Onehaas

We welcomed Jerilyn Castillo McAniff to the podcast to celebrate Women's History Month. She is the Managing Director and Head of Diversity & Inclusion at Oaktree Capital Management. In 2007, she co-authored a book with her husband titled, The Practitioner's Guide to Investment Banking, Mergers & Acquisitions, Corporate Finance.  Jerilyn is originally from the Philippines. She immigrated to the Bay Area with her family in the seventies when things there were getting complicated. The Bay Area was a welcoming place for Filipino immigrants to come at the time. They had to start from the beginning, however, with the support of a large extended family, her parents and grandparents decided to stay and raise their family there.In this episode, Jerilyn talked about going to Haas, her career in finance, how she got introduced to investment banking, and her transition to a career in alternative investments. She also shared the importance of mentorship.Jerilyn is passionate about teaching new professional

Today's guest is Dr. Jenny Woo, Founder and CEO of Mind Brain Emotion, a company that creates cleverly simple and immediately actionable skills-building games and tools to help people become happier, calmer, and wiser.As a former president of the Women in Leadership Club at Haas, Jenny shares her journey from a little girl moving to the US to be reunited with her parents, to a female consultant working with global companies, to a mother entrepreneur-student juggling family, PhD, and startup.Jenny is passionate about helping people reach their potential - from classrooms to boardrooms. She has worked as a human capital consultant at Deloitte, a Talent & Strategy Manager at Cisco, a Montessori school director, a cognitive science researcher, and a lecturer in Emotional Intelligence.Having taught in grade schools and colleges, she saw a lack of resources and opportunities to help students develop what we call "soft skills" in the real world. This is how she started her company which was incubated

Today's guest is Juan Scarlett, a technology-focused venture capital, strategic finance, and equity research professional. He is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of OneValley Ventures, an early-stage investor in dynamic founders emerging from the OneValley ecosystem and its partners.Juan talked about his practical upbringing that led him to follow the most practical path in his education and career and eventually to venture capital. He also shared his experiences at Haas, what made him interested in investing and venture capital and his work at OneValley Ventures.We also discussed why investors should break the status quo and go outside their networks and invest in underrepresented and underserved founders.Episode Quotes:On growing up in a hardworking and practical familyWe really worked hard to make sure that we had everything that we needed and, maybe, a few of the things that we wanted. And for those other things you wanted, it was very clear that, from a very early age, you have to go make your ow

Lisa Morris Jones joins us in celebration of Black History Month. Lisa is an alumna of the undergraduate program here at Haas. She is a CFA Chartholder and a Master of Business Administration - MBA focused on Finance and Entrepreneurial Management from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Currently, she is the president of the LMJ Group, a real estate management and development of commercial and residential properties throughout California.In this episode, Lisa shared a little about her origin story, her interest in finance and entrepreneurship, and her extensive career. She is a strong professional with a demonstrated history of working in real estate development and management, investment management, and community development finance. She also talked about what it was like being a Black female in finance back in the 80s when she started working and what inspired her to push forward even with some roadblocks. Currently, she is supporting the Haas MBA fellowships program for Historically Blac

Our guest today is Orion Parrott, General Partner at the Orange Fund. He is an experienced leader in business and technology and uses his background to build, explore, and invest in crypto. In this episode, Orion talked a bit about his background, his experience going to Haas for the EMBA program, and his transition from being an entrepreneur to an advisor and eventually becoming a general partner.Orion also shared about Orange Fund, the investment fund of Orange DAO that invests in crypto startups, some critical aspects of DAO, and what to expect in building, exploring, and investing in crypto.Episode Quotes:On getting his MBAI looked at the MBA as a way to really focus on this other set of skills, the people skills, but also some hard technical skills in terms of finance and accounting, and to be able to get a broad picture of what it would take to start a business. Some people will say you don't need an MBA to start a startup, but for someone like me, I prefer to go at it all at once. And it was such a

