MBA Application

1. At CoBA, we place great importance in values, initiative and professionalism. Describe one example of how you have demonstrated these qualities. C.S. Lewis defined integrity as doing the right thing when no one is looking. That has been one of my greatest lessons as a professional and as a small business owner. Operating a small side business frequently present moments in which I am able to take advantage of my customers. I understand that the items I am creating can be made with lower quality products, or the corners that can be cut, however, that is not a good representation of my professionalism. I appreciate good business sense and savvy purchasing, however I do no support creating something that is not of quality and created with my full effort. Every piece that I craft showcases my business and my integrity to my buyers. I feel that through serving my customers with respect, holding tight to my values of creating a high quality product and maintaining my integrity as a business owner and product designer is a true example of my veracity and values.

2. What are your career aspirations? How will your education at CoBA help you achieve them? Why

this is the right time for you to pursue an MBA? As an entrepreneur by nature, there are a number of businesses aspirations that I am passionate about. However, when collectively looking at my career goals, one can see that each goal relates back to connecting with and supporting the people around me in becoming self sufficient and maintaining their own success through pursuing their true passion. I have a enthusiasm for inspiring people and motivating their dreams to become a reality. I know that by obtaining a master’s degree in Business Administration, I will not only be creating a strong foundation for my business but also have the education to serve as an knowledgeable and supportive resource to those who are pursuing their business goals. Additionally, as a previous business owner, I know first-hand the hardships and the level of commitment that is involved when owning your own business. Nonetheless, when obtaining the right knowledge and applying it to a strong business idea, a number of those hardships are avoidable. Unfortunately, I chose to earn the experience prior to the degree, and in doing so I have faced an abundance of learning opportunities . I feel through my experience, I have tested my desire to
operate my own business and I am now ready to commit myself to earning a Master’s degree in Business Administration in order to fully reach the level of success that I envision. By pursuing my Master’s degree, coupled with my businesses experience, I will be soundly positioned to take my small business to a level of true achievement.

3. Describe an occasion when you built or developed a team. One of the tasks I have had, working in the non-profit sector, is identifying grant opportunities that meet the needs of our local community. What I consider to be one of my greatest accomplishments, while working for a non-profit organization, was organizing a team of dynamic community leaders and securing a grant to support the education and employment of individuals with developmental disabilities in the amount of 1.25 million dollars. Upon learning about this grant opportunity, I collaborated with a partner organization to facilitate a meeting that brought together our local university, college and several community organizations. We worked to identify the barriers of our students with developmental disabilities and created a program that would support students in overcoming those barriers. Now one and half years into the grant, we are proud to share that the students in this program, who were never expected to attend college must less receive a certificate or degree, have completed their first two semesters with an average GPA of 3.0. Leading this team was an incredible opportunity that has shaped my entire approach to fostering community collaboration. I continue to co-chair the advisory board of this grant, and since I have supported additional grant advisory boards, coalition meetings, and integrated resource teams to serve our local community and ensure that we are investing our dollars and time to right areas. The most important lesson I have learned when leading a team and building partnerships, is that the focus must be on collaboration not coordination.

4. Describe an experience when you felt most effective as a leader. As a Director, I am able to interact daily with a variety of amazing personalities and very individual work styles. As a leader, I feel it is my job to understand those styles and how they compliment not only one another, but the organization as a whole. I also feel that it is my duty to always
look for ways to recognize staff and offer advancement when available; rewarding staff for the commitment they make to the families they serve and to the organization. Recently an opportunity for advancement within the organization became available. Promoting from within is always priority and I had already identified a staff member as being over qualified for her current part time position. After meeting with the program coordinator about promoting this individual, I expressed my intent to my superior. Unfortunately my supervisor felt this staff member did not have the qualifications or the “personality” to fill the new position. I carefully outlined all of the qualities of that staff member to my supervisor. She hesitantly agreed, trusting the judgment of myself and the coordinator of the project. Following that promotion, the staff member kindly told me and the coordinator thank you for recognizing her talents. She had applied for three other positions within the organization and was never hired. Because of our faith in her, she now has the opportunity to work full time, support her family and demonstrate her skills and abilities. She is one of our strongest employees.

5. Describe a situation when you successfully reached a goal or completed a task that was challenging, difficult, or frustrating. In my position as a director, I have the pleasure of overseeing three programs and the coordinators for each of those programs. While reviewing one of the programs it was discovered that the program coordinator was not operating this program as required and far from the expectations outlined. Due to this discovery I took full responsibility for the program implementation. I was also responsible for reviewing all of the client files involved with that program, organizing a team to review and edit the previously entered data, and ensuring all information entered and services provided are now correct. Additionally, I worked with our internal review team to draft a plan, outlining the immediate changes to be made to ensure all program guidelines were met in the future. This was an incredible learning lesson for me. While it was challenging and difficult, it certainly helped me grow as a supervisor and as a professional.