I'm Loving It!

Can you believe it: I’ve completed a quarter of an MBA degree already ;) Time is flying by, and I am truly loving the Ivey MBA experience. In all honesty I think the program has been excellent thus far and I think that most of my colleagues would agree with me. The learning materials are relevant and applicable in the real world, my peers are awesome (I feel like I’ve made 70 good friends), career management has been very helpful and is living up to their reputation, and the alumni network appears to be as strong as ever. What more could I have asked for?

I recently got back from Industry Week; a week off from class where the class was put up in the Hilton Hotel in downtown Toronto and given an opportunity to meet with industry, alumni, and recruiters. It was truly a great experience and a fantastic way to weigh one’s options with respect to potential career paths and target companies. In particular, I found it useful because I was able to eliminate a number of career paths that I had been contemplating. When I came into the MBA program, I was focussed on going back to the telecom industry in the capacity of general management, or product management. Early on in the MBA, I got caught up with the management consulting and iBanking (investment banking) crowd. It is difficult to stay focussed on your career goals when you are being wined and dined and lured in by the consulting and iBanking companies. It also doesn’t help when 60-75% of the class is talking the iBanking and consulting talk day in day out, with its promise of big money + bonuses etc. Well I’m off that diverted track and I came back from Toronto more focussed then ever. I feel that I’ve cleared mind with respect to my career path: I think I’m sticking to my initial objectives and will follow my passions in Telecom (remember Sacha that the intersection point between your passions and strengths will lead to success --> I live by this!). Of course there are a few exceptions; I am considering technology consulting as a potential post-MBA path. This type of consulting is somewhat different then management consulting and is somewhat appealing (more research required). At this point, my first preference would be to go back to Nortel if the offer and opportunity is right and fits my goals. I feel very loyal to the company, but I also realize that expanding my breadth of experience beyond Nortel is equally important at this stage of my career. At the end of the day I will need to pay the MBA bills and a good offer would likely sway me. I hope Nortel comes through for me because I want to give back and be apart of that turnaround story.

One of the interesting positive points that I’ve come to like about Ivey is how they are very quick to respond to student concerns. There are no doubts that the one year program is still in transition phase, however I would argue that most of the knots have been ironed out and any glitches in the one year program have been fairly minor thus far. About a month ago, the new acting dean came to our class and asked for the student’s feedback. All concerns were recorded and many were fixed immediately. For example, one student complained that some of the study rooms lacked a white board; within a week all study rooms that were lacking one were fitted with white boards. I guess that’s what you’d expect from a top b-school. I know I was impressed!

I recently applied and was chosen to be one of three ambassador senators for the Ivey MBA School. I’m excited about the opportunity. People who know me well know that I like to sell and promote things that I believe in. I believe in knowledge sharing and collaboration and I spread this wherever I go. I believe in Nortel and I promote the company wherever possible. I believe in Ivey, and you better bet that I’m going to do my best to do a good job as an ambassador for the program.

Speaking of Nortel, I am thrilled to announce that Lauren Flaherty (CMO of Nortel) and one of Canada’s 100 most powerful women (as per a recent award), has agreed to visit Ivey and deliver a talk on leadership and Nortel. I wanted to specially thank a particular reader of my blog who happens to work for Lauren and who endorsed my cause and invitation: Thank you! I can’t wait for Lauren to come down. I really believe that it will help change the perception of Nortel on campus and will help build the Ivey/Nortel relationship. In the mean time I’ve been in touch with the University Relations Prime at Nortel to help rejuvenate the Ivey/Nortel recruiting relationship; keep you posted on that. I believe that Ivey has some of the brightest business minds in the country, and I believe that Nortel should be taking advantage of this. I hope that Lauren’s visit and a potential rejuvenation of the Ivey/Nortel relationship will spark interest in Nortel amongst the students and vice-versa.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend a “dress for success” event that was put on by the Ivey Career Management folks at a high-end clothing store here in London. I learned a few nifty fashion tips. Here are some of my takeaways (which will be handy for the upcoming recruiting season): match you belt with your shoes, one should have at least four suits (black, navy, grey, and one other colour), one should have about 15 dress shirts (really??), brown shoes go with navy and gray suits while black shoes go with a black suit, there are many different tie knots, dry cleaning reduces the life of you attire by 50%, and never button up the bottom button of your suit (leave open). I’ll leave it at that. Did I mention that the store was selling $3k boss blazers! Maybe one day ;)

I just got back from a 4 day long weekend in Ottawa where my whole family spent the weekend together. My sister and her family came up from California, while my brother and his kids came up from Texas. Of course my parents, in laws, and other brother and his family were present too (all live in O-town aka Ottawa). The 22 of us had a blast; I love family reunions! We attended a wedding of a close family friend, and partied it up for 4 straight days (mix of wedding parties, clubbing, and outdoor activities including fishing!). I arrived back to London late on Tuesday night feeling like I needed a vacation from the vacation. Well, I’m in one piece but I’m still paying the price for a crazy, fun, sleepless weekend. I’ve been exhausted all week and haven’t been participating much in class. In addition, I seem to be falling behind a bit on the accounting and finance class material. I need to catch up on some sleep this weekend…What’s new? The good news is that it seems like most of the class is in the same boat ;) I'll catch up on sleep after hitting the barking frog (night club frequented by all Ivey MBA students) tomorrow night with my mates

In my last entry, I briefly discussed how I was feeling a lot of anxiety lately and was not always thinking straight + losing concentration etc etc. Well I’ve had enough of that #!#@# and I’ve decided to get a grip on myself. I'm feeling a lot better over the last couple of weeks, and I’m getting back to normal. I’m spending more time with Geeta (my wife) which is really helping me + I’m exercising regularly + I’m learning to take life day by day + I’m doing away with things that are dragging me down + trying to keep life as simple as possible: Keep you posted on my progress.

Until next time…

Sacha