Bruce is a US executive with broad international experience in managing businesses, sourcing and making investments, and providing investment banking services, executive coaching, and leadership development services. His 17 years of experience working in Shanghai gave him an in-depth understanding of the business environment in China and developing Asia. Currently, Bruce is a Managing Director at Stout Bluepeak Asia Limited and a Partner at Rui Dian Management Consulting /The Resilience Institute.In this episode, Bruce shared his origin story, going to UC Berkeley and studying business, and eventually going into investment banking. He also went to Harvard Business School to get his MBA and entered venture capital.Bruce also talked about his amazing experiences in Shanghai, how the pandemic shifted the international scene, how he navigated through these changes, and how he can help companies venture into the international markets successfully.Episode Quotes:On his experience in investment banking early onI rea

Today, we have Seo Yeon Yoon, Research Scientist at Gladstone Institutes. She is an avid researcher passionate about bringing diverse talent and ideas together to innovate solutions that overcome incurable diseases. She was also recently named to the Poets and Quants 2022 list of Best & Brightest Executive MBAs.Seo Yeon is originally from Jeonju City, South Korea, a mid-small town that didn't have a lot of people from other countries or cultures. Her parents sent her and her sister to Canada as international students to study and be exposed to a world with many people from different ethnicities, races, and cultures. In this episode, Seo Yeon talked about her experiences as an international student, how she ended up in Berkeley as an undergrad, and why she chose to study Biology.She also shared her career at Gladstone Institutes, why she pursued her MBA later in her career, and her experiences at Haas. She also shared what made her start using her Korean name once again and why it was one of her impact

Alejandra is an Associate at Bee Partners. Her infinite curiosity and strategic thinking brought her to Asset Management. Her quest for large-scale impact and a greater connection with the people she supports attracted her to Venture Capital. Alejandra was born and raised in Chile. Her family spent some time here in the US before going back, where she reconnected with her roots.In this episode, Alejandra shares her origin story, her career path from finance to venture capital, and why she pursued an MBA even with an already successful career.We also hear about Alejandra's passion as an endurance athlete and how the things she has learned through her training experiences align with what she does in her current role at Bee Partners.Episode Quotes:On getting an MBAIt was something that I had always been thinking in the back end. And when I started having these questions of what's next and I just really hated visualizing and seeing what was coming next. It was all great, but I didn't want to have that

Our guest, Yogesh Pingle, is a Corporate Development Manager at Intel. He partners with business leaders and their teams to define and execute strategic growth initiatives.Yogesh was born in India, where he spent most of his formative years before moving to the US to pursue graduate school. Getting an MBA had always been part of his plans, and choosing Haas was a no-brainer.In this episode, Yogesh shares his experiences from studying engineering in India, moving to the US and balancing work and school, and his career as a planning engineer before eventually going to product design and marketing and ending up in corporate development.Episode Quotes:On pursuing a business educationI realized that to create maximum impact, you have to be on the business side of things essentially. And so, it was sort of what stoked in me, the desire to be a business leader. And I realized that perhaps if impact is what I'm driven by, then having a business education is also something that's critical to creating impact.Ha

Our guest today is Andrew Zellman, an Associate at McKinsey and Company. He is a graduate of the US Naval Academy and a former officer in the US Navy.Andrew's passions include ultimate frisbee, climate, sustainability, and leveraging his technical background to drive impact and insights in his work.In this episode, Andrew talks about how he ended up going to a service academy and his experiences as a US Navy officer. He also tells us why he decided to transition out of service, get an MBA, and pursue a career in consulting.Words of Wisdom:For people who would like to get into consultingIf you're intent on getting into consulting, you should know what you want to get out of it and make sure you actively work towards that. Make sure you advocate for yourself and your goals. I think that goes for life too, but especially consulting because if you're not diligent and kind of present-minded about it, it's really easy to get swept away.For folks transitioning out of active duty or military serviceSt

