Onehaas

Today is another episode in celebration of Pride Month. Our guest, Michelle MiJung Kim (she/her), is a queer immigrant Korean American woman writer, speaker, activist, and entrepreneur. She is the author of "The Wake Up," where she shares foundational principles often missing in today’s mainstream conversations around “diversity and inclusion” and urges readers to go beyond performative allyship to enacting real transformation within ourselves and in the world. Michelle is also CEO and co-founder of Awaken, a leading provider of interactive equity and inclusion education programs facilitated by majority BIPOC educators, where she has consulted hundreds of organizations and top executives from Fortune 500, tech giants, nonprofits, and government agencies to spark meaningful change. In this episode, Michelle shares her immigrant story, coming out as queer in high school, and how it began her political activism journey. Michelle also tells us who and what inspired her to become an activist, why she is pa

Happy Pride Month! In celebration, we chatted with Mikhail Shneyder, President and Chief Executive Officer, as well as an owner of Nightingale College, an accredited, proprietary, post-secondary institution that specializes in nursing education, based in Salt Lake City, Utah. He is an experienced, visionary leader with a successful career of over 20 years of progressive management experience in health care services and post-secondary education for health professions. Through a generous gift to Haas, Mikhail and his husband also recently named the new Shneyder & Kirk MBA Commons on campus.Mikhail is originally from Belarus. His family immigrated to the US when he was 19. Coming to the US was an eye-opener. All his childhood imagination dreams about America vanished immediately. Mikhail went on to do odd jobs for a few years, including dressing up as Barney in Times Square. However, after passing the RN licensure exam, he started to practice nursing.In this episode, Mikhail shares the unique story behind th

Our guest is Ryan Drake Lee, a Senior Principal at Keystone Strategy. He is an experienced leader and problem solver focusing on Technology Strategy, Digital Transformation, and Operational Excellence.A native San Franciscan, Ryan was influenced early on by his father towards business and economics and was exposed to a diverse student body and international experiences and cultures. Some of those experiences shaped his youth and outlook on the world. In this episode, Ryan shares what it was like going to one of the most prestigious historically Black colleges, why he pursued an MBA, and his extensive professional career. Ryan also talks about his passion for environmental sustainability, climate change, and social justice and how those areas of interest have come into play with what he is currently doing at Keystone Strategy.Episode Quotes: On the role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the lives of Black Americans"I think HBCU has played a pivotal role in the landscape of academic

We invited Ian Shea to the podcast in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month. Ian is the Founder and CEO of I M Human, an organization that works with companies advising on how to think through the variety of creative ways to culturally support the mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being needs of their employees and implements initiatives that are relevant for them. Ian shares his Life Moments™, such as going to different countries for a youth exchange program, finally getting accepted at Cornell after several rejections, going to investment banking, coming out of restructuring twice, and eventually going to business school.Ian then founded a company, Maestro Market, but that business did not work out through a series of twists and turns. And it was a traumatic and very stressful experience for him. However, that particular Life Moments™ started Ian's journey to launching I M Human. Ian shares how he shifted a potentially disastrous moment into one of tremendous growth in this episode. Episode Quotes:

In celebration of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we chat with Jason Wang, founding partner of Beluga Capital, a venture capital fund investing in early-stage technology companies. Jason has been a food and tech entrepreneur since 2011. He was the founding CEO of Caviar, a popular food delivery app that Square acquired in 2014. Before Caviar, he cofounded Munch On Me in 2011, a daily deals platform that was part of the Summer 2011 batch at Y Combinator. He’s also held various roles at Google, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and Microsoft. Jason was born in China, but his family came to the US when he was just one year old. He grew up in Texas but moved to the Bay Area when he was eight, and this is where he spent most of his life. Although Jason studied accounting and ended up in finance and banking, he had always wanted to study business.In this episode, Jason shares how he got into entrepreneurship, specifically in the food and tech industry, launching Caviar and selling it after two

