Our Top Ten Favorite MBAs of 2014

Jennifer Tietz, Tuck MBA and U.S. Navy reserves Lt.-Commander

Jennifer Tietz, Tuck MBA and U.S. Navy reserves Lt.-Commander

5. Jennifer Tietz, Tuck MBA, Class of 2015, Veteran

“If I am not being shot at, it’s probably not a crisis.” – Jennifer Tietz

If this were the “Top Ten Bad Ass MBAs” list, Tietz would be tops. Military veterans are increasingly choosing the MBA as an educational option after serving and b-schools are welcoming them with open arms. Tietz spent 12 years in active service for the U.S. Navy before beginning her MBA at Tuck. She mainly trained others on how to operate nuclear propulsion plants on aircraft carriers. She was also a battle captain at Camp Bucca, which happens to be the largest U.S. detention facility in Iraq.

Being able to lead soldiers in high-pressure situations breeds confidence and deft leadership skills. Tietz brought those skills and many more when she stepped on Tuck’s campus. Next up for Tietz is an associate position at McKinsey where she hopes to begin her crusade to get more representation of women in Congress and the C-Suite.

Read more about Tietz.

 

Srinivas Rao with his wife and son.

Srinivas Rao with his wife and son.

4. Srinivas “Cheeni” Rao, University of Iowa Tippie College of Business

When you are raised in a comfy Chicago suburb a life of homelessness, seeing death, and drug dealing is usually not part of the life plan. Yet that is where recent Iowa graduate, Srinivas “Cheeni” Rao found himself after opening up a “Pandora’s Box” of drugs as a theater enthusiast at a liberal arts university. In a flash, Rao found himself addicted to cocaine, homeless in south Chicago. Rock bottom was watching his friend bleed to death from a stab wound.

In an epic turnaround story, Rao got himself into rehab, then a halfway house, then accepted into the University of Chicago where he graduated with an English degree. After more than a decade of writing, Rao entered Iowa’s Tippie and is now working in Wells Fargo’s investment management development program.

Read more about Rao’s journey.

 

Harvard MBA graduate and biotech firm CEO Viet Huynh

Harvard MBA graduate and biotech firm CEO Viet Huynh

3. Viet Huynh, Harvard, from Vietnam

Viet Huynh went from hay-roofed bamboo house in Vietnam to Stanford to Harvard. If there was ever a rags to riches story it is Huynh’s. He grew up with no electricity or running water. His parents didn’t graduate high school. No matter. Huynh finds himself appropriately amongst some of the best minds in the world.

Huynh’s story renders an idealistic world where good people get good things. From the fifth grade others took notice of Huynh’s intelligence and hard work and rewarded him accordingly. Hunyh did everything from sleeping on friend’s couches close to his elementary school to winning a national government competition for high school students in Singapore to insure he went to a top high school.

Huynh took his knowledge back to Vietnam where he heads up BioSpring, a company that makes animal feed that helps livestock digest food efficiently for growth.

Read more about Viet Huynh’s life.

 

Saathi on the ground in India

Saathi on the ground in India

2. Amrita Saigal, Harvard Class of 2014, Founder of Saathi

When Amrita Saigal interned in Proctor & Gamble’s feminine hygiene division as a 21-year-old MIT student, her eyes were opened. Her eyes were opened to the world of brands such as Always and Tampax but also the need for feminine hygiene products in home country of India. Girls were foregoing school on a regular basis because they did not have pads. Saigal wanted to change this.

She came up with the idea to use local fibrous plants (specifically banana trees) to produce pads for girls in India. She named her company Saathi and with fellow MIT graduate and Oracle engineer, Kristin Kagetsu won Harvard’s New Venture Competition this past April (edging out number ten on the list, Tomato Jos). Saathi now employs local women in India to run the company.

Read more about Saathi and Saigal.

 

Case Gerald

Casey Gerald

1. Casey Gerald, Harvard, Founder MBAs Across America

Casey Gerald has had a huge year. In June, he gave the “most stirring speech ever by an MBA” in front of more than 900 of his graduating peers. Then he saw teams of MBA students from some of the top schools in America storm the country all in the name of entrepreneurship and “do-good-ism” through MBAs Across America, the socially impacting organization Gerald heads up.

Don’t just take Poets&Quants’ word for it. A quick glance through the comments of the three published articles about him this year reveal a reverence from his peers. A quick conversation or email exchange with Gerald reveals an intelligent, confident, and humble person who values others and the impact of business. Hey, Casey, when you become President or something remember your roots as Poets&Quants’ Favorite MBA of 2014.

Read more about Gerald and MBAs Across America.

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