Today we're joined by Elena Gomez, Chief Financial Officer of Toast, a cloud-based, end-to-end technology platform purpose-built for the entire restaurant community. Before Toast, she served as the Chief Financial Officer at Zendesk, where she helped scale the company to over 1 billion in annual revenues. Currently, she serves on the board at Haas School of Business and The Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco.Elena talks about her origin story, rich culture, what inspired her to go into finance and accounting, and her vast career experience in different tech companies. She also shares why she is deeply passionate about and committed to advancing diversity and inclusion initiatives in the workplace. Episode Quotes:One reason why being a Latina and a female is important to her in her career“I was always looking up trying to see if there was someone that looked like me. And then I realized how important it was that, in fact, I had a responsibility to kick butt in the job, because I wanted to show them th

This episode is to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month. We're joined by Cristy Johnston Limon, a Bay Area native and a proud "double-bear," having earned an MBA from the Haas School of Business and a BA in Political Science. She most recently served as the Executive Director of the Center for Social Sector Leadership at Haas and launched her own social impact management consultancy called Proxima Partners, where she is currently serving as a principal. Today, Cristy shares her experiences growing up in a San Francisco immigrant community. She talks about going to UC Berkeley in college, eventually getting her MBA at Haas, and using it to scale her impact and advance her career. She also shares her involvement in community and economic development efforts, with her values aligned with building the beloved community from an equity and gender-based lens with a bias toward building solutions for the common good.Episode Quotes:What inspired her to focus on community and economic development effo

In this episode, our guest is Robert Paylor, a public speaker, and motivational leader, with the story of defining the odds and overcoming challenges. Robert shares his passion and purpose with others, which has allowed him to battle paralysis and achieve goals, no matter how daunting they may seem. Robert broke his neck in the 2017 Collegiate Rugby National Championship, and that accident instantly changed his life. He was told he would never walk or move his hands again. However, by shifting his mindset, he could walk again, do more, and be more. Robert took a leap of faith by turning down an offer from Intel to go into public speaking. He has embarked on a career as an inspirational speaker and has begun writing a book with the working title, “Paralyzed and Powerful.”Episode Quotes:On competing for Cal's rugby team"It was a tremendous opportunity to compete for the rugby program and go to school at a place like Cal. But it was also a significant challenge. I really had a hard time wrapping my head

Today's guest is another Double Bear! John Dio is a product manager and business professional with experience helping scale venture-backed EV and ed-tech startups. At Haas, John has been part of the Consortium for Graduate Study of Management, The Graduate Assembly, Haas Consulting Club, and Q@Haas. John is originally from the Philippines. When he immigrated to the US, he faced plenty of challenges, including culture shock, bullying, and coping with being an undocumented student. It wasn't an easy journey, but he overcame them all.In this episode, John shared his early beginnings, experiences as an undocumented immigrant, and attending college and pursuing an MBA. He also talked about his career in recruitment and pivoting into product management post-MBA. Finally, he shared insights on a couple of things he is passionate about - childcare shortage and women's reproductive rights.Episode Quotes:On standing up to bullies"Every time they'd retort, I'd be like, so what? Whatever. And that

Chris chatted with David Siap, Associate at McKinsey & Company. David is an experienced business and technology professional with experience in energy, climate, and consulting. At Haas, David was part of many programs, including several MBA challenges and Berkeley StEP, the Student Entrepreneurship Program.David grew up in an undocumented immigrant Filipino family, which helped shape his relationship with change and challenges. It made him good and comfortable with rolling with the punches, dealing with ambiguity, and challenging himself.In this episode, he talked about his experiences taking up different majors in his undergrad, early professional career, and grad school at UC Davis.He then shared his time at a prestigious place after grad school, Berkeley Lab, going to business school right after, and eventually joining McKinsey.Episode Quotes: Pivoting from wind energy to climate tech"I want to understand why things are the way they are and how can I impact people. And I thought that, at that time,