Today we have John Bolaji, MBA, Master of Engineering candidate at UC Berkeley. Aside from being a Consortium Fellow, he is also Co-President of The Black Business Student Association here at Haas. John comes from a Nigerian family. He is good at Math and Science, and coupled with his passion for science fiction and technology, he went to MIT and studied Mechanical Engineering. However, John wanted to explore other industries other than tech and engineering. He worked as a Consulting Analyst in Accenture and then a Project Manager at McMaster-Carr, where he got to experience real management and leadership experience.In this episode, John shares his reasons for pursuing the new joint master’s degree in business and engineering, joining different resources inside and outside of Haas, and taking on leadership roles to promote positive changes in the world, especially for people of color.Episode Quotes:On being exposed to management and leadership experience early in his career"It offered me some really inter

Our guest for this episode is Valentyn Zadorin. He is a private equity investor at Siguler Guff and is responsible for deal evaluation and execution for Siguler Guff’s Global Emerging Markets platform. Prior to joining Siguler Guff in 2022, he was an Investment Banker at Barclays Investment Bank covering the technology ecosystem. Previously, he was a Co-founder and Partner at a full-service 3PL provider in Ukraine and an investor in emerging markets.We get to know more about Val as he talks about his background, growing up in Ukraine, and his reasons for coming to Haas to pursue an MBA. Val was also recently featured in Poets&Quants about his views and experience on the Russian aggression in Ukraine. In this episode, he shares a little bit about what started the war, what's currently going on, and the actions people can take to help Ukraine win.Episode Quotes:Why Haas?"I didn't have an emotional connection to Berkeley, to be entirely honest. But I knew two things. The first one is that I felt

In today's episode, we chat with Joe Spector. Joe is Founder and CEO at Dutch, an online veterinary pet telehealth service. He is also an investor and advisor to several startups in the healthcare space.Fleeing from Uzbekistan at a young age, Joe experienced a massive culture shock. However, it didn't stop him from adapting to his new environment and learning new things, including English. It wasn't an easy path, though. Because of financial issues, Joe had to work nonstop during college to support himself. He learned the value of hard work and education early, leading him to his entrepreneurial journey.In this episode, Joe shares his experiences right after college, going to business school, and finding his passion for entrepreneurship. We also get to hear the history of Hims, a telehealth company that he co-founded in 2017, and Dutch, his current company.Finally, Joe tells us valuable insights on entrepreneurship and the lessons he learned in his journey.Episode Quotes:On the challenges he faced

Our guest on this episode is Nick Wobbrock, Co-Founder and COO at Blue Forest Conservation, a mission-driven, non-profit organization, leveraging financial innovation to create sustainable investment solutions to environmental challenges. Their flagship financial product, the Forest Resilience Bond (FRB), deploys private capital to finance forest restoration projects on private and public lands to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. We are also joined by Brandi Pearce, faculty in Management of Organizations, and the Faculty Director of Teams@Haas. She is also a leading expert on High Impact Teaming.Nick is a licensed civil engineer who developed drinking water and sanitation infrastructure in the US and internationally in Honduras and Malawi. Prior to joining Blue Forest, he worked as a consulting engineer for Brown & Caldwell, for the U.S. Peace Corps, and for Doctors Without Borders. Nick presently sits on the Board of EOS International where he continues to support communities in Honduras from hi

Today's episode is about clean energy, green hydrogen, and decarbonization. Our guest, Sheldon Kimber, has over 20 years of experience in energy finance, development, and entrepreneurship. He is currently CEO and Founder of Intersect Power, a clean infrastructure company bringing utility-scale energy and storage solutions to wholesale customers, delivering value and viability to both energy buyers and asset investors. Professor Severin Borenstein who is an expert on these topics also joins us in this conversation.Sheldon spent five years at Calpine, working on finance and development of gas-fired power projects. He also worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, and in Accenture’s strategy consulting practice, specializing in power-price forecasting and asset valuation projects for utility clients.In this episode, Sheldon shares his origin story, his professional career, and his time at Haas where his interest in clean energy and clean technology escalated.We also get to hear about the company he fo

