The MBADiversity Organization::Blog

The C.O.C Method- How to Identify Innovative Companies

Whether you are an entry level employee or at the executive level exploring opportunities through a search firm, the simplest way to identify innovative companies that embrace dynamic diversity is through The C.O.C. Method.

Change can come from the bottom up, or by trickling down.

The C.O.C. Method Pyramid

• Culture: Determining your personal fit is first achieved by identifying the company’s culture. Is it conservative or progressive? Traditional corporate hierarchy or flat-model? Do they have work/life programs and community service initiatives? What about a triple bottom line approach to business?

• Opportunities: Are there training programs in place to aid in your professional development? What about affinity and culture programs to find internal mentors and network outside of office hours? Are there rotational programs and/or advancement roadmaps?

• C-suites: Take a look up top, at the C-suites. If they are diverse, there is a strong chance that your efforts up the ladder will not be in vain. Also, take note of the top level’s approach towards product/service development.

This model was designed in 2007 by MBADiversity’s Founder, Ms. Keisha Dawn Entzminger. The published paper can be downloaded here: microsoft-word-the-coc-method.

This year I had the opportunity to co-chair UpClose, the annual diversity weekend at Ross. I was excited to co-chair UpClose since I had once attended as a prospective student and had made my decision to attend Ross following the event. I felt that chairing the event would allow me to have a similar impact on prospective students.

In planning the event I worked with my co-chair, Geraldine Pérez from the Hispanic and Latino Business Students Association and the office of Admissions. The purpose of UpClose is to allow prospective students the opportunity to discover Ross “UpClose” and to experience life as a Ross MBA student. Therefore, we designed various classroom visits, workshops, and student panels around this purpose. We had several keys speakers such as Dean Robert Dolan, Soojin Kwon Koh, Director of Admissions, and alumni from companies such as Intel and American Express.

A total of 65 prospective students attended UpClose. The attendees represented diverse experiences and backgrounds such as a local radio talk show host and the first runner-up in the 2008 Miss Black Georgia scholarship pageant. I was impressed with the attendees from the start. They all displayed a lot of passion about going to business school and enthusiasm for Ross.

The event turned out to be a success. It was evident throughout the event that the attendees had a great time. Afterwards, I received many compliments from the attendees about how impressed they were with Ross. The most memorable comment that I received was “UpClose was a great way for me to see Ross. I was amazed by the student’s passion for the school and also the collaborative nature of Ross.”

I am thankful to have chaired this important event for Ross. From this experience I look forward to continuing to work on the increasing the number of minority candidates that enter into business school.

Over 20 schools, 3 companies and several strategic alliances supported
the 2007 National Symposium. This event was conducted in August of 2007
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and achieved an exceptional output due to
effective partnering and collaboration among all involved.

The Approach

So, you have aced the GMAT, have your recs managed, transcripts stored away, and your resume done. Now, it is time to tackle the essays. The good thing is that you have narrowed done the scope of schools that you are applying to because you have determined personal fit and career goals. Now, for some of us (deemed “poets” in B-school lingo) who scroll with the depth of Shakespeare, the intensity of Stephen King, and the soul of Maya Angelou, essays are pretty much a cinch. For others, essays can seem frustrating and overwhelming. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind:

*Diplomacy/Generic Essays: Will not differentiate you from the huge stack of essays Adcomm has to read. Do not write what you think Adcomm wants to hear. Share your professional and personal stories in a down to earth manner. Avoid cliches, quotes, and over-used phrases.

*The Failure/Obstacle Essay: Don’t be afraid to show that you’ve failed at something, it’s a perfect opportunity to highlight what you’ve learned. Growth and introspection are signs of maturity.

*Why MBA, Why Now, Why School X essay: Have it down pat, and make sure you insert the correct school name before submitting. Also, have a good sense of what you would like to do after obtaining your MBA and be sure to address this. It’s a perfect segue to why the school is a good fit for you.

