Justin Traenkle

Washington University in St. Louis, Olin Business School

“An agriculture nerd with a passion for applying natural systems to innovation.”

Hometown: Sterling, VA

Fun Fact About Yourself: I once owned an oyster farming business.

Undergraduate School and Major: North Carolina State University, B.S. in Agricultural Engineering & Interdisciplinary Studies (self-designed major)

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Kalera (now acquired by 80 Acres), Director of Supply Chain & Operations

What has been your favorite part of St. Louis so far? makes St. Louis such a great place to earn an MBA? St. Louis is a major hub for agricultural research and ag tech innovation. As an agriculture nerd, this was a big part in my decision to come to WashU. I have loved getting involved in the local ag ecosystem through events with the 39North AgTech Innovation District, touring the Danforth Plant Science Center, and joining the STL Agribusiness Club, where I was able to meet with Governor Mike Kehoe.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of Washington Olin’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Olin’s reputation for entrepreneurship and their strong community of innovation are what attracted me to the school in the first place. After interacting with the Skandalaris Center team and connecting with several WashU founders, I knew that I would be well supported and connected in my entrepreneurial ventures during my time on campus and beyond.

What course, club or activity have you enjoyed the most so far at Washington Olin? I have really enjoyed my Marketing Management class taught by Sam Chun. As a former “Ops Guy” I previously viewed marketing as the “creative” part of a sales organization. Taking this class has given me a new appreciation for the purpose of marketing and how to think strategically about business growth and the quality of that growth.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My greatest challenge professionally has been being a part of a leadership team that helped navigate a company through a Chapter 11 restructuring to a successful acquisition. As the Director of Supply Chain & Operations for a company unable to pay its bills for a period of time, it was a terrifying task to find a way to keep serving customers in the midst of restructuring. However, this experience helped me evolve my leadership beyond just being an individual contributor and taught me the value of building trust amongst your teams and partners.

Describe your biggest achievement in the MBA program so far: It was being selected as a Semi-Finalist for the Skandalaris Venture Competition (SVC). The quality and engagement of student entrepreneurs at WashU is impressive, and I am constantly humbled and energized by my peers within the innovation ecosystem here on campus. Even though I was not a Finalist for SVC, I thoroughly enjoyed my experience and was able to pitch multiple ideas and get feedback from a panel of judges, which has led to funding opportunities.

What has been your best memory as an MBA so far? My favorite memory so far was taking a road trip with four other classmates from St. Louis up to Chicago for a conference and being back in St. Louis 30 hours later. We all packed into the same car together and brought along our favorite road trip snack to share. It was one of those organic experiences that allowed us all to get to know one another super quick and create some memories that we will share forever.

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