I very much enjoyed Dean Jim Dean’s opening remarks and I immediately felt a part of the KFBS family. His views on Leadership in these turbulent economic times were right on point and a stark reminder that much of what will happen in the future of business depends on us. Integrity and being results driven are 2 of the most important qualities today’s managers must display at all times to be successful.

Now that classes have started, I find myself immersed in the world of reading assignments, homework and midterm exams. The teachings have been rigorous and yet fun. I have already leaned in ATDM, i.e. Statistics, that ‘in life, you only get to go around once’ and that is key to helping solve many problems. As I continue my beyond, I am reminded of a Chinese proverb Hugh O’Neil shared with us during our first day on campus: ‘The journey is the reward’. I am looking forward to it.”

I’ve just finished the latest Dan Brown book and now I’m chipping away at The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo. I’m busy reading as much pulp as possible this summer because I have a feeling the real reading begins soon. It was much easier to be distracted in June and July though. There’s was a World Cup going on and even better – I was there. Seven vuvuzela-filled weeks back home in South Africa was a fantastic distraction from the pending pressure of an upcoming Executive MBA program. Unfortunately, like all good parties, there was hangover to deal with when it was all done. The end of the World Cup brought on a collective depression for most South Africans and I was no different. What made mine worse was that I had to board a plane back to Washington DC where I was greeted by a seven-week tall pile of mail. At the base of that pile was a pale yellow manila envelope with a “University of North Carolina Chapel Hill” stamp on it.

It begins.

Actually for me it began in February.  That was when a “restlessness” annoyed me enough to drive me to start contemplating what the next step in my life would be. An Executive MBA resonated with the place I found myself in, and almost immediately I started looking at a number of schools. In the end I decided to choose a program which had a global focus and was close to Washington. That left two schools: Georgetown and UNC – Hoyas vs Tar Heels…Bulldog vs Ram…Jordan vs Ewing…It was an impossible choice because both schools are fantastic. Having the luxury of being able to make a decision between two options when you know you can’t make a mistake was a novel experience, but a wonderful dilemma to have. It also made me wish that more decisions in life couldn’t be that way – just think how much easier dating would be.

Choosing a school was only the first step of this adventure; my next challenge was figuring out how to pay for all of this. Why can’t chasing dreams cost less?  Recent legislation has resulted in the government being the originator of most student loans – this serves to lower transaction fees and cut out the middle men…Great if you’re a citizen, not so cool if you’re a “furrenner.”  Luckily for me, American gals like South African accents, which is how I ended up being engaged to one.  And even more lucky for me is that I have the coolest in-laws in the world who agreed to co-sign my loan a year BEFORE I married their daughter. Yay for Sallie Mae!

Get in to school…Tick.

Figure out how to pay for it…Tick.

Log into school email…um…no tick. It took me exactly one week and I have already screwed up my UNC passwords – the Onyen made me cry.

Three more weeks till class, three more weeks till football season. I can’t wait for either to begin.

Cheers.

In his book The 8^th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness, management consultant and personal effectiveness guru Stephen Covey talks about “finding your voice” as a way to achieve deep satisfaction in your career and life. Essentially, finding your voice involves applying all aspects of yourself-mind, body, heart, and spirit to become fully engaged in those pursuits, people, and organizations that are most important to you.

It was a desire to find my voice that led me to pursue my MBA at UNC’s Kenan-Flager Business School. After several years in the accounting world, I was ready to move beyond recording the economic consequences of someone else’s decisions. I wanted to have a seat at the table within organizations that are impacting our world. Not only did I want a seat, I wanted a voice as well so that I could help shape a sustainable course for the organization’s future. I believe Kenan-Flager’s MBA education will not only give me the technical business tools I’ll need to earn this seat, it will also sharpen my emotional intelligence and soft skills so that I can effectively interact with the other leaders around the table as we confront new challenges and opportunities in an ever changing world.

Read my earlier post here.

Then I received a box of textbooks and was reminded that I actually go back to school after the summer. The OneMBA program at UNC starts on September 10^th – less than two months away!  Like most OneMBA students, I haven’t been a student in a long time. What can I do to prepare for this stimulating 21-month journey?

First, I have been evaluating ways to better prioritize my time throughout the day. Many Executive MBA students work demanding jobs and have busy schedules so it is important to manage your time well. Based on a recommendation from OneMBA Director, Brigitta Theleman, I started to read the book, “The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal.” Hopefully this can help and so far it has been a great read.  It is helping me to live in the moment – close the ESPN.com window, turn off the Facebook alerts, and make the most of an hour.

Managing time is an element that Executive MBA students may have anxiety with. Having a positive work/life balance is difficult enough, but mixing school into it proposes another challenge. But a challenge I am confident all of the OneMBA students are excited about and capable of handling.