*Know the Limit to Avoid a Ticket: Essay word limits can be over/under around ten percent. For example, if the word limit is 500, keep your essay word length at a minimum of 450 and maximum of 550.

*Eh-hem! Is this thing on??: Make sure the Spell Check is on and working appropriately. Turning in essays full of grammar and spelling errors makes Adcomm wonder if you are seriously considering graduate level education.

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This information was provided by The MBADiversity Organization (MBADiversity.org). Please visit our website to learn more about our innovative Pre-MBA Prep program and professional development services.

Dynamic Diversity- Implementation through Authenticity and Leveling

A dynamic approach to diversity balances pragmatism with idealism. Dynamism should be cadential within a school or corporation’s recruitment and retention strategy. It is achieved through an authentic underlying culture- not through rhetoric. Although popular culture books currently embrace authenticity (including Bill George’s Authentic Leadership and Jack Welch’s Straight from the Gut), candor has been taught for years in our higher educational programs, particularly through Judith Innes and David Booher case studies.

The significant population and purchasing influence of women and people of color (POC) represents revenue. If companies are looking for incremental growth and access to new markets, there should be a diverse set of executive decision-makers. However, the focus should be on quality diversity recruitment and retention, not just diversity for its own sake.

For example, MBADiversity implements a quality filtering model coined “The 3 C’s”: Capability, Collaboration and Character. We are creating a new generation of MBAs that will fill the authentic leadership positions Millennials demand in the 21^st century. Though the numbers fluctuate, Generation X and Y combined are about 114 million people who will expect diverse faces in the C-suites and will wonder why a company is not hip to progression yet in the 21^st century. They want to work for transparent leaders that relate to them, and innovative companies that focus on the triple bottom line. They are part of the “purpose-driven” age and expect companies to evolve from the soul-less corporate regime where their parents retired.

This is why blogging, Facebook, and other social platforms have become effective supplemental recruiting tools for some companies. Recruiters must show they are willing to level with Millennials and passionately articulate why their company is innovative. Companies that lag behind relinquish first-pick status at the talent pool.

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Ms. Keisha Dawn Entzminger is the Founder and Executive Director of The MBADiversity Organization (MBADiversity.org). She is also the Founder of The Graduate Preparatory Program (GradPrep.org), the national program and faith-based fellowship for graduate study. It is the first national graduate preparatory program in America. Ms. Entzminger’s full bio can be read here.

Lining Up Recommenders

When you begin on the application, no matter how impartial your approach, it will be subjective. Business schools want to know what others think about you. Specifically, they want to assess how well you work in teams, your soft skills, and basically, your likability factor. They require professional recommendations to get others’ assessments of your aptitude as well as your attitude. The key is to pinpoint early (about six months in advance) three to four people whom you trust and will write positively about your character and contributions and how it will relate to business school. Cultivate a trusting relationship with them early on so that if you decide to ask them a few months down the line, they will be an ally on your side.

The Approach

* Choose Your Allies Early and Wisely: Your first instinct may be to get recommendations from people with impressive, glamorous titles. Don’t. Unless a high-ranking person can comment extensively on your qualifications and work ethic, you would be doing yourself a disservice by asking him or her to recommend you. Schools are looking to get a holistic sense of who you are, so it is important to ask people who work closely with you. They will be more inclined to know your personality and work habits relatively well. A candid, in-depth recommendation supplemented with examples by a project manager, colleague, or supervisor is highly suggested by most- if not all- Admissions Committees. You will need to choose three to four recommenders to help you apply to the schools. One of these recommenders will serve as a “back-up”, just in case an initial recommender is unable to come through at the last minute.

*Take them to lunch for a Prep Meeting: Recommendations usually have to be managed. Many people have never written a recommendation for Business school, so you will have to facilitate the entire process for them. If someone is interested in being a recommender, you will need to take them to lunch to prepare them about the process and go over your “rec package”.

The Rec Package

This is a comprehensive package you will give to your recommenders at least two months before the due date. Through the MBADiversity Fellows Program, this package is outlined in detail for members.

