The ExecMBA Podcast

ExecMBA Podcast #348: MSBA Spotlight | Jingjing Li, MSBA Co-Academic Director

In this episode of the podcast, we spotlight UVA’s MS in Business Analytics (MSBA) program with a conversation with Jingjing Li. Li is the Andersen Alumni Associate Professor of Commerce at UVA’s McIntire School of Commerce, and she also serves as one of the Directors of the MSBA program. Li’s research interests are in artificial intelligence and big data analytics, with applications spanning search engines, healthcare, marketing, platforms, and public policy. In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk with Li about her role with the MSBA program, her thoughts on the value and impact of the MSBA curriculum, her interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and more. This episode is essential listening for anyone considering UVA’s MSBA program. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #347: Meet the Black Professional MBA Student Organization

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with the co-Presidents of UVA Darden’s Black Professional MBA (BPMBA) student organization, Steven Daley, Cedric Thomas and Sean Webber. We talk with Steven, Cedric and Sean about their backgrounds, what led them to Darden, their plans for the BPMBA student organization in the months ahead and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #346: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Gabrielle “Gabe” Adams

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Gabrielle “Gabe” Adams. Adams is a behavioral scientist, with a joint appointment as an associate professor of public policy (Batten) and business administration (Darden: Leadership and Organizational Behavior area). She studies the processes and dynamics that give rise to 'good' decisions, policies, and conditions in organizations.  We talk with Adams about her background, what led her to Darden, what she enjoys about teaching through the case method, what makes an effective team, why people default to considering what they might add when improving things and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #345: Career Conversation | Gopika Spaenle, Managing Director, Career Center, Professional Degree Programs

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Gopika Spaenle. Gopika is the Managing Director, Career Center for UVA Darden’s Professional Degree Programs, and she is a repeat guest on the podcast. We talk with Gopika about the strategies for conducting a network-driven job search, and why this strategy pays dividends for Executive MBA and Part-Time MBA students seeking to make a career transition. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #344: Women@Darden Spotlight | Melissa Thomas-Hunt, Senior Associate Dean, Residential Full-Time MBA Program

In this special edition of the podcast, we are excited to share another installment from our ongoing Women@Darden event series featuring Melissa Thomas-Hunt, Senior Associate Dean for the Residential Full-Time MBA program at the UVA Darden School of Business. In this conversation hosted by Senior Assistant Dean of Admissions Dawna Clarke, Thomas-Hunt reflects upon her personal story, her career journey, what she loves about being at Darden, why she’s passionate about engaging with students, what makes Darden’s faculty unique and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #343: Catching up with Greg Fairchild, Dean and CEO, UVA Northern Virginia

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Darden faculty member and Dean and CEO of UVA Northern Virginia, Greg Fairchild. In this conversation, we talk with Greg about the inspiration for UVA Northern Virginia, where things stand with their current plans, their strategy and vision for the road ahead and more. This episode is highly recommended for anyone interested in learning more about UVA and Darden’s efforts in the Washington, DC metro area.

ExecMBA Podcast #342: Meet Megan McGee (MBA ’21), Director of Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA), Batten Institute

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Megan McGee. Megan is a repeat guest on the Experience Darden podcast, and a member of UVA Darden’s Full-Time MBA Class of 2021. Megan also recently joined Darden’s Batten Institute as the Director of Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA). We recently caught up with Megan to talk about her MBA journey, her interest in ETA, what attracted her to her new role with the Batten Institute, what she’s looking forward to in the months ahead and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba

ExecMBA Podcast #341: Catching up with Jason Brewster, Director of Venture Programs

In this episode of the podcast we catch up with Jason Brewster. Jason is a repeat podcast guest, and he is the Director of Venture Programs for UVA Darden’s Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology. In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk with Jason about his background, the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Darden, the recent iLab incubator cohort, and more. This episode is highly recommended for anyone interested in learning more about venturing at Darden. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #340: Student Spotlight | Danny Holloway

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Danny Holloway. Danny is a second year student in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2025, and he is also a Batten Tech scholar. We talk with Danny about his background, his decision to pursue an MBA, what he’s enjoyed about learning through the case method, the benefits of being a Batten scholar and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #339: Student Spotlight | Kathleen Morrison

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Kathleen Morrison. Kathleen is a second year student in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2025. We talk with Kathleen about her decision to pursue an MBA, what led her to Darden, balancing work, school and family, her favorite thing about the Executive MBA program so far and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #338: Student Spotlight | Chris Ostwald

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Chris Ostwald. Chris is a second year student in UVA Darden’s Part-Time MBA Class of 2026. We recently caught up with him to talk about his background, his decision to pursue an MBA, relocating to DC from Boston to participate in Darden’s Part-Time MBA program, what he’s enjoyed about the program so far and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #337: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Sasa Zorc

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Sasa Zorc. Zorc studies incentives in multi-agent systems such as health care and decentralized matching markets. Methodically, his research relies on stochastic dynamic games, search theory, mechanism design, contract theory as well as data-driven simulations of those systems. We talk with Zorc about his background, what led him to Darden, the core Decision Analysis course as well as his game theory elective, his thoughts on AI and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #336: Student Spotlight | Chris Mai