Happy Earth Day! In celebration, we had the pleasure to chat with Lynelle Cameron. She is a business executive, investor, and board member with 20+ years of corporate experience helping large and small companies capitalize on market opportunities related to ESG, sustainability, social impact, and climate change. She was most recently VP of Sustainability at Autodesk and CEO of the Autodesk Foundation and is currently at a pivot point in her career.Lynelle got a Master's in Environmental Policy and Management from the School of Natural Resources and Environment at Michigan which enabled her to really double down at the intersection of people and the planet further. But after reading "The Ecology of Commerce" by Paul Hawken, she became aware that business is part of the problem but also part of the solution. And to effectively drive transformative change and change the trajectory we're on, we need to work within the private sector and change how business is done. So, she literally applied to bus

*Warning: Please note, this podcast includes references to topics including violence and sexual abuse that some people may find disturbing. Today, we chat with Dima Okhrimchuk, CEO and Co-Founder at Organization.GG, a marketplace for online experiences in the gaming multiverse.Dima was born and raised in Kyiv, Ukraine. He had the opportunity to become an exchange student in the US and this experience made a huge impact on his personal development. He dreamt of getting an education abroad and after visiting Stanford and UC Berkeley on a business trip to Silicon Valley, he knew he should be there, where all the innovations are coming from. So, in 2015, he started his MBA at Haas, at a time when there was an ongoing war in Ukraine. Everyone is talking and saying that the worst started on the 24th of February this year, but it actually started much earlier than that, back in 2014. This was the year when Russia started its invasion of Ukraine.In this episode, Dima shares with us what it was like to be studying abr

Our guest for today, Alejandra Arrué Lou, is a solutionist implementing new creative solutions at the intersection of business, social impact, and innovation. She has worked for Deloitte Consulting and IDEO, and is currently a Consortium & Forte Fellow at Berkeley Haas.Spending her early years in Guatemala City and moving to the US when she was nine years old, Alejandra experienced different cultures at a young age. It might seem like a difficult transition; yet, she felt fortunate and privileged to have the best of both worlds.  In this episode, Alejandra shares her experiences from going to a women's college, the time she spent with Teach for America, and how she ended up consulting to build up her leadership skills. She also tells us her reasons for pursuing an MBA and her experiences as Consortium & Forte Fellow.Episode Quotes: On leaving Guatemala City for the US during Thanksgiving and what the holiday meant for her“I came on what I think is the best holiday in the United States. You get to

Today's episode is all about diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Our guest, Cynthia Owyoung, is a DEIB leader and author. She is currently the Vice President of Inclusion, Equity, and Belonging at Robinhood and the Founder and CEO of Breaking Glass Forums, which aims to accelerate diverse talent and inclusive organizations. She also recently published a book entitled, "All Are Welcome: How to Build a Real Workplace Culture of Inclusion that Delivers Results."Cynthia has always been interested in people's thought processes and decision-making processes. So, she majored in marketing at Haas with the intent of going into advertising. She thought marketing seemed like the perfect way to get into people's minds from the consumer perspective. But after several years, she got burned out and decided to go to grad school, intending to launch a nonprofit for adults with developmental disabilities in the Asian community. When she got into school, she took a diversity management course and met s

In celebration of Women's History Month, we had the pleasure of chatting with Nanxi Liu. She is Co-CEO & Co-Founder at Blaze and former CEO and Co-founder at Enplug (acquired). She serves on the Board of Directors for CarParts.com (NASDAQ: PRTS) and is one of the youngest women on a public company board. Nanxi also holds a spot on Forbes's 30 Under 30 list of innovative young tech leaders.Although Nanxi is part of class 2012, it wasn't until 2020 that she graduated after completing the American Cultures course during the pandemic. Her early exposure to entrepreneurship and founding her own businesses became her priority, and those experiences made her the leader she is today. In this episode, Nanxi also talked about the different companies she founded, how she built up the confidence and skills to become an amazing CEO at such a young age, and why she didn't let imposter syndrome bring her down.Listen until the end to hear Nanxi's advice for female leaders, why it is important to be su

