Tag: Olin veterans



This article was originally published in the 2017 Olin Business Magazine.

Thanks to a generous $1.25 million commitment from The Boeing Company, Olin will continue to provide scholarship support and extracurricular benefits to eligible US military veterans.

“Every day at Boeing, we see the positive impact of the veterans on our teams,” said Shelley Lavender (EMBA ’03), Boeing senior vice president of Strike, Surveillance, and Mobility. “One in seven Boeing employees has served our nation, and brings leadership, commitment, and a unique perspective to the workplace.”

“Our gift to Olin will help ensure today’s veterans have the opportunity to achieve their educational goals and prepare themselves to continue to make an impact in their communities.”

—Shelley Lavender (EMBA ’03), Olin National Council member

Since 2008, Olin has been a full participant in the Yellow Ribbon Program, covering the gap between government funding and Washington University tuition costs for eligible veterans. Boeing’s support of the Olin Veteran Scholarship Fund ensures that Olin can continue to proudly recruit deserving military veterans into its programs.

“The strong leadership qualities that our military veterans bring to the classroom are valued by all Olin students, staff, and faculty,” said Dean Mark Taylor. “The MBA program and qualification give veterans the skills to channel their experience into becoming great business leaders who will change our school, community, and country.”

In addition to veteran scholarships, Boeing will also support the activities of the student-led Olin Veterans Association (OVA), which exists to assist veteran students in their successful transition into the business world. The OVA welcomes veteran students—and their families—to Olin with a three-day “boot camp” that provides an overview of the MBA curriculum. Veteran students are then personally connected to the St. Louis business community through internships, mentor partnerships, employer site visits, and networking events.

On average, Olin enrolls 80 military veterans each year across its graduate degree programs. Olin offers its sincere appreciation to The Boeing Company and its support of military veterans.




This Veteran’s Day, Olin reflects with gratitude on the service and leadership offered by its vibrant military veteran community. One needs to look no further than alumna and former U.S. Army Blackhawk pilot Katie Buehner as an example of the impact our student veterans have on the world.

Previously named one of Poets & Quants’ “Best and Brightest” and profiled by both The Denver Business Journal and The National Business Journal for her entrepreneurial pursuits, Katie is once again making headlines and continuing to make her alma mater proud.

Business Because recently profiled Katie for her work helping veterans launch new careers in business by offering training for careers in high-tech sales. Katie’s employer, Tech Qualled, aims to “change the way high-tech executives perceive the skill sets of military service members.” Katie says high-tech sales companies are particularly reluctant to hire employees without experience handling accounts.

“Even though veterans might not have the direct experience, they are driven, results-oriented and resilient—they have the potential to outlearn and outpace everyone else on their staff,” Katie told Business Because.

Tech Qualled has so far placed over 100 candidates, and now has 75 partners. Learn more about the Launchpad Academy for Veterans here.

Olin Kudos, Katie, and all of our Olin Veterans–you inspire and lead our community to achieve more.

Check out Katie’s full profile on Business Because.




Steve May is a military veteran and a 2018 MBA Candidate at Olin Business School

Photo, above: Steve May with teammates and locals in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

In addition to world-class academics and a general “fit” with the friendly students and impressive instructors, Olin’s tremendous support for veterans is part of the reason I came to Washington University as an MBA candidate. There is not enough time in the day to take advantage of all the support available to Olin students. It’s a tremendous problem to have, and it started right when I got into St. Louis before the MBA Program even officially began.

Two days before the Olin MBA Program started, the veterans attended a two-day “MBA Boot Camp” to “square us away” and get us ready for the difficult (but rewarding) road ahead. The name “MBA Boot Camp” is fitting—not because of the intensity that is associated with most military basic trainings, but because of the efficiency. From the moment we stepped on campus, everything was planned to get us “up to speed” on everything we needed to know to help us prepare for the MBA program.

The author, Steve May.

The author, Steve May.

Meals, career advice, platform introductions, classroom and case discussions, and networking experiences were a few of the events that were planned and executed to the minute. Most notably, the Weston Career Center introduced themselves and the multitude of services they provide students—from resume and cover letter advice, to conference and interview preparation. It was very clear that they were there to help. At the end of the first day, for example, I was following up with a career advisor after a great face-to-face meeting to help finalize my resume for a veterans job conference in October. On the second day, each core instructor led an academic discussion on their subject area, the accompanying platform, and an introduction to the case method. Needless to say, MBA Boot Camp did a tremendous job preparing us to excel and lead when the MBA program began days later.

As veterans, we have all had trying experiences in various locations throughout the world. More than a rigorous military basic training, “MBA Boot Camp” was an introduction to the vast amount of resources and support available to all students, and, especially veterans in the MBA Program at Olin. It truly is overwhelming, and overwhelmingly positive. MBA Boot Camp cemented what I knew to be true; that I had selected the right program for me.

Steve May is a 2018 MBA Candidate in the full-time MBA Program at Olin Business School. Learn more about Olin’s top-ranked full-time MBA program and resources for military veterans.




Military to MBA student Jerrod Anderson

Photo, above: Jerrod Anderson, right, with Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon at Anderson’s base in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2014.

