Today was our first day of class, after countless introductions and welcomes and congratulations in accents from around the globe. Today we sat in a room, looked at a balance sheet, talked about a disintegrating company, and discussed how one attempts to solve problems of high complexity.
Our professor, Gareth Dyas, is spectacular. He has taught Introduction to General Management for years, decades even, and he has the comfortable manner that allows him to meander, joke, and still get his point across. He was clearly treating us with kid gloves today, but I don't get the feeling that people get grilled à la The Paper Chase. This is only business school, after all.
We followed a case about the sale of a Swedish dressmaking concern in 1967. For many people, it was the first time they had ever read a case, so it was as much about showing how to read a case as actually analyzing this particular one. Luckily for me, one of my friends wrote business school cases for Harvard for a year, so I am familiar with the process (though not the content!). The case is a 20-minute read, but each time you read it, you recognize something new and different. I believe that you could read it fifty times and still be learning, which is one of the points that Professor Dyas made. He reminded us that in the real world, time is the limiting factor on most management; at some point, you must recognize when you have done enough work, and get on to making decisions.
He also said something very interesting about the MBA degree. He said that the MBA does not make you a better manager, but it does open many opportunities for ambitious people in search of them. I hadn't heard it put quite that way before, but it does make some sense.
This might be a good time to speak about the January 2003 Promotion at Insead. We are about 400 bright, motivated people, who all have successful careers, have worked outside their home country, and speak several languages. It's pretty intimidating, but you have to remember that you are there too, which means that you have something to offer. It also wreaks havoc with one's social standing, as most of these people are likely the smartest and most successful person in their social circles, and here you are suddenly reduced to saying, "Well, I only speak two languages, and I have only managed 15 people at once." Perhaps I am lucky, as I had this exact experience in the 7th grade, when I attended a summer program at The Johns Hopkins University's Center for Talented Youth. Several hundred really smart 12-year olds running around a college campus, learning math. None of whom had ever met anyone even as remotely smart as they were, and now they were merely average. Merely average; a dime a dozen. Half the kids were below average! Talk about a learning experience; the math I learned that summer was not the most important lesson to stay with me.
So far, I have met many fascinating people, who I hope to get to know better over the coming months. By and large, most people are really friendly, and just so thrilled to be here. Of course there are the McKinsey consultants, who are a bit standoffish and act like they are just doing this because they have to; you can tell that they're just not that hungry. But really, most people are open and friendly and kind.
I met my group today, with whom I will be spending significant amounts of time over the next four months. Insead tries to construct groups that will maximize diversity, and thus give the best chance of producing severe dysfunction under duress. Or even without any stress at all! As Dyas said, it's not too difficult for six French engineers to agree on something. My group, like all the others, is a bit different: one Panamanian, one Russian, one Japanese, one Turk, one Portuguese, and one American. Four men, two women. Bring on the dysfunction!
Time to sleep; tomorrow morning brings the exemption exams. I'll be taking the test for Prices & Markets, and will let you know how it goes tomorrow.
12:06:00 AM 
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