MBA Graduation Speech

From Graduation Day 11.07.2008

Magandang Hapon sa inyong lahat!

Before anything else, let me say thank you to the wonderful people who helped me put this together. You know who you are.

I am here before you today/ to talk about how GISMA life was/ for us MBA graduates of 2008 --- not only to celebrate what we achieved this past year, but also to share the experience with our beloved families, friends, professors and guests who are here with us!  I will also talk about our hopes for the future.

Let me start by telling you a little bit more about myself. Yes, I am from the island nation, the Phillipines, and just like one of our professors, I am a farm person. A farm girl to be exact – and mighty proud to be one! Because of my provincial roots, I like simple... you know, simple things, simple joys! Therefore, much of what I am going to say today will be focused on the simplest of things.

Eleven months ago, this simple farm girl entered the GISMA rotunde with 48 other students from 21 different nations, with bright-eyed MBA’s-to-be who are sons and daughters of Teachers, Engineers, Entrepreneurs, Executives, Doctors, Lawyers and Farmers, each one bringing with him or her a different reality and each one pursuing a different dream. It was an exciting time, especially for a farm girl! The prospect of getting a Purdue MBA here in Germany, working with classmates from different cultures, and realizing a life-long dream was indeed exhilarating!

But after spending some time in cloud 9, GISMA brought us back down to reality rather quickly. And boy, it was a tough reality. We had to adjust to Accounting and Quant, bizarre German laws, unpredictable Hannover weather, and a few interesting things that our classmates do – like: Akobir’s 10-minute questions, Satish’s numerous doubts and Galina’s obsession with Future Value tables. But, we came through – no big deal. A little bit shaken but okay.

We were told that things will get better in the second module... but man, it never did! In the months that followed, we were continually pushed to our limits by Finance professors, mindboggling schedules, late-night team meetings and endless case-studies and forum days!

And just when we figured-out how to deal with the pressures of academics, GISMA life threw-in a few more stuff in the mix. And these were the heavy stuff man – these were everything that we needed to do to get a job. These were career fairs, job interviews, and checking emails a million times a day... Just like what Goethe said, it was full of joy and sorrow. Those job offers that we got and will get soon, involved a lot, and I mean, a lot of hard work. But then again, we came through. Shaken quite a bit, but alive and well!

But, to be really honest, the GISMA MBA experience was not all about work. Of course not – how can it be all about work when there were plenty of German beers to drink in parties, Biergardens and picnics! Besides that, there were plenty more crazy stuff to do like pole dancing or singing songs of the Backstreet Boys in karaoke night! The latest crazy event was this kissing festival at Beatrice’s birthday party! I wonder what Beatrice’s friends think of GISMA right now.... Of course we try to balance all the crazy stuff that we do with sports like fussball or badminton, tennis, and even golf (for the guys who went to Krannert). And those module breaks? – well a lot of those were spent traveling to marvelous places around Europe like Hamburg, Munich, Prague, Barcelona, Roma, and the all-time favorite (ahem) Amsterdam!  So, over-all, it was a blast!

Now, some of us will forget CAP-M pretty soon, but I bet no one, and I say, no one, will ever forget the friends we made in this program. These are friends who laughed with us, walked to MHH with us and endured hardships with us. These are friends who made us see how we can be stubborn or grumpy sometimes, and friends who told us the very things that we NEEDED (not wanted, but needed) to hear. These are our friends who, in their unique ways, helped us become better persons. We all know that it will be quite a challenge to stay in touch as we go off to different places to live our dreams – but I am sure that the next time we find ourselves in the same biergarden, it will be as if, not a single day had passed.

Let me switch gears a little bit by talking about our hopes for the future. As MBA graduates, we surely have this ambition to do something worthwhile – we want to contribute...to make our mark --- so we are able to do mundane things like paying off our MBA loans or buying that apartment or BMW that we have been dreaming of in the past few months. I have no doubt that we will do great in our careers – some of us will fly high and some will be cruising! In a few years time, it is possible though, that we find ourselves working much harder to get a better car or a bigger apartment ---  so much so that we may forget what really matters. But I think this group knows that it is important to take caution when we hit this road. We know that we have to focus on what is really of value. And to me, that is keeping a healthy & balanced life, taking care of my family, and giving back to my community.

Now, I cannot speak for everyone in this respect. This group is so diverse that each one of us has a different view of what is important. But Iet me take the time to explain to you what I mean about “giving back”.

Have you ever heard of the line that said – “To whom much is given, much is expected.”?  My interpretation to that is – if God / Allah / Shiva or some powerful entity have bestowed upon us high levels of intelligence, extraordinary talents, smashing good looks and scholarships (big or small) through the GISMA Foundation & partner companies, it is our duty to do something good out of them. Now, our Purdue MBA will take us far. It will allow us to provide a good life for our families. But I honestly believe we have the capability to go beyond that ---  we - can do more!

For me, “doing more” is defined as “helping other Filipinos get better lives”. The moment I find myself earning more than I needed to take care of my family, it is my goal to set-up a business (hopefully one that would last a hundred years just like German companies), that will employ generations of Filipinos so they can provide for their families; with the hope, that they in turn can help other people. This is my personal vision statement. With a Purdue MBA, I believe I will be able to realize this vision sooner. But, this is just me.

Based on what I had seen this past year, there is no doubt in my mind that this MBA Class of 2008 can come-up with much bigger and much better ways to give something back to our communities – wherever in the world that might be!

I am sooo proud to be part of this class!

Ich wünsche euch alles Gute für eure Zukunft!

Maraming Salamat!