The personal decision to leave active duty service, and transition from the role of military to MBA student, was one of the most difficult and important decisions I had ever made. I decided to pursue a Master of Business Administration because I wanted to continue growing as a leader after the Marine Corps. However, having had little exposure to the business world, choosing the right program proved to be challenging.

After researching numerous MBA programs, I was contacted by a friend and fellow Marine who was an MBA student at Washington University in Saint Louis. He described the unique culture at Olin and the incredible support structure that the school provides to transitioning service members.

New students truly hit the ground running at Olin, and the pace of the program can be difficult for those coming from non-business backgrounds. To ensure that veteran MBA students are prepared for their first semester, the school partners with the Olin Veterans Association (OVA) to organize a robust two-day program—Boot Camp—which provides incoming veterans with a comprehensive overview of the MBA program and career opportunities. New veterans are immediately introduced to the OVA network of alumni and other individuals who will continue to support student veterans throughout their two years at Olin. The Boot Camp program was extremely well organized and enabled me to make a seamless transition from the Marine Corps to the classroom.

The OVA has not only provided a professional network, but also the sense of community and belonging that I valued while on active duty.

Veterans at AB InBev

Olin MBA Veterans visit tour AB InBev in late August.

The OVA is a close-knit organization where alumni are personally invested in the development and success of current MBA students. I could not have asked for a better way to transition into a career in business. If you are considering pursuing an MBA, I highly encourage you to consider Olin and explore everything that the institution has to offer.

Jerrod Anderson, Olin Veterans Association, is a 2018 MBA Candidate in the full-time MBA Program at Olin Business School. Learn more about Olin’s top-ranked full-time MBA program and resources for military veterans.




Intel literally puts the silicon in “Silicon Valley” and is the world’s largest and highest valued semiconductor chip maker based on revenue. In 1978, Intel engineers invented the x86 architecture, which has been adopted as the industry standard for manufacturing microprocessors. Intel architecture provides stability for hardware and software solutions throughout the value chain. Intel sells processors to computer system manufacturers like Dell, HP, Lenova, Apple, and Samsung. As a result, Intel processors are found in most personal computers and other computing form factors. The engineers at Intel are the premier experts in their field and often have as many as 20 patents to their names.

Innovation is not a buzz word at Intel to be thrown around lightly.

Intel business leaders and engineer architectures developed processors for the Saturn V rocket that put man on the moon, and they continue to develop solutions that will eventually power smart cities and machine learning in the near future. If you stream Netflix, you are witnessing the power of an Intel Xeon processor in an Amazon server farm.

For my internship, I was assigned to the Client Computing Group (CCG). CCG is Intel’s largest group by revenue and sells Pentium, Celeron, and Core processors to large enterprises and consumers. My project was to find specific new use cases or markets for a technology called Intel Active Management Technology (Intel AMT). Intel AMT provides out-of-band manageability, or manageability even when the system is turned off or when the Operating System is failing, for enterprises to manage their IT systems more effectively. Intel AMT has been around for 10 years, and commands the highest product margin in the enterprise desktop and notebook space.  For business clients, Intel’s strategy has always been to drive sell-up to AMT Core i5/i7. This sell-up provides millions in incremental revenue each year for Intel’s Client Computing Group.

To discover new use cases, I first developed a business framework to filter and test new ideas. The first part of the framework addresses if there is a need for remote out-of-band manageability. Often times, most problems can be resolved in-band, or when the power is turned on. AMT is only value-added if the customer needs manageability out-of-band or when the system is in an off-state. Then I looked at the specific capabilities of Intel AMT (power control, remediation, virtual boot) and decided which use cases would require these specific capabilities. The most important criteria in this part of the framework was the probability of system failure. If a system has a very low probability of failure, there is not really a compelling reason to have out-of-band manageability because in the very rare event of failure, there is no financially compelling reason to invest in Intel AMT. Finally, I conducted market sizing to determine the total addressable markets and market segment shares for use cases that were selected from the framework. After I developed a market model, I was able to provide net present value ranges for my project recommendations by analyzing the amount of upsell and market segment share gain my recommendation would receive.

The finance intern coordinators in Oregon did a great job of planning and executing extracurricular activities for the interns. In addition to a host of happy hours and social events, the coordinators took the interns zip lining, hiking, and white water rafting. There were plenty of opportunities provided to interact and network with operations partners and finance leaders from each of the business units, including iCap, Intel’s venture capital firm.

Intel finance roles require developing business acumen and becoming a strategic thinker.

Finance supports the various business units in a way that is similar to how combat arms branches support maneuver units in the Army. As a field artillery officer I was always supporting an infantry commander two or three levels above my own grade. It was my job to understand their intent and provide recommendations based on my indirect fires capabilities.

This relationship and organization is nearly identical to how Intel finance supports their business partners. A finance manager or controller often supports a general manager or vice president that is much senior. The operations partners depend on finance leaders to provide unbiased financial analysis that represents the shareholder’s best interests.

Guest blogger: Army veteran and 2nd year Olin MBA student Joe Langella

Photo courtesy of Flickr/summerfairy