On Saturday the 31st of January, my colleague Vince Ricci (center) held a "fireside chat," which was by far the best gathering of MBA applicants and alums that I (right) have ever attended. In addition to 30 MBA applicants, 19 alums (HBS, Stanford, Wharton, Kellogg, Chicago, Tuck, Berkeley, Duke, UCLA, Michigan, Cornell, Darden, INSEAD, LBS, IESE, and IE), Vince, Steve (my guest blogger), and I attended. As I have mentioned previously, Vince, Steve, and I have an interview referral program for our clients, so this was a good chance for our clients to do some networking, not only with alums, but with each other. It was also really great to see former clients who were kind enough to attend.I asked Vince to tell my blog readers a little about this event as well as explain why he organized it. Below are his comments:
I started these "fireside chats" because I heard from many of my clients that they preferred smaller more intimate gatherings. There is no shortage of information on MBA programs. Thanks to frequent adcom visits, alumni panels, and great blogs (like this one!), applicants can now access school-specific data and insights easier than ever. Still, I felt that there was a lack of "quality face time." I attended larger MBA events for years and sometimes felt that it was hard to connect or have meaningful conversations while worrying that others are still waiting in line to ask their questions.
We had our first event in August 2008. About 20 people came to a nice little spot in Shimbashi, including 3 of my former clients representing HBS, Stanford, and UCLA.
I spent the next five months building momentum for a slightly larger event. (I expected 35-40 people, but more than 50 came!) This time, I wanted to maximize alumni participation. On 1/31, we enjoyed a nearly 3:2 applicant to alumni ratio, better than any other MBA networking event in Tokyo, perhaps in the world.
Because I believe in the power of human-to-human communication, I want to maintain our small size and customized approach. I am already scouting new locations for our next "fireside chat."
ADAM:
I am looking forward to Vince's next event. As he keeps these things small, they are basically open to our current and former clients, with others joining on a case-by-case basis.
For more details about utilizing our services, please contact:
Vince Ricci (http://vinceprep.com/)
H. Steven Green (http://hstevengreen.com/home.
Adam Markus (http://adammarkus.com/)
-Adam Markus
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