the continued adventures of winter break....

So, one of the perks of b-school is that you basically get the longest winter break ever.... mine stretched from late December until today, when I had the unpleasant experience of going back to class after 8 months. Not pretty.

Anyhow, January was pretty eventful. In early Jan, I moved back to Boston. Me and J-Funk moved into a place in Central that literally sits on top of the T-stop - freaking awesome. I spent the early part of the month working on my thesis. It's totally crap, but my "hard work" (read: 3 hrs a day in Starbucks alternating between writing and checking Facebook) has resulted in a complete first draft. Its not actually due until mid-March, so I'm feeling pretty impressed with myself right about now.

The main driver for knocking out the thesis draft was so that I wouldn't have to worry about it during my extra fabulous trip to the Dominican Republic in the middle of January. We have an amazing Sloanie classmate, Pedro, whose family was kind enough to donate their supa-fab DR pad to a charity auction last year. A group of LGOs bought the donation, and the rest is history. A group of 15 of us headed down for about a week, and it was amazing.... we pretty much relaxed and drank the entire time. Pedro and his family were perfect hosts, making sure we had everything we needed, and even planned some fun events like sightseeing and clubbing in Santo Domingo. Amazing.

the resort

sunset

santo domingo

santo domingo

night out

karaoke

karaoke

The only downer to the trip was that we departed for the DR just days after the atrocious earthquake in Haiti, which is just across the border from the DR. I definitely felt guilty enjoying such a pleasant vacation when hundreds of thousands of people were suffering just across the border. My heart goes out to the people of Haiti, and I'm so grateful to all of those who continue to provide support to the region. If you are interested in learning more about how you can help, please check out the US government's website on Haiti Earthquake Relief.

After getting back, the LGOs launched into Knowledge Review, where we basically all get together and knowledge share about the things we did on internship. We also just had all the prospective students for the Class of 2012 on-campus for interviews. It was cool to meet all the prospective students. A few of them actually recognized me from this blog.... I felt like a minor celebrity. I think the fame is going to go straight to my head. Anyhow, best of luck to all that interviewed!

and the offer is signed

So, after much internal debate, I finally signed a full-time offer for employment with Genzyme. They are a partner company based here in Boston. I'll be working as a Lean Transformation Leader, which basically means that I'll be working to improve processes at a variety of sites across the country and globe. I was really impressed with the strong corporate culture that Genzyme seemed to exude during all my interviews (as well as in all my discussions with current employees). Additionally, I'm specifically drawn to their product line; they focus on making drugs which treat serious diseases and meeting currently unmet medical needs. I know that I will be working on products which directly contribute to drastically improving the quality of life of patients. Also, it's a global role (which means lots of international travel, yeah!) but is based in Boston (which means still having access to Target, yeah!). And finally, I will be working in a group with Sloanie and LGO alums, so that will be sort of awesome.

In the end, the job just felt right.... great role, great location, and amazing products. I'm excited, and am actually looking forward to starting work again ;)

thesis, schmesis.....

So, up until this point, LGO has pretty much been all fun and games (well, sort of, if your idea of fun and games involves statistical regression analysis and dynamic model optimization). But now the honeymoon is over.... I have to write my friggin thesis.

That's the one catch to the LGO program, in my book.... in order to get your MS in Eng, and graduate Sloan on-time, we each write a thesis that is approved by both Engineering and Management. Its about whatever we did on internship.... or whatever we should have been doing on internship, perhaps.

The general timeline is draft by mid-March for your advisors to review, final version by April for your company to review, approval in May.... just in time for graduation. Some students don't start working on their theses until into the spring semester, but I did some drafting during my internship, and I've spend the past week or so writing it (when I wasn't doing something more exciting, like sleeping). At this point, I'm already seriously ahead of the game - I've got a full rough draft done. Its about 13,500 words, and about 60 pages long.

The only problem is that its total crap. My internship was much more on the people management side of the spectrum, and less on the engineering side. I loved that.... I'm the sort of person who goes into cold sweats when I have to add stuff in my head, so staying away from the engineering side of things was just great for me. However, now I have to write this fancy document about what I did (or didn't do), and right now, its reading like Buzzword Bingo. Phrases found in my thesis:

• Enabling empowerment on the shop-floor
• Leveraging process visualization
• Aligning resources via a clearly articulated vision statement
• Fostering collaboration via co-location
  
• Overcoming cultural barriers by creating a sense of purpose
  

I hate myself.

a palm tree christmas, part 2

Christmas-time again.... like last year (which you can read about here), I spent the holidays in Tampa Florida with my folks. Christmas in Florida remains a mystery to me; I will never understand how driving around in a convertible with the top down on Christmas Eve, looking at Christmas lights on palm trees feels Christmas-y.

