As we review your HBS application, what more would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy for the Harvard Business School MBA program? (900 words)

Caption text As we review your HBS application, what more would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy for the Harvard Business School MBA program? Growing up in Chicago, I was an avid baseball fan. I spent many summer evenings at the ballpark with my dad, watching the White Sox and scoring games with programs purchased at the gate. Baseball is a statistics game, and I found it fascinating to analyze the numbers. Years later, I read Moneyball, the story of the Oakland A’s incredible run in 2002, and my dream was to someday be the general manager of a Major League Baseball team.

My second dream was to live in New York City. For a “second-city” native, there was no place more exciting than New York. If I couldn't be Billy Beane from Moneyball, then I wanted to be a television network executive in New York, like Jack Donaghy on 30 Rock. In any case, I knew that I needed to study finance and accounting in college, so I settled on Columbia for my undergraduate studies, which fulfilled both dreams at once.

At Columbia University, I joined a club that became a defining experience: the alumni and student-run initiative, Lion Credit Union. Lion Credit Union is a passionate group of students devoted to serving the campus community. In my junior year, as the club’s Chief Lending Officer, I initiated a new student loan service, which offered favorable rates to Columbia students, and I extended the reach of our credit builder program. Our credit builder program made it possible for me and countless others to start post-graduate life on a solid financial footing. Several senior classmates at Lion were going into investment banking, and as a sophomore, I accepted their invitation to attend a campus information session for Merrill Stanley. I loved what I heard: investment banking, a mix of analytics and teamwork, seemed like an exciting career option. I interviewed at Merrill Stanley’s New York City office and was invited to intern with the firm. I celebrated in Times Square with a slice of Sbarro pizza: not Chicago-style, but good enough. Two years, two internships, and many pizza slices later, I accepted a full-time offer to join Merrill Stanley’s investment banking division.

No longer in Columbia’s dorms, I lived with two college friends on the semi-grungy Lower East Side, and I commuted to midtown, coming out of the subway at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, just like Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey on 30 Rock. The work was the mix of quantitative and qualitative that I had been craving, and my colleagues supported my development. After two years at Merrill Stanley, I was ready for my next opportunity. I wanted to be an investor, not just an advisor, and in October 2018, after six hours of interviews I received an offer to join FamousGiant’s private equity group.

If being an investor is like being the general manager of a baseball team, FamousGiant is like working for the Yankees. We evaluate companies, not players, but just as Billy Beane did for the Oakland A’s, we use analytical measures to assign value, investing in undervalued assets with the hope that they deliver a home run for investors. At FamousGiant, I work with brilliant people, and I fully believe that we leave companies better than we found them. It has been an incredible experience to work at FamousGiant, and I am excited to return after earning an MBA.

Today at FamousGiant, I focus on media and entertainment assets. The industry has changed dramatically since 30 Rock; today, traditional networks are fighting to remain relevant as streaming platforms gain traction. When I heard that FamousGiant was looking to acquire Feminist Films, a media production company that focuses on on-screen representation of women from all backgrounds, I petitioned to join the team. Feminist Films is a true industry disruptor. After two months of diligence, we acquired Feminist Films, another step in FamousGiant’s vision to create a new media platform comprised of premium film and television assets.

Working on the Feminist Films acquisition and my excitement about FamousGiant’s media vision has helped to define my career trajectory. Post-MBA, I plan to return to the private equity space in the role of Vice President, continuing to drive media investments. In the longer term, I want to move fully to the entertainment industry, either continuing as an investor or as the CEO of a production company. There is a content gap for women in media, but there is also a leadership gap: women represent only 10% of directors and less than 25% of producers. I feel prepared to help drive this change: I have worked to increase female representation at Merrill Stanley and FamousGiant, and I understand the industry landscape. As the media industry continues to consolidate through acquisitions and new media upstarts seek financing, my investing background will also add value to my leadership profile.

I see the Harvard MBA as the next phase in my career development. HBS has molded change-making leaders in the media and investing space, such as Famous Alum1, Famous Alum2, and Famous Alum3, the current CEO of Feminist Films. Alum3 talks about her time at Harvard as the best experience of her life, crucial to developing her leadership skills as a female CEO. She credits her Management professor, Myra Hart, with teaching her how to be a female CEO in a male-dominated industry. I want to be a changemaker in the media industry, and the path to industry leadership runs through Harvard Business School.