Wendy Koh leads go-to-market strategy and business development for Juniper Networks, where she partners with functional leaders across the organization to translate strategies into operational plans. In the General Management Program (GMP) at Harvard Business School (HBS), she gained career-changing perspective and leadership skills that will make her a more effective leader.
I believe learning is a continuous journey. I chose GMP because I know that the skills that got me to where I am today will not be enough to get me to where I want to be next. I hoped to broaden my horizons, gain new insights, have opportunities to practice new thinking, and test my mindset for becoming a well-rounded leader.
I believe that GMP will help me in my quest for knowledge and enable me to meet my career aspirations.
My role requires me to make strategic inferences as I work with different functional leaders to translate strategies so they can be understood by individuals in the organization, regardless of what role they're in. As a participative leader, I believe that when a company achieves a result, it's always the work of a team. I emphasize building a trusted environment, ensuring each team member gets a chance to excel, and delegating with the expectation of results. GMP taught me that no one leadership style is the style for success. The key to success is flexibility in applying different styles. The learning, networking, and exposure I experienced at GMP will make me a more effective leader.
The advantages of off-campus learning are twofold. First, the off-campus modules allowed me to spend time with my family, didn’t disrupt my work schedules, and left time for my social and volunteer responsibilities. On top of that, they enabled me to work at my own pace. The on- campus modules gave me the opportunity to discuss the topics, network, and get to know many people. Together, the balance is fantastic. It helps you maintain the energy level and momentum so you stay motivated.
The knowledge I gained from the cases will last a lifetime. Case study scenarios are so effective because they cover real companies in real situations and give you an opportunity to test problem-solving and decision-making skills through the various role plays. The cases also demonstrate how companies made up of ordinary people are able to deliver extraordinary results. I'm sure there will be instances in my career when a situation will arise and I'll be able to apply something I learned from the case studies.
One of the most memorable moments was on the first day of Module 2 when faculty chair Sunil Gupta welcomed all the participants to campus. That was quite a defining moment—seeing all the participants and leaders from all over the world gathering in one location to learn and network. I am confident that we will continue to reach out to one another to learn and seek advice. We are building sustainable relationships based on treating each other with respect, kindness, and regard.
Living groups made the learning very insightful and exciting because we all had very, very different experience. HBS deliberately brings diversity into the living groups, which is really fantastic. Our eight-person living group included individuals who came from different industries, functions, countries, and cultures: the CEO of a bank from Czech Republic, a chief HR officer in the food/beverage industry from Spain, the managing director of retail food chains in South Africa, a business leader in financial services from Adelaide, the COO of a university from San Francisco, a leader of financial risk management from Saudi Arabia, the head of procurement of one of the largest consumer packaged goods producers in Mexico, and me—with many years of sales leadership and Asia Pacific experience in the telecommunication industry from Singapore. While we are all successful in our own ways, we came to the program with the same desire to share and learn from one another. The friendship and vast knowledge we have gained from one another is something I certainly value a lot. The living group experience is one of the memorable moments in my life.
The professors are uniquely different in drawing in the participants and drawing out the main points.
The GMP professors are very passionate, energetic and committed to the participants. The success of the case studies, for example, is largely due to the professors' ability to get the participants really engaged in insightful and intelligent discussions. You feel connected and captivated because of how they draw you out of your comfort zone to participate in the larger discussion. I always looked forward to class because you never knew what to expect next.
Professor Linda Hill emphasized the importance of building effective networks and having people inside and outside your organization who can help you not only in getting the work done today, but also in achieving your career aspiration. That was the moment when I realized that I should be investing more time in building my networks.
Beyond all the knowledge that you learn from your own experience and from others' experiences that were covered in the case studies, personal development is another important learning for me.
I really appreciated the intentional focus on developing participants as individuals, particularly helping us to develop our cultural, emotional, and social intelligence competencies. The Leading with Presence program helped us to gain valuable self-awareness about our own unique presence, and through experiential exercises, feedback, and coaching, helped us increase our leadership presence.
Reading the website gives you an understanding of how comprehensive the program is, but it doesn't prepare you for the wonderful experience you're going to go through. It's a journey full of aha moments as you learn from the professors and the participants. There are many opportunities for networking through the various events organized by HBS and the interpersonal experience. The people side of the GMP experience is something that I didn't expect to be so powerful.