This year was decidedly better than last year, as my mom has fully recovered from last year's surgery, and we were able to spend the holiday at our house. However, just because we were at home doesn't mean that there weren't shinanigans.

First of all, my parents were completely unprepared for Christmas when I landed late in the day on the 23rd - they had been busy doing stuff, I guess. Therefore, the 24th was spent frantically putting up the tree & wrapping presents. At one point, my father emerged from their bedroom with a stack of presents, and asked me to put bows on them. I realized he was outsourcing the bow-making on my own presents to me. That's a scrupulous move, Pops.

Once we got the house looking like Christmas, it was time to do a huge shopping for Christmas dinner. Nothing like braving the grocery store on Christmas Eve to make you truly hate fellow-mankind. Me and Mom took care of the fancy stuff at Fresh Market, while we sent Dad to brave Publix alone. We were about 50% sure we'd never see him alive again.

Once we got home, we were exhausted and decided that real Christmas Eve (ie, food and celebration) would have to wait for tomorrow. Thus, we made a last minute move to put Christmas Eve on the 25th. I mean, we can get away with this stuff in our family.... my folks are total hippies, and so they are just as likely to celebrate Christmas in February as on Dec 25th, if it tweaks their fancy.

I got up on Christmas Day, and started cooking for "Christmas Eve" dinner (we always do the big meal on Christmas Eve, and then do presents and leftovers on Christmas Day). Once I started cooking, all hell broke loose. We realized that my sweet, good natured father had neglected to purchase cream or onions, which somehow meant that we couldn't make ANY of the pre-planned items (which included seared filets with gorgonzola cream sauce, quiche with carmelized onions and mushrooms, french onion soup, and mac & cheese). I believe that me and my mother celebrated the spirit of Christmas Day by simultaneously screaming "Are you f#@*-ing kidding me?" (it turns out we are evil, nasty people who deserved nothing but coal for Christmas). My father went out to scrounge up what he could on Christmas Day. He was able to find Half-and-Half at a Seven-Eleven, which works OK as a cream substitute. Onions were harder.... after trying to buy onions at CVS on Christmas Day, he finally had the bright idea to try a restaurant. The nice people at China Wok were open and sold my dad a bag of onions for $3. Merry Christmas.

In the end, the meal turned out perfectly, and we had a relaxing dinner by a lovely tree. Laughing about how my dad bought Christmas dinner at the chinese take-out place was totally worth the hassle and stress. On the 26th, we had "Christmas", and spent the entire day unwrapping presents, eating, drinking coffee, and enjoying each others company.

I understand that not everyone's Christmas is like my family's version. Wrapping your own presents, doing Christmas a day late, dropping the F-bomb, purchasing dinner supplies at a take-out joint.... this isn't the Christmas that Mariah Carey sings about. However, I love my dysfunctional family, and the amazing stories we always have after a family gathering. And anyways, after spending last year's Christmas in the hospital, it was an amazing feeling to simply be home for the holidays.

decisions, decisions

So, despite my best attempts to sabotage myself (spilling a huge latte in the lobby prior to an interview, getting the flu during recruiting week, generally being a moron when interacting with others, etc), recruiting went decently and I have a few options that don't suck. So, I'm spending my holiday break trying to figure out how to pick an offer. Here are the best decision-making methodologies so far.....

1. Create an "winner-takes-Becca" gator-wrastling competition for the recruiters. I think this could be a good way to see who's really committed to having me full-time.

2. Do it just like us Sloanies pick classes.... accept all of them, go to work the first day, and then drop the ones we like the least.

3. Let Chuck Norris decide.

In the end I will do what all of us LGOs do.... I will make an elaborate spreadsheet that will not only evaluate the different compensation packages, but will also quantify and compare the intangibles such as location, culture, fit, etc. After making and tweaking and optimizing said model... I will go with my gut and just pick the one that feels right.

Obviously, I'm very lucky, and I'm thankful that I have options... especially ones that do not include selling plasma to pay off my loans.

Ciao, ciao Italia.....

Today is my last in Italy. It's been a whirlwind week for me, trying to get myself packed and ready to go, as well as wrap up everything at work. This past week, I had all my final presentations & final 1:1s, which means lots of goodbyes, many kisses, and a few glasses of champagne (always a good thing at the office).

