I would like inputs on the following question:
1) Discuss a defining experience in your development as a leader. How did this experience demonstrate your strengths and weaknesses?
I am thinking of the following 3 defining experiences. Pls let me know which one makes most sense as a response to the above ques:
a) when i became the youngest head of dept at the age of 25 in my hotel. joined as a mgt trainee and rose to Associate Director. (however, this story is 5 yrs old.)
b) employees in my hotel were on strike incl some from my own dept. i was 25 then and those employees were in the range of 38-45. i lead the discussions and negotiations along with the HR Head and the General Manager which ended a 8 day strike. i was elected primarily because the employees thought i was not bias like other head of depts. (this was also 5 yrs back)
c) when i was given a charge of a team operating out of 4 different countries. i have about 8 nationalities in my team who speak different languages. this team lead by me achieved some amazing results for the organisation.
thx.
DEFINING EXPERIENCE ques...Which option makes most sense..?
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- uprightcitizen
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I feel "A" is too broad; being promoted is more a process than an experience, in my opinion.
B and C both sound like great examples. B sounds a little more unusual and perhaps a better story, keeping the reader's interest while answering the question.
I would surely mention C in some form in your application, but it may be more common for people at an executive level.
B and C both sound like great examples. B sounds a little more unusual and perhaps a better story, keeping the reader's interest while answering the question.
I would surely mention C in some form in your application, but it may be more common for people at an executive level.
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Thank you. Your response is exactly what I was looking for.uprightcitizen wrote:I feel "A" is too broad; being promoted is more a process than an experience, in my opinion.
B and C both sound like great examples. B sounds a little more unusual and perhaps a better story, keeping the reader's interest while answering the question.
I would surely mention C in some form in your application, but it may be more common for people at an executive level.
- ayankm
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I think C is the best story to discuss defining experience. The reason being the presence of people from 8 different nations. Having lived in 4 different countries, I believe and I think you will agree it needs an open mind to assimilate the bits and pieces from 8 different cultures, languages etc. And in today's business world which is out and out global, you need skills like these all the more. However, thats my opinion.ECLS wrote:I would like inputs on the following question:
1) Discuss a defining experience in your development as a leader. How did this experience demonstrate your strengths and weaknesses?
I am thinking of the following 3 defining experiences. Pls let me know which one makes most sense as a response to the above ques:
a) when i became the youngest head of dept at the age of 25 in my hotel. joined as a mgt trainee and rose to Associate Director. (however, this story is 5 yrs old.)
b) employees in my hotel were on strike incl some from my own dept. i was 25 then and those employees were in the range of 38-45. i lead the discussions and negotiations along with the HR Head and the General Manager which ended a 8 day strike. i was elected primarily because the employees thought i was not bias like other head of depts. (this was also 5 yrs back)
c) when i was given a charge of a team operating out of 4 different countries. i have about 8 nationalities in my team who speak different languages. this team lead by me achieved some amazing results for the organisation.
thx.
Best of luck with your apps.
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Thank you for your response. You do have a point. But considering that most of the candidates in a Sloan program are faily experienced, I am not sure how much of a differentiator eg. C will be. I have seen there are some Dir, CEOs, VPs in prev classes who have handled global profile. So I plan to use eg.C as part of my statement of purpose, which is the first essay on my list. And use eg. B for a defining experience. This way I will cover both.
What do you think.?
Thx.
What do you think.?
Thx.
ayankm wrote:I think C is the best story to discuss defining experience. The reason being the presence of people from 8 different nations. Having lived in 4 different countries, I believe and I think you will agree it needs an open mind to assimilate the bits and pieces from 8 different cultures, languages etc. And in today's business world which is out and out global, you need skills like these all the more. However, thats my opinion.ECLS wrote:I would like inputs on the following question:
1) Discuss a defining experience in your development as a leader. How did this experience demonstrate your strengths and weaknesses?
I am thinking of the following 3 defining experiences. Pls let me know which one makes most sense as a response to the above ques:
a) when i became the youngest head of dept at the age of 25 in my hotel. joined as a mgt trainee and rose to Associate Director. (however, this story is 5 yrs old.)
b) employees in my hotel were on strike incl some from my own dept. i was 25 then and those employees were in the range of 38-45. i lead the discussions and negotiations along with the HR Head and the General Manager which ended a 8 day strike. i was elected primarily because the employees thought i was not bias like other head of depts. (this was also 5 yrs back)
c) when i was given a charge of a team operating out of 4 different countries. i have about 8 nationalities in my team who speak different languages. this team lead by me achieved some amazing results for the organisation.
thx.
Best of luck with your apps.