Follow-up Lightly

A lot of times, people are busy and your application gets put towards the bottom of their work pile. Send nice e-mails to your rec every three weeks to see if they have any questions or need additional information. Use your judgment… if they have procrastinated until the very end, don’t get frustrated with them. If the due date is a week away, simply call them or e-mail them reminding them of the deadline. If at all possible, take them to lunch and go over the package again with them. Do not lose your cool… recommenders are notorious for waiting until the day before the deadline. Notify your back-up recommender two weeks before the deadline- just in case.

Thank you card and gift

A thank-you card should be sent immediately after they’ve submitted a recommendation for you. If you actually get into a school, a thank you gift is definitely in order.

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This information was provided by The MBADiversity Organization (MBADiversity.org). Please visit our website to learn more about our innovative Pre-MBA Prep program and professional development services.

The Talent Pool Speaks

The attendees at MBADiversity’s 2^nd National Symposium in 2006 participated in the organization’s first in-house survey. Of those who responded, 80% were prospective MBAs. The majority, 87%, agreed that the institutional representative present at the event was moderately or very important in their impression of the school or corporation. When recruiting women and people of color (POC) specifically, the best recruiters are not necessarily those that look like the attendees, but those that can relate to the attendees. We have noticed that an engaging, confident white male has made a favorable impression whereas a stoic person of color (POC) may not, thus discrediting any notion that “if you put a black person or female out to represent us, we should draw more diversity”.

Fig 2. MBADiversity 2006 National Symposium Survey. Answers to Question #4:

Shaping the Social Business Model: Future Directions

MBADiversity collaborates to help innovate business schools recruitment and retention strategies across tiers and will conduct similar surveys to aid corporations.

August 25th, 2008 marked another historical milestone for The MBADiversity Organization.

After six months of designing and fundraising, The MBADiversity 2008 GIM Team boarded a plane to Shanghai, China to engage in internships, cultural immersion and basic language training to continue to prepare as tomorrow’s leaders and global positive change agents.

Ms. Soyini Taylor, the 2008 Director of MBADiversity’s new Global Immersion Module (GIM), worked extensively on designing and managing this new milestone for our organization.

Ms. Taylor, along with the help of over ten participants on the GIM Design Team, implemented the Founder’s vision for the next milestone for MBADiversity. GIM is an annual international trip to further prepare our members as global positive change agents. Along with non-segregated membership, GMAT scholarships, a National Symposium open to the public and MBA Math workshops, it is another milestone to add to MBADiversity’s history as an innovative, forward-thinking organization in higher education.

For the 2008 Global Immersion Module (GIM), the organization was involved in several high-profile projects in China. Here is a demo video of Shanghai Expo 2010 inside of the Urban Planning Center, which was part of the trip:

Projects included:
1. A marketing research project for the legendary Quincy Jones. Mr. Jones is one of the partners of Alaska Glacier Water. Here are MBADiversity GIM’ers pictured below with William J. Du, the CEO of Alaska Glacier Water.

2. MBADiversity GIM’ers helped manage China’s first night run with Nike. It is called The Human Race. View the video of Hana, Jennifer, Danielle, Francois, and Felix preparing to embark on the 10k run in Shanghai:

3. The consulting internship was conducted at Sundance (www.sundance.com). Sundance leads the world in the design and manufacture of mixed COTS digital signal processing and FPGA architectures. The goal set will be to work on improving price setting and order follow-up into a CRM type system. Sundance works with NASA, IBM, United defense, Nokia, and Phillips.

4. MBADiversity GIM’ers conducted market research for Shanghai Business Review and in-depth analyses of advertising in the business publication sector.