I had a farewell dinner last week, in which I was roasted by my colleagues.... my co-worker Fabio, who normally speaks nearly perfect English, had an epic screw-up when he announced to the whole table that "When I ride him home, it makes him scream". My boss really enjoyed that one.

The weekend was spent frantically packing my entire life into a few boxes, and figuring out just exactly I am going to manage to get 8 bottles of wine home on the plane.

Now its my actual last day in the office, and I'm clearing my desk and saying final goodbyes. As is becoming typical for my blog, I've spent the afternoon pondering my departure. It's a strange feeling; I'm excited to come home, but also sad to leave the "bella vita" I've experienced these last six months.

Things I Will Miss About Italy
There is a reason they call it "la bella vita".... it is a beautiful life here in Tuscany. Here are the things I will miss:

Constant Surprises. Everything is different here.... everything! Going to the grocery store is an adventure. It snowed a few inches here recently, and I observed that people wore plastic shopping bags on their feet and shoveled their cars out of the snow with brooms. Its always a surprise here in Italy.

Vino! I live in the best wine region, in the world, period. I can get an amazing Chianti here for about the same cost as Boones Farm back in the US.

Cheap International Travel. RyanAir, EasyJet, and me have forged a long-lasting friendship, one that I will miss dearly. I've traveled to Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Ireland, France, Amsterdam, and all over Italy in my time here, and its been easy, quick, and cheap. I think my flight to Dublin was 5 euros.... you can't even take the commuter rail to Framingham for that in Boston!

Work Experience. It hasn't always been easy, but I have learned a TON here.... I've constantly had to readjust my style in order to communicate and lead in this very different environment, and that's an experience that I'll keep with me forever. Working in another culture has been an amazing opportunity, and I'll be sad when it's over.

Food. OK, eating handmade Italian pasta, fresh caprese salads, and homemade gelato almost every day does not suck.

Things I Miss About America
OK, I'm a total liberal, I love to travel and see new things and new cultures, so I never considered myself a die-hard America lover. However, moving to Europe made me realize how much I do really love America..... not in a ultra-conservative, "let's elect Rush Limbaugh and kill all the terrorists" sort of way, but in more of a "man, I enjoy Target and speaking English" sort of way. Here are the things that I am most looking forward to when I arrive home tomorrow:

Speaking English. OK, new respect for all my Sloanie and LGO pals who's primary language isn't English. After six months of mustering my way through work meetings, grocery store mishaps, and restaurant ordering shinanigans, I can't wait to finally be able to just communicate without having to really think about it.

Shopping. OK, I'm not a total shoppaholic, but I like the idea that on a Sunday afternoon, I can run to Target and pick up groceries, toilettries, cleaning supplies, and maybe a new book. I like that if its 3am and I need toilet paper and hangover gatorade, there is a 24hr Walgreens right up the street that can hook me up. We don't have any of this in Italy.... and I miss it.

TV. I've never considered myself a TV lover. There have been extended times in my life when I have not had cable - like pretty much my entire childhood, as well as about 2 years after college. That said, I guess if I ever really wanted to watch something, I could.... and here I can't. While I enjoy the Italian gameshows (picture "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" with girls in bikinis) and dubbed versions of "Pimp My Ride" on MTV Italia, I miss being able to sit back and watch a show in english (without the inevitable headache from trying to translate). I guess I like TV more than I thought.....

Beer. I miss beer. Nuff said.

My LGO pals. Miss you kids, can't wait to hang out at the BHP with you again soon (see "Beer", above).

Tomorrow I will begin an epic journey home (Siena to Florence to Frankfurt to Miami to Tampa to Atlanta to Boston!). I'm looking forward to leaving, but I'm already thinking about my next trip back to Italia......

Best and Worst of LGO

Applications for the class of 2011 are due on December 15th..... I absolutely cannot believe it was already two years ago that I was working on my application (you can read about my application experience here)..... and it's equally flabbergasting (yes, that's a word now) that I'm going to graduate in just 6 months.

Perhaps its the three glasses of Tuscan wine I had with dinner, or perhaps its just the sleep deprivations (its 2am in Italy), but I've begun to wax nostalgic about my time in LGO. I've decided to put together my Top 10 Best & Worst things about LGO.

Top 10 Favorite Things About LGO

1. Don Rosenfield. The man is like a crazy ninja genius. Yes, it's impossible for him to utilize capitalization in emails, but the man can literally remember the name, graduation year, and current job description of every LGO. He is a walking encyclopedia of LGO graduation requirements. And the man is scary with an optimization model. Also, we ate boar together once, so that makes you cool in my book.