This summer I have been busy watching some baseball games, taking road trips with my wife, and playing some golf… but alas, “summer vacation” must come to a close for students of all ages.  Now, I need to move on to cracking open that first textbook!

Well it certainly was a drawn-out process because I knew for about 2-3 years that I wanted to go back to school and earn an MBA. However, due to various life events (that I will call the “happening period”) — marriage, birth of my first child, work, etc. — it seemed that I would have to wait a little longer to fulfill this goal of mine. I’m glad things worked out the way they did because now the timing is right for me and my family.

I wanted to get an MBA to: 1) acquire knowledge and skills I can immediately apply in my current position; 2) help increase my visibility within the organization; and 3) have the flexibility to grow my career and adapt to the new global work environment.

During the “happening period,” I took the time to research various MBA programs and tried to find the one program that was the “right” fit for me. I researched MBA programs online, reviewed magazines/newspapers (US News & World Report, Forbes, Financial Times, NY Times) and spent a lot of time on the UNC Kenan-Flager website.

I talked to couple of colleagues who completed an MBA while working and I was also fortunate to have other colleagues who are currently earning their MBA at UNC. In addition, I attended an event put together by the Kenan-Flagler staff to learn more about the MBA experience at UNC, and in the process I met some very enthusiastic alumni who really helped solidify my decision to get an MBA there.

Finally, I looked into my company’s support for people who wanted to further their education while on the job and started talking to my manager about my goal to get an MBA.

Once I felt that I had enough information to make a decision, the rest was easy — and here I am writing this blog. I still have many questions about immersion weekend, classes, professors, classmates, etc.  I know it won’t be long before all the pieces of the puzzle come together. For now I’m just ready to ”Begin My Beyond.”

Fast forward  a year later as I’m now preparing to set aside my hobby of triathlon training to embrace juggling 3 other major themes in my life: beginning the Evening MBA for Executives program, preparing for a new family addition (my wife and I are expecting our first child two weeks after classes start), and continuing to excel at work.  I think the key to balancing these responsibilities will be to take each day one at a time and really ensure I’m spending 80% of my time on the 20% of things that truly matter.

As a recovering perfectionist, I sometimes find it hard to leave my to-do list incomplete, but I am learning to embrace the notion that perfection is the enemy of greatness. I try to begin most days by looking at my calendar and reflecting on what I will be most proud to have accomplished at day’s end.  This is certainly easier said than done in a world full of distractions from email and Facebook updates! I have often found, though, that the more I have to do the more I am able to focus and get things done.

I can’t wait to begin this journey with my classmates and the UNC Kenan-Flagler faculty, staff, and alumni. I’m also looking forward to blogging about my experiences throughout the program.

The last time I blogged, I think I commented on the incredible Turkish professors we had an opportunity to experience during the residency. And, Friday was no exception. The class learned about “Big Business Organization in Turkey” from Professor Behlul Usdiken of Sabanci University, and they later heard from Mr. Cuneyt Yavuz, the CEO of Mavi Jeans (a very successful Turkish company). Professor Usdiken set the stage for the Mavi Jeans CEO by explaining how business has traditionally operated in Turkey, and how it’s changing with the increasing growth of a Capitalist society. Family businesses have really ruled that economy (and still do, to a large extent), and nepotism is a regular and accepted practice even in the largest of companies. My thought was, “Wonder what the SEC would think of that?!”

After lunch, the students once again had the opportunity to visit some Turkish companies: a bank, a furniture company and a gold company were some options.

Perhaps the most interesting part of Friday was the team exercise in the late afternoon/early evening. Each team was given a recipe and list of ingredients for a traditional Turkish dish and then sent to the world-famous Turkish Spice Bazaar to purchase the ingredients. The students then met at a former mosque-turned-private restaurant to assemble their dishes. This was a team competition of sorts: Congratulations Team 8 for creating the most authentic, delicious Turkish dish!

Directly after the exercise, the group stayed on at the restaurant for their final dinner together (during this European residency). We were treated to a traditional Turkish meal, including the entertainment of traditional dancers. I’m pasting below a photo of the the lovely meal as well as a video of the dancers.

On Saturday morning, the group completed the residency with a few final wrap-up sessions before concluding with lunch. Most of the students planned to stay in Turkey for at least one additional day in order to further experience the city of Istanbul and the culture on their own.

The final verdict on the residency? It was incredible! If you’re reading this and interested in learning more about the unique global OneMBA Program, please visit http://www.onemba.org and see for yourself what this is all about!

The past 24 hours have been an incredible whirlwind!  Yesterday afternoon, the OneMBA class traveled via Turkish Airlines from Amsterdam to Istanbul to complete the European Residency.  This portion of the residency is focused on learning about the challenges that business leaders face in an emerging economy.  Istanbul, in particular, is a fascinating subject because it’s the only city in the world that resides on two continents:  Europe and Asia.  To make matters even more interesting, this is a country that is governed by an Islamic government, but is very much a capitalist society interested in becoming part of the European Union.