Our guest is Stanley Lam, Senior Technical Product Manager at Amazon. Stanley is an experienced business and technology professional with experience in engineering and product management. At Haas, Stanley was a Dean's Fellow and the VP of Careers for the Haas Technology Club.Stanley was born in Hong Kong and moved to the US alone when he was only 15 to study high school in a boarding school in Missouri. Here, he learned how to be independent, and he considers this experience one of his life's pivotal moments.In this episode, Stanley shares his journey of moving from a small town to a big city, his experiences studying in every major college in California, and his career pivots.Stanley also tells us why he decided to pursue an MBA, commuting experience, the importance of networking, and the value of jumping out of comfort zones and challenging the status quo.Community:Join the community for this podcast at clever.fm/haas. Here you can ask the guest a question, connect with other listeners, and leave yo

Our guest on this episode is Priya Bajaj, currently Head of Engagement Management at Google Cloud for US West. She is an experienced business and technology professional with extensive career experience with tech giants.Priya is originally from India, but she grew up in Doha, finishing high school there. She then came to the US to pursue her undergrad.In this episode, Priya shares what it was like growing up in the Middle East, where the culture is so diverse. She also talks about going to college in the US and how she literally Googled the top schools to find the right one, ultimately ending up in Georgia Tech, where she spent most of her formative years. Priya also tells us why she still pursued an MBA even after accomplishing so much in her career and how she uses what she has learned in B-school in her current leadership role.Along with engaging executive leaders in her work, Priya is also passionate about creativity and giving back to the community.Episode Quotes:On her experiences at Georgia Tech"Mo

We brought Lance Barnard to the show today to talk about his unique journey into entrepreneurship. Lance is CEO at Ward Road Pharmacy, a pharmaceuticals company that provides the convenience of a "one-stop-shop" for prescriptions and homecare supplies, expert advice, friendly service, and individualized solutions. He acquired it through a self-funded search, where an entrepreneur embarks on the journey of searching for a company without funding or an installed base of investors, opting instead to secure their funding once they've found their company.Lance grew up in New Jersey but wanted something different when it was time to go to college. So, he went to Southern Methodist University in Texas for his undergrad and studied business, which had always been his interest.In this episode, Lance shared his career experiences at Goldman-Sachs and Samsung Electronics, how he adapted to different company cultures, and coming to the Bay area to pursue his MBA at Haas, which has its own set of cultures.Lanc

Today, we have Alijah Talley, West Coast Growth Relationship Manager at Zimba Technologies and Founder and Executive Director at The Qonnection. Alijah is an experienced leader and executive with an extensive background that includes serving as a captain in the US Army, founding The Qonnection with the mission to advocate for African-American students pursuing higher education, and as a Consortium Fellow and MLT (Management Leadership for Tomorrow) Professional Development Fellow here at Haas. Alijah was born in Panama but didn't experience the country and culture because his family moved to the US when he was just a baby. He spent his formidable years and adult life in Texas. Alijah applied to West Point, but going there wasn't a smooth path. The admissions officer assigned to him said he wasn't West Point material. However, he didn't let it stop him. It motivated him to try harder and earned admission to the academy. In this episode, Alijah shares his experiences at West Point Academy and as

We welcome Eric Sassano to the podcast today. Eric earned his B.S. in Business Administration at the University of California at Berkeley and currently finishing his MBA at Haas. He works in Investment Strategy at Compound. Before joining Compound, he was with Caprock Group as Manager of Private Investments. Eric began his career at Hall Capital Partners, a multi-family office based in San Francisco. He initially spent his time advising clients on portfolio allocation decisions. Subsequently, he focused on research and due diligence for the firm's Private Equity and Venture Capital fund investments. Eric grew up close to Berkeley, so it's no surprise that he is a Double Bear. In this episode, we get to know a little about his upbringing, growing up within the Berkeley ecosystem, his experiences both in undergrad and graduate school, and why going to business school is one of the best personal investments he has ever made.Eric also shares what got him in the investment space, how portfolio management w