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Chris Mai. Chris is a second year student in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2025, and we recently caught up with him to talk about his background in the performing arts, his decision to pursue an MBA, what led him to Darden, the impact of his time at Darden, his advice for prospective students and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #335: Student Spotlight | Samantha Karp (Part-Time MBA Class of 2026)

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Samantha Karp. Samantha is a second year student in Darden’s Part-Time MBA Class of 2026, and she also serves as VP, Academics for the Part-Time MBA Student Association (PSA). We talk with her about her background, her decision to pursue an MBA, what she’s enjoyed about the Part-Time MBA program so far and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #334: Student Spotlight | Stew Neifert (Executive MBA Class of 2025)

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Stew Neifert. Stew is a second year student in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2025, and in this wide-ranging conversation, Stew reflects upon his decision to pursue an MBA, what led him to Darden, the impact of his time at Darden, his experience as a Batten scholar and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #333: Student Spotlight | J.R. Rodrigo (Part-Time MBA Class of 2025)

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with J.R. Rodrigo. J.R. is a student in UVA Darden’s Part-Time MBA Class of 2025, and we recently connected with him to talk about this decision to pursue an MBA, being part of Darden’s first class of Part-Time MBA students, what he’s enjoyed about the elective portion of the program, his advice for prospective students and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #332: Part-Time MBA Program Overview with Lauren Lopez-Maurer

In this episode of the podcast, we take a deep dive into the structure and design of UVA Darden’s Part-Time MBA program. We are joined for this conversation by Lauren Lopez-Maurer. Lauren serves as the advisor for Darden’s Part-Time MBA students, and in this conversation, she shares isnights about the Part-Time MBA student experience as well as tips for incoming students. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #331: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Michael Ho

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Michael Ho. We talk with Ho about his background, what led him to Darden, his mergers and acquisitions elective, how his work at Fifth Third Bank informs his classes at Darden and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #330: Executive MBA Program Overview with Erin Colwell

In this episode of the podcast, we take a deep dive into the structure and design of UVA Darden’s Executive MBA program. We are joined for this conversation by Erin Colwell. Erin serves as the advisor for Darden’s Executive MBA students, and in this conversation, she shares insights about the Executive MBA student experience as well as tips for incoming Executive MBA students.  For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #329: Meet the Darden Healthcare Alliance

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with two leaders of the Healthcare Alliance, Uma Subramanian and Louis Chapman. Uma is a recent graduate in the Executive MBA Class of 2024, and Louis is a second year student in the Part-Time MBA Class of 2025. We talk with Uma and Louis about their backgrounds, their decision to pursue an MBA and what led them to Darden. They also reflect upon the healthcare community at Darden and plans for their organization in the months ahead. The Darden Healthcare Alliance (HCA) provides co-curricular opportunities for Professional Degree students looking to build and grow within today’s healthcare ecosystem. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #328: A Conversation with Liza Ketcham, EMBA ‘24

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Liza Ketcham. Liza is a recent graduate in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2024, and in this wide-ranging conversation, we talk with her about her decision to pursue an MBA, adjusting to life as an Executive MBA student, her role on the Executive MBA wellness committee, the impact of her time at Darden and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #327: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Ian Appel

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Ian Appel. His main area of interest is empirical corporate finance, and his recent work studies different types of institutional investors (e.g., index funds, activist hedge funds), corporate environmental behaviors, and governance in decentralized finance.. We talk with Appel about his background, what led him to Darden, his FinTech electives, decentralized finance, cryptocurrency and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #326: Office Hours Spotlight | In Conversation with Professor Shane Dikolli

In this special edition of the Darden Admissions podcast, we share a recent installment in our ongoing ‘Office Hours’ faculty spotlight series, a conversation with Professor Shane Dikolli. Dikolli’s primary research interests focus on the performance evaluation of CEOs spanning both analytical modeling and empirical analysis, and he currently serves as an editor at The Accounting Review. We talk with Dikolli about his background, what attracted him to Accounting, what led him to Darden, his Strategic Costing elective, his global course in Australia and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #325: Student Spotlight | Chantal Mekhail, Executive MBA Class of 2025

In this episode, we catch up with Chantal Mekhail. Chantal is a first year student in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2025, and she is also a Batten Scholar. We talk with Chantal about her decision to pursue an MBA, what led her to Darden, the impact of her time in the Executive MBA program, her experience as a Batten Scholar and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.

ExecMBA Podcast #324: Meet Madison Mahoney and Kyle Ivester, Executive MBA Class of 2025

In this episode of the podcast, we catch up with Madison Mahoney and Kyle Ivester. Madison and Kyle are first year students in UVA Darden’s Executive MBA Class of 2025, and they also serve as section representatives. In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk with Madison and Kyle about their decision to pursue an MBA, what led them to Darden, what they’ve enjoyed about their first year, their advice for prospective students and more. For more insights, tips, and stories about the Darden experience, be sure to check out the Discover Darden Admissions blog and follow us on Instagram @dardenmba.