When she attended the Program for Leadership Development (PLD) at Harvard Business School (HBS), Christy Rutherford was just starting her executive education experience. She was determined to apply her military leadership skills, which she acquired as a U.S. Coast Guard officer, to the civilian sector. But she knew she had to continue fine-tuning these skills. With this challenge in mind, she recently attended two more programs—Launching New Ventures (LNV) and Foundations of Private Equity and Venture Capital (PEVCF). In this interview, she shares how these learning experiences have broadened her mind, her network, and her leadership potential.
Entrepreneurship is a long, tough, never-ending journey. What can you learn? How can you fail? What can you achieve? The Launching New Ventures program interested me because I had already gained broad leadership skills at PLD. Prior to that experience, I realized I didn't have a good business vocabulary because I came from a military background. The culture and language are different, so I needed to close the knowledge gap if I wanted to be successful in this new world. PLD helped me articulate my value to organizations through my leadership development company, but I wanted to expand my knowledge since I eventually want to launch another company. I attended these programs to gain the insight necessary to get that business off the ground and potentially find PE/VC funding.
First, Professor Lynda Applegate is brilliant. She taught a case study on Amazon, and her insights were invaluable because she went step-by-step through the company's entry product and how it expanded into additional product lines. The programs helped me fine-tune the language to communicate what I do in a way that people understand in a short period of time. That has been a key benefit. By demonstrating this knowledge, I am more able to convince partners and financiers to work with me. By the end of the program, I was voted the Launching New Ventures Pitch Contest Grand Master Champion by the other participants, who represented more than 30 countries. The fact that my business presentation was selected as the winner clearly indicated to me that the desire to change lives through business crosses cultures and borders. Accomplishing that feat made all the hard work worth the effort.
PLD taught me how leaders can both influence a company’s success and lead it to bankruptcy. I also explored how I should approach my current business, why culture is important, how to manage change, and how large companies grow exponentially and fail. Great leaders are necessary in every company around the world, small and large. Building on this, Launching New Ventures helped me see these things through an entrepreneurial lens to learn how to grow a business to be the next Bausch & Lomb or Amazon. I learned how these companies got started, the initial struggles, and what strategies they applied. LNV was all about strategy, preparation, and keeping an eye on the business while adjusting to changes in the market. The Blue Mercury case study taught me to keep my eyes open to changing global trends and fight for what my particular business needs rather than follow the crowd.
No, the benefits of this program go beyond just entrepreneurs. I attended Foundations of Private Equity and Venture Capital because I understand that media drives perception. The media can make it seem like venture capital money is easy to get, and every company is being funded. But that perception is not the reality. Being in the room with venture capitalists and private equity contributors was challenging initially because I didn't understand all of the terms. However, I felt it was important to take the time to acknowledge what I didn't know and learn as much as I could. PEVCF gives participants the baseline knowledge to be able to ask smart questions and relate to some of the information. It provides a depth of knowledge for beginners, business owners, and even employees and leaders. Everyone can learn something from this program.
It would have been far more challenging to learn these insights on my own. For me, there was no better place to learn than HBS, where I knew I would be exposed to world-class leaders, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and private equity professionals from around the world. Being around such a diverse group shortened the learning curve and streamlined the process, so I was able to grasp the content faster. To me, immersion was critical because it forced me to fully invest myself in the experience, and HBS is a great place to continue to build relationships and network with other leaders from around the world.
It was the total experience. I appreciated the networking opportunities because I love talking to people, and it was eye opening to discover that I shared many values with the other participants. As ambitious leaders, we want to continue to improve professionally and personally, so HBS is a great opportunity to be around like-minded people. I also enjoyed learning what I didn't know, getting an expanded view of the world, and finding answers to questions that were important to me. What challenges do corporations have? What challenges do young entrepreneurs have? What challenges do long-established companies have? What can leaders do to keep a company profitable? How are they managing change? What can they do to ensure a culture of innovation and high performance? This expanded view continues to build my awareness about the performance and commonalities of great leaders, and it allows me to share that insight with others.
I'm learning to smell the roses and enjoy life along the way. As a leader and entrepreneur, I'm always looking to see what problem I can solve and how I can add value to leaders and organizations around the world. I'm living my greatest life now and giving all that I have in a strategically planned manner, while leaving the door open for magic to happen. I will continue to create and expand businesses that will play a major part in making the world a better place through giving leaders the tools they need to be the greatest version of themselves—inspiring leaders to be better leaders as well as better people. HBS has played a key part in who I am, where I'm going, what I'm doing, and how I'm able to build relationships along the way. The impact has been tremendous. The journey of entrepreneurship, self-improvement, and inspiring people has been more rewarding than I could have ever imagined.
I encourage people who can't decide what's next for them, who feel stuck or stagnant, to dare to become greater. It's never too late to be all that you were meant to be in this world, so don't be afraid to pivot in your career and stretch yourself by doing something different. Dream bigger and believe that you can get into Harvard and learn from world-class professors and build an international network. You can accomplish everything that you're meant to do in this world if you dare to believe that you deserve it. Nothing is impossible for someone who won't give up.