2. The LGO office. It's small, outdated, and has a mild rodent program. But its a home away from home, where I can always enjoy cheap taco truck food, and distract myself from studying by chatting with the other LGOs, who also basically live in the office.

3. The fellowship. Hey, would you like a fancy Sloan MBA, for free? Yes, please.

4. BHP Wednesdays. Yes, its a hole in the wall, but its our hole in the wall, where the Brubakers are cheap and rumors get started.

5. Plant trek. Trekking across the country with all your classmates to exotic places like Reno and Kansas City, spending equal time drinking and checking out plants. It was honestly one of the most fun two weeks of my life.

6. Voltron, my core team. Yes, we had our differences (ala the screaming match with Cal over those friggin helicopters), but they were an amazing bunch of people - each one of them incredibly bright, motivated, and unique. What an amazing experience to work with some amazing people. And any group named after awesome robots has to be cool, right?

7. Internships. So, not every internship has been perfect, but we are each guaranteed an internship, somewhere..... so, compared to some of our Sloanie friends who spent the summer working for free at Greenpeace trying desperately to round out their resumes, we each could sit back, relax, and realize we would have a job, somewhere, and we didn't even have to really prep for interviews. Additionally, most of the internships were pretty awesome.... it turns out, spending 6 months in Italy, traveling all over Europe, and being able to experience an international work assignment was pretty freaking awesome.

8. Flexibility. I'm a huge fan of my advisors, who basically let me create my own course, filled with a combination of classic ChE course, supply chain classes, and hands-on consulting work, and allowed me to use this to meet my engineering requirements. I got to take exactly the classes that I wanted to develop myself as a person (which is exactly why I went back to school in the first place).

9. X-Class. OK, I guess its not really an LGO thing, but I adore the fact that I'm in the X-Class. Come on, say it out loud.... doesn't it sound awesome?

10. My amazing classmates. They are the brightest people on the planet. I'm not making this up. They constantly amaze me with the things they've already accomplished in their lives, and they way they each have their own, unique way of breaking down a problem. I've learned so much from them in the short time I've been in LGO. The class also has an incredibly tight bond.... I can't imagine throwing a party and not inviting all 48 of them. If I had a problem at work, it was routine that an LGO (probably at another company) could give me suggestions and help faster than my actual coworkers. Even in recruiting, the environment has been 100% supportive, with LGOs encouraging others who are interviewing for the same jobs. The past 1.5 years has been an opportunity to build a relationships with some of the smartest, nicest folks on earth. And that doesn't suck.


Ok.... so now for the nasty side of LGO:

10 Things I Hate About LGO

1. It's hard. It turns out that I like to sleep, a lot. And sleeping a lot isn't great for going to morning classes. And if you are an LGO, you have lots of classes. And that's a bummer if you like to sleep a lot. Seriously though, its a crazy workload, and sometimes it feels overwhelming, despite the support we get from our classmates and faculty. Two degrees in four semesters is rough. For reals.

2. It's sometimes boring. We have some required classes that made me want to gouge my eyes out, such as systems optimization. If I never have to model again in my life, I'll be a happy woman.

3. We're alienated. Are we Sloanies, are we MIT students? Well, we're sort of neither. The fact that we show up a semester early is great for us to bond with each other, but it makes it harder for us to blend into the Sloanie community..... and being off-campus for an extra semester for internship doesn't help either. We're a bit alienated (by our own doing, mostly) from the Sloan community. I sometimes wish I'd done a better job of intergrating into the Sloan community. As for integrating into the MIT engineering community.... what's that saying, the odds are good, but the goods are odd? Hmmm, maybe.

4. Competition sucks. So, as I mentioned, all the LGOs are awesome, which makes it insanely hard to compete against them for jobs. Its gutwrenching to go after the same offer as your good friend, and all the kind words from your classmates doesn't make it any easier. I also feel constantly inadequate, since my peers are all ridiculously awesome at everything :)

5. We could be more diverse. Since LGO favors applicants that can legally work in countries that have LGO partner company plants, we accept fewer international applicants than the engineering or Sloan school. While I understand it, I still hate it.... the whole reason for going back to school was to learn, and you obviously learn from people who have had different experiences than yourself.... it would be awesome if the program was able to take more international applicants, in order to more fully embrace diversity of thought and backgrounds.

6. We have to write a thesis. Ugh, really? I guess that's the price for the free MBA.

7-10. Math, math, math, and math. I hate math. I'm terrible at it. I hate it enough that it merited four separate slots on my "Things I Hate About LGO" list (well, also I couldnt think of any more, and I'm getting sleepy). Anhow, there is math in every single class I've taken through the LGO program. Totally lame.