially conscious volunteers in the local community; and proud members of a public institution fixed on creating a better future. I’m grateful to be a Haasie for many reasons, but especially because it means I get to be associated with an incredible company.

Who was your favorite MBA professor? Haas is home to several outstanding professors, but I would be extremely remiss if I did not highlight the absolute shining/rising star of our core curriculum: Dr. Erica Bailey.

Dr. Bailey was my Leading People professor and did more than just teach material for one of the most integral courses in any MBA—she inspired curiosity, engagement, healthy disagreement, and effective leadership in students through her research and expert facilitation. While I was her student in just her first year of teaching MBAs, she consistently captivated her classes in a way that encouraged all students to participate authentically and meaningfully. She dissects elements of leadership, which can often feel ambiguous and squishy, into informative insights backed by research and experimentation.

Beyond her expert teaching, research and facilitation skills, Dr. Bailey is a professor who deeply cares about student belonging and the Haas community. Whether volunteering her time to give talks at admitted students weekend, judging the annual LGBTQ+ club’s drag race fundraiser, or extending an invitation to students for a happy hour, Dr. Bailey models approachability and accessibility while maintaining an exceptionally high bar for herself as a professional. I cannot wait to see what she continues to do at Haas/in higher education.

What was your favorite course as an MBA? Negotiations taught by Professor Solène Delecourt. A common theme I hear from many MBAs is that they pursue the degree to test whether their prior industry knowledge and success are rooted in concrete research, theories, and frameworks. As someone who had practiced years of negotiations without academic backing, I was excited to take this course (especially from the legendary Solène).

The weekly negotiation role plays and cases provided us with ample learning opportunities to test our diverse negotiation styles and strategies, while still being rooted in principled tactics and best practices. I also felt like this was a class I could add value in as a previous recruiting manager—I’d like to say “thank you” to my classmates who took a vested interest in my input instead of writing me off as the archetype of an evil recruiter set on lowballing candidates. Beyond the excellent course material and class environment, I must also compliment any professor’s consistent integration of Queen Bey’s life lessons and learnings. Well done, Solène.

Looking back over your MBA experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently and why? Ironically, one thing I would do differently with my business school experience is to take more classes outside of the business school. Berkeley has so much to offer across several different schools, and I believe the problems business leaders face have solutions that are interdisciplinary and require partnership across different schools of thought.

What is the biggest myth about your school? I think the biggest myth about Haas is that it is only a good place to attend if you are interested in tech. While many of my classmates and I will be working in the tech industry, I think many would be shocked to know that the last class graduated more students into consulting than into tech. I have also been extremely proud of my friends and classmates who have sought out various career paths in media/entertainment, food, finance, healthcare banking, and VC; my experience is that Haas offers students a lot of room to explore many career paths while providing strong, transferable foundational skills.

What did you love most about your business school’s town? I love Berkeley’s easy access to nature and activities in the Bay Area! Berkeley’s proximity to some of the world’s most naturally beautiful sights, amazing cities/nightlife, and recreational activities ensures there is not a shortage of things to do or see. Some core memories from my time at Haas have included camping in Yosemite, skiing in Tahoe, surfing, and hiking in Muir Woods and Mount Tamalpais. And while the year-round access to nature is amazing, I also have enjoyed the perks of city life: nights out in San Francisco until 4 a.m., attending massive concerts/shows, exploring a diverse and growing food scene, and wandering through several incredible art museums/exhibits. Berkeley is, in itself, an amazing cultural hub, but I am extremely grateful for how it fits into the larger Bay Area ecosystem.

What movie or television show best reflects the realities of business and what did you learn from it? Dare I say: The Devil Wears Prada— not because it necessarily reflects the realities of day-to-day business operations (I think any show/movie that accurately reflected the realities would be an instant flop), but because it follows the developmental journey of a young professional postgrad hustling through the real challenges of starting a meaningful career. We learn about the pros/cons of making personal sacrifices for one’s career, taking risks and reinventing oneself, debating which organizational norms to encourage and question, ethical vs. unethical leadership, when to pivot and perhaps most importantly— that the “sweater is not just blue, it’s not turquoise, it’s not lapis—it’s actually cerulean”. The movie is an HR professional’s nightmare, but a lasting reminder to have a guiding professional north star to hold you accountable to remaining authentic and perseverant.

What is one way that your business school has integrated AI into your programming? What insights did you gain from using AI? Beyond daily practical use of AI in the classroom, I have been grateful that the courses and faculty at Haas prepare students to think about responsible use and future implications of AI. In electives like Designing Futures, Reinventing Capitalism and Designing Tech for Good, I appreciated the opportunity to openly discuss shared enthusiasm, concerns and philosophies associated with the rapid development and democratized use of AI.

Which MBA classmate do you most admire? There are so many classmates I could write pages-worth of praise for, but I’d love to highlight my classmate, friend, teacher and inspirer: Brittany Jacob. Brittany regularly embodies several qualities not typically associated with an MBA candidate: humility, gratitude, grace and compassion – to name a handful. Not only is she a caring friend to many on this campus, but she is also a trailblazer and professional force whose presence is positively unignorable. I admire her advocacy as our student government VP of D&I/ champion for Black students, her grit and discipline as a successful career pivoter into consulting, and her grounded sense of commitment to personal values and relationships. She is one of the most adventurous, generous, talented, and (of course) stylish gifts to the Haas community; our world would be an exceptionally better place if everyone were a little more like Brittany.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list? Become a Chief People Officer. Write a book.

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

“Over the past year, I have had the privilege of working closely with Ryan in his role as a GSI for Foundations of Business, the Berkeley-Haas gateway course of our new Four-Year Undergraduate Spieker Program. One of our aims for this course is to encourage our students to think critically about the foundations as they put into practice our Berkeley Haas defining principles with GSIs who embody our culture: Students Always, Beyond Yourself, Question the Status Quo, and Confidence Without Attitude. In this role, Ryan has exemplified Beyond Yourself by extending traditional GSI responsibilities to empower our emerging undergraduate leaders. He skillfully creates an inclusive learning environment where students feel respected and valued, encouraging them to find their voice and navigate challenges collaboratively. His leadership reaches beyond the classroom—Ryan has been instrumental in shaping the course itself, critically evaluating our lecture and lab designs with an eye on enhancing student engagement. He consistently asks thoughtful questions in our teaching team meetings that challenge us to consider the student experience, leading to innovative adaptations that activate deeper learning. Beyond these contributions, Ryan also dedicates significant time to mentoring new GSIs, helping them grasp the course’s pedagogical approach, and serving as a trusted thought partner to faculty.

Ryan’s leadership has had a lasting impact on the Berkeley Haas community, particularly through his role in establishing a dynamic MBA-UGBA leadership ecosystem. By embedding our defining principles into our gateway leadership labs, he has strengthened the bridge between undergraduate and MBA students, fostering a culture of mentorship and shared learning. His reputation for integrity and sound judgment earned him a role on the Dean’s Search Committee, a testament to the deep trust the community places in his ability to approach decisions with balance and thoughtfulness. Ryan fully embodies the Student Always principle, actively engaging across diverse communities and seeking new perspectives to refine his understanding before attempting to problem-solve. His intellectual curiosity, combined with his talent for building meaningful connections, ensures his lasting influence as a leader, driving sustainable impact for the organizations he serves.”

Brandi M. Pearce, PhD
Lecturer, Management of Organizations
Director of High Impact Teaming & Research

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

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