ABOUT SHANGHAI BUSINESS REVIEW

Shanghai Business Review is a monthly English-language magazine that provides business information and market intelligence to senior executives at Foreign Invested Enterprises in Shanghai and for those looking to enter into the Shanghai market. SBR Reader Profile – More than 21,000 top decision-makers at international and domestic companies, lawyers, accountants, bankers, government and consular officials in the greater Shanghai region, as well as new firms looking to set up in the area. Provided free of charge to readers in mainland China, the editorial content covers a cross-section of industries and practices including: corporate financing, human resources, taxation, legal and regulatory changes, corporate structuring, marketing, branding strategies and personal finance for senior executives and entrepreneurs operating in China and, particularly, Shanghai.

The 2008 GIM Design Team and Participants were:

Ms. Soyini Taylor
Mr. Anthony Woo
Ms. Hana Yang
Ms. Jennifer Au
Ms. Megan Davis
Mr. Omatsone (Felix) Amoruwa
Ms. Sharonda Richardson
Mr. Steven Rodriguez
Ms. Nina Sui
Ms. Danielle Howard

The organization would like to thank Next Step for assisting with this particular milestone.

The MBADiversity Organization is pleased to announce the selection of Ms. Lynn Bonner Austin, sponsored by The Harley-Davidson Motor Company, to the Corporate Advisory Board.

Ms. Austin is an accomplished visionary skilled in forecasting, developing and implementing compelling marketing programs that increase brand awareness and consideration; proficient at realizing “company-first,” strategies and fully integrated solutions that increase revenue and profitability; knowledgeable with consumer insights and segmentation – notable expertise with Women, Youth, Hispanic African American, and Urban consumer markets; adept in maximizing budgets, controlling expenses, minimizing risk, and serving as a catalyst for change and a demonstrated abilities as coach and mentor.

“We are pleased to welcome Ms. Austin to the mission at hand. While working with her at Ford Motor Company on the Diversity and Worklife Committee in New York she was extremely professional and pleasant. Ms. Austin’s character and commitment to results has enabled her to build a strong track record at companies including Harley-Davidson Motor Company and Jaguar Cars/Land Rover North America,” states Ms. Keisha Dawn Entzminger, MBADiversity’s Founder.

Started in 2003, MBADiversity enters into its sixth year with several historical milestones and continues to build capacity to expand its impact in education, business and the community worldwide. It is currently developing a Corporate Advisory Board, an Academic Advisory Board, and an Alumni Advisory Council.

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Ms. Erica Talley, MBADiversity Member from the 4th Generation- Abundance, recently contacted the organization on the latest with her life.

“GOD has an exciting plan for my 2009. It is an 11-month mission trip called The World Race.

The World Race is one of many mission trips run by an organization called Adventures in Missions (AIM). The World Race sends young adults to 11 countries in 11 months. We are split into teams of 5-8 individuals and travel the world spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ to people all over the globe to fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20). Each month we will be doing different types of ministries from caring for orphans and homeless to church planting and disaster relief while evangelizing all along the way. We will be vessels of Christ’s love across the nations.

I will be leaving in January of 2009. I truly believe I will fall in love with Jesus in 2009. Ultimately, this 11-month experience with The World Race will be nothing short of life changing, and I would love for you to be a part of it! My team and I will need prayer support for safe travels, good health, effectiveness in ministry, and spiritual strength, guidance, and growth. We will need financial support as well.

I have to raise $13,000 to cover the cost associated with the missionary trip. This amount covers air, land, and sea travel as well as food and lodging. I will also need to raise funds to cover visas, vaccinations, international medical insurance, and supplies (tent, sleeping bag, backpack, etc). My goal is to raise $16,000 so that all costs are covered.

All contributions, prayer and financial, are a truly a blessing and graciously accepted.

If you would like to contribute to supporting me on GOD’s mission…. Please click on http://ericatalley.theworldrace.org and click on the Support Me Link on the left hand side of the page. All Donations are Tax Deductible. I will be writing about my experiences and posting pictures on the website before and during the trip.

Thank You and GOD Bless You,
Erica Talley”

We are very excited to follow Erica’s journey as she impacts the world as a positive change agent, while representing the values and mission of MBADiversity. We will certainly keep her in our prayers and we look forward to hearing of how she will be a vessel of change over the coming year.