As someone passionate about video games since she was little, it is no surprise that Tiffany Chin decided to pursue a career in the video game industry. She specializes in strategic planning and brand management for video games, anime, movies, and other types of entertainment. Currently, Tiffany works as the Global Brand Manager at PlayStation. She also serves as a mentor for the Academy of Interactive Arts, sits on the advisory board for South by Southwest, and is a Forbes 30 under 3 in the gaming industry.In this episode, Tiffany talks about growing up in the Bay area, her experiences in UCSD, and how she got into an industry dominated by men. She also shares her reasons for coming to Haas, one of which is learning how to approach some of the nuanced and complicated problems of bringing more equity into the gaming space. We also hear about her role in PlayStation as a brand manager.Finally, Tiffany also talks about Girls for Gaming, a program that helps empower and educate young women on the various roles w

In celebration of Women’s History Month, we chat with Alka Tandan, Senior Vice President of Finance & Strategic Programs at Gainsight. She is a Haas MBA alum with over 20 years in corporate finance, operations, and mergers and acquisitions. In this episode, Alka talks about how she fell in love with technology while growing up in Silicon Valley. We also discuss her career experiences, especially her transition from a big organization like Yahoo to IGN, and her reasons for pursuing an MBA. Alka also shares how she became an investor, limited partner, and advisor for the venture fund Operator Collective.You will also hear about how to thrive and chart your own path as a female leader in a male-dominated industry and get advice on how to move up the ladder from a member of Fortune’s Most Powerful Women community. Episode Quotes:On growing up in Silicon Valley and falling in love with technologyMy father came here with my mom for the American dream. There were a lot of hopes and dreams on our shoulders, but i

Marie Thompson is a Principal Investor at Powerhouse Ventures, an innovation firm that works with leading global corporations to help them find, partner with, invest in, and acquire the most innovative startups in clean energy, mobility, and climate. Despite her struggle with health, she's made valuable contributions at Powerhouse Ventures, where she was offered her dream role right after her internship.Marie's perseverance shines because of the mindset she cultivated through athletics. In this episode, Marie shares her story of pursuing an MBA and choosing Haas, the relationships she formed along the way, and overcoming a life-threatening illness. She also talks about helping industries pivot to clean energy and address today's climate crisis.Episode Quotes:Marie’s reasons for pursuing an MBA[00:06:42] I had two north stars that really made it clear that business school is the right step for me. One was just that personal development. I stalled out where I was. I wasn't going to get an opport

Tracy Gray, our guest in this special episode, is a Managing Partner at The 22 Fund, Founder at We Are Enough, and Lead Partner at Porfolia Green & Sustainability Fund. She is an innovative and visionary leader with solid international, investment, business strategy, and marketing experience. With over 15 years of demonstrative team and project management success, including a 200% increase in project funding, Tracy is a relationship builder across various industries – from technology to venture capital to entertainment. Having an Air Force veteran for a father, Tracy spent the early years of her life in Okinawa, Japan, and lived in different parts of the US before settling in Lompoc, California, near the Vandenberg Air Force Base in Santa Barbara County. Because of this experience, she fell in love with traveling (She has already been to 42 countries!). It is also why Tracy focused on international business. Tracy shares her experiences from college and what she did after graduating, how being a B-student

In celebration of Black History Month, we chat with Bosun Adebaki, Business Operations at Plaid. He is an action-oriented and analytical problem solver passionate about using FinTech to make financial systems more accessible to everyone. His extensive background in strategy, finance, and operations has helped businesses across Europe, North America, and LatAm scale and succeed.Bosun was born and raised in a part of London called Hackney, which is known for vibrancy and diversity. He got a Business Management degree at the University of Nottingham and went to the US to get this MBA.His interest and passion for FinTech stemmed from a personal family experience. He aims to use tools like alternative data, web 3.0 technologies, and mobile experiences to make financial tasks simpler and more accessible for end-users.In this episode, Bosun shares his career experiences and the responsibilities of someone working in Business Operations (BizOps). Having lived and worked in different countries, he also tells us his I-