Berkeley Haas is among the handful of top schools that have listed the four defining principles on which the candidate should stand on:
1) Question the Status Quo
The principle could be confusing as questioning the status quo might sound like some revolution happening in a war-torn country. The expectations from the admission team are not to the extreme but within the framework of intelligent risk-taking and acceptance of sensible failures. To thrive with this principle, you should have worked in an entrepreneurial environment, regardless of the size of the company.
Entrepreneurial Culture
There are start-ups where founders have strict guidelines on how to operate while the majority has a free-flowing process of chance encounters and rigorous execution. Working in at least one start-up has its advantages while applying for Haas MBA program. However, we have noticed the uniquely entrepreneurial environment of some Fortune 500 companies. The small team size and ownership of tasks could also mean following the principle of questioning the status quo – in execution and approach.
Not all innovation and creative ideas will be Business successes. You need the courage to commit yourself to see through the implementation of an idea. You also need supervisors who hold a similar attitude towards experimentation. Without their support, it is hard to follow through on this principle.
2) Confidence without Attitude
A strong leader is a good listener, with the communication skills to influence all stakeholders and peers. They also have mastered the art of developing teams by spotting talents early on and nurturing them through one obstacle after another. Some obstacles are engineered while most are part of the learning curve in a new role, technology, market problem, or customer profile.
Confidence transmitting to the Team
The responsibility to manage both ends of the interaction – team and client, cannot be executed with the wrong attitude. Clients and teams feed off your confidence. However, any hint of ‘attitude’ aka ‘arrogance’ could quickly dissipate the goodwill they have for you.
The worst aspect of confidence with attitude is that learning from such peers becomes an impossible task. Each explanation is a chore that they don’t enjoy, limiting peer to peer learning and class discussions. Without an engaging class, the real-world experience would never be expressed, and ideas from the field not dissected, shared, or evaluated.
3) Students Always
Lifelong personal and intellectual growth can only happen if you listen, observe, ask questions, and take yourself out of your comfort zone. Through this fundamental principle, the passion for a new function, industry, or both becomes feasible. It compensates the long working hours required to do anything meaningful in life – personally and professionally.
Mismatch in Student Always Mindset and Career Opportunities
Most mismatch in career and even the thought to switch function or industry with the aid of an MBA arises when despite the Student Always attitude, the problems you solve have become routine for your intellect, or you couldn’t find any meaning from your contribution.
4) Beyond Yourself
Although profit in a Business is crucial, living an ethical and responsible life is equally important. Think beyond your goals, your work, and your professional achievements. Reflect and find instances where your contribution had a ripple effect on your society, city/town, country, and even impacted lives internationally.
IMPACT on the Community
Most traditional job functions don’t offer the meaning. Your impact is at maximizing the shareholder’s value. It could trickle down to the less privileged. But there are no guarantees. That is why volunteering and applying your core skills or showcasing a hidden skill for the greater good of the society/community becomes a meaningful data point for the admission team.
Those who don’t engage with the less privileged communities and help them cross financial, societal and physical barriers, would be ‘typecast’ as a functional expert who lacks empathy – a terrible fit for Haas.
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