“Strategy Saturday” Connects Executive Degree Students to C-Suite Leaders

A new career services event for executive degree students and alumni at Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business brought 22 C-suite and senior leaders from the financial services, consulting, government, nonprofit, technology, and entertainment sectors to campus this spring. The inaugural Strategy Saturday gave students and alumni from the Executive MBA, Global Executive MBA, Executive Master’s in Leadership, and M.A. in International Business and Policy programs an opportunity to expand their global networks.

“Networking with global leaders and hearing about their experiences was powerful,” said Jason Dodier (EMBA’19). “These types of events speak to the core of why people like me are at Georgetown.”

The annual event is designed to inform students and alumni about industry trends, career opportunities, and challenges; provide insights on leadership; and inspire them with success stories, according to Raji Ramanan, assistant dean of career management for executive degree programs.

“Understanding the needs of the cohort – how to best help them transition, what kind of support they need, how to help them evolve meaningfully in their leadership journey – was key to designing and executing such a successful event,” said Ramanan.

Strategy Saturday was organized in carousel fashion: panelists were seated around the room, and groups of 10 to 12 students and alumni rotated among them, spending about 45 minutes with each professional. This year’s event lasted six hours, and the discussions were so dynamic that many attendees and speakers commented that they would have stayed longer.

“The best part of Strategy Saturday is that you can learn from people in all kinds of industries, even in different parts of the world. These are high-power leaders who would otherwise be difficult to meet,” said Dodier.

“It was a fantastic day,” added Kimberly Osias (EMBA’19). “I met people who shared my interests, and the passion in our conversations proved to me that I am in the right place.”