Our first speaker this morning, Professor Soli Ozel of Istanbul Bilgi University, focused on that topic of, “Islamic Issues and its Impact on Business & Social Life.”  He was fascinating!  I literally took pages upon pages of notes.  A few key points that stood out for me:

• Islam and Capitalism can coexist, and Turkey is proof.  The trend in the Muslim world is for Capitalism to be further integrated.
• “Nobody creates something without making mistakes.”  Turkey has been on a path toward becoming “Western” for 200 years now, and it’s made its share of mistakes (and will continue to do so).  But, it’s made incredibly great strides toward democracy and Capitalism.
• One reason (perhaps the chief reason) the Islamic government won the people’s vote is because they are “committed to delivering services.”
• Turkey’s foreign policy is driven by its economic interests.  According to Professor Ozel, it’s in the best interest of Turkey and the rest of Europe for Turkey to become part of the European Union, but it’s unclear whether that will ever happen.  In the meantime, they will continue to foster open relations with their Muslim neighbors (i.e. Syria, Iran, Jordan, etc.)
• One of the next big challenges for Turkey:  ”How do we define our Secularism?”

I could go on; like I said, he was thought-provoking and informative.

The next speaker was equally impressive.  Professor Nakiye Boyacigiller, Dean of the Faculty of Management at Sabanci University, spoke about “Cross Cultural Communications” and specifically shared some information about Turkish culture.  During her talk, I wrote down a few statements that gave me pause:

• Turkey is the 17th largest economy in the world.
• 60 percent of Turkey’s population is younger than 30 years old.
• 38 percent of University professors in Turkey are women.
• While gender remains an issue in this part of the world, education, class and family trump gender.

I’m sure you can imagine that the Q&A session after each of these speakers was lively!

In addition to the speakers, the students spent the afternoon on company visits, ranging from large (CNN Turk) to medium-sized organizations (Kahmi Roc Museum), and they have this evening free to meet with their teams and/or socialize.  Istanbul is a beautiful city, and I look forward myself to visiting some of the historic sites.  In the meantime, I’ll leave you with a short video of a OneMBA student (from RSM) sharing his thoughts about this part of the residency.

OneMBA filled the morning of Day 3 with presentations on “Leading with Ethical Awareness” (Prof David de Cremer, RSM) and “Moral Leadership” (Mrs. Pauline van der Meer Mohr, LLM).  After lunch, the group was introduced to marketing with a presentation on “Marketing in a Multicultural World,” team-taught by RSM Professors Stijn van Osselaer and Stefano Puntoni.   This was a good briefing for two reasons:  1) The next activity of the day would be a marketing presentation specific to the Heineken brand, as the Heineken Brewery, and 2) The next globally-coordinated course the OneMBA students will take is the core marketing class.  And, as a professional responsible for marketing the OneMBA Program, I took copious notes during this session!

By the way – I haven’t mentioned that during all these sessions, the students are sitting with their new global teams.  Global teams are changed at each global residency, exposing students to nearly all of their peers during the program.  These teams will work on a project over the next few months, wrapping up at the next residency, which will be Latin America in Fall 2010.

The final activity of the day was “The Heineken Experience,” which started with a phenomenal presentation by Mr. Reinoud Wolff, Marketing Manager for Heineken and a RSM alumnus.  He described (and good reminder for me) how Heineken strives to connect with its customers’ desires, rather than focus on product attributes in its marketing.  In his own words, “There are many good-quality beers, and they all look the same to the consumer.”  The brand has to tap into the “desires” that their customers have.  In the case of Heineken, this was the desire for a refreshing, pleasant experience.  Following the presentation, the group went through the “Heineken Experience,” which is essentially an interactive museum of Heineken beer!  It was quite enjoyable, and the tour ended with a beer (pleasantly refreshing!).  Check out this silly video that you could take of yourself within the Heineken Experience; this one features OneMBA students.

Below I’m including a few thing:  1) Video of students having group photo taken; location is right outside the Movenpick Hotel in Amsterdam, 2) Student perceptions of the visit to Heineken Brewery.

Off to Istanbul this afternoon!

So, what did the students study today?  This morning, Professor Martin Sutton provided an overview of Europe (yes, that was a tall order!), setting the stage for the remainder of the week.  Then, this afternoon, Mrs. Kimberly Ross, CFO Ahold, provided her reflections on the topic of corporate governance, after which Mr. Anton van Rossum, Director Credit-Suisse Group, presented his reflections on the recent financial crisis and its aftermath.  Finally, Professor Bill Collins from RSM moderated a session focused on the new global teams (students were assigned to new global teams this week).

The students had a free evening to meet with their teams or socialize.  Me?  I made my way to a Mexican restaurant, of all places, with some of my OneMBA colleagues!  Tomorrow is another busy day, so hopefully everyone is resting up tonight.