Archive for the ‘Alumni stories from the field’ Category

Bertrand Guillotin ’97 shared this great picture of his rising T-bird Sébastien “Sébi,” age 7, with us.

This picture was taken during Sébi’s first day at Wiley International in Raleigh, North Carolina. For the past four years, Sébi has studied French and will soon start learning Japanese or Chinese.

“Thunderbird changed our lives forever,” Guillotin said. “And we’re very proud to have a rising T-bird at home.”

Thunderbird would like to thank Guillotin for sharing this great photo with us. We are proud to call you one of our alumni and we look forward to meeting your future T-bird!

Do you have a photo to share? Send it to alumni@thunderbird.edu

T-bird alumnus Randy Jackson ’97 recently shared these great photos from Saudi Arabia.

Jackson works for Saudi Aramco and lives in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. He is enjoying life in the Arabian Peninsula.

“The oil industry is demanding, but being able to have the opportunity to understand the positive impact this industry has on the Kingdom and global economy makes this role a great opportunity and adventure,” Jackson said. “It’s much more than just a job.”

Photos from top left: An old truck Jackson fixed up, the way it looks when the wind blows, Jackson and his wife at the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi and at Shaybah in the Empty Quarter.

By Virginia Mungovan

Executive MBA graduate Page Gray ’09 has always loved motorcycles. Now, as Americas Motorcycle Market Space Manager for BP’s Castrol brand, Gray is living his dream.

“I’m the guy who’s been riding a motorcycle since I was 10 and owns three today,” Gray said. “I have been able to tie my passion, education and experience together.” 

As Gray analyzes trends in the motorcycle industry, he looks for innovations that will give BP an edge.

“You innovate by truly understanding what the market needs are — what the customer and consumer needs are,” he said. “It’s gaining that piece of insight to know that person better than they know themselves.”

Determination also has fueled Gray’s career. “I literally started off as a janitor,” he said. “I’m the guy who worked for 13 years while putting myself through college for an undergraduate degree.”

After earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting, Gray worked his way up through several companies until BP hired him in 2005 to manage the U.S. heavy duty markets. After a few years, Gray decided to pursue an MBA in hopes of furthering his career. Where the degree came from didn’t matter to Gray at first, but he soon changed his mind.

During the week, Gray worked out of BP’s New Jersey office, but he called Phoenix home on the weekends. His frequent flying often got him bumped to first class, and conversations with fellow passengers helped him to realize that not all MBA’s were created equal.

“People who were middle or lower managers didn’t know about Thunderbird,” Gray said. “But all of the upper managers and C-suite people did. I asked myself, ‘Where do I want to be?’”

Gray enrolled in Thunderbird’s Executive MBA program, which allowed him to work during the week and take classes on alternating weekends. After graduation he interviewed at BP to become the Motorcycle Market Manager for Latin America.

“I would definitely say that my Thunderbird degree was a clear contributor to getting my job in Latin America,” Gray said. “My interviewer’s first words were something like, ‘Congratulations on attaining your MBA from Thunderbird.’”

By Virginia Mungovan

As Dow Chemical’s manager of innovation and new business development of Latin America, Charly Eid ’05 is getting noticed. In March 2012, news site CNN Expansion recognized this Thunderbird School of Global Management graduate as one Mexico’s “30 Promising Business Leaders in their 30s,” saying his alternative energy initiatives will generate $100 million by 2014.

Eid said people looking at his background might question how he fits into his current position. “I’m an IT guy by background. Not chemical. Not an engineer. But I am here to innovate,” Eid said. “For innovation, you only have to connect with the right people. We always think that it comes from a great idea, but if you don’t connect with someone, it doesn’t happen. My job is managing the collaboration.”

Eid is currently managing a project to build the first solar thermal plant in Latin America. As a Mexico native, Eid believes in what his company is doing for the region. “We are taking care of the community through our efforts in sustainability,” Eid said.

He speaks passionately about the potential for good that he can do within Dow. “Many people in Mexico don’t have clean water,” he said, “but our technologies are being implemented in order to bring clean water to our country.”

Passion is what drives Eid. “I have passion for my life,” he said. “When I was at Thunderbird, I had passion for that. I am passionate about my work. I am passionate about everything that I do.”

That includes his role on the board of Dow’s Disability Employee Network. “It’s not a charity thing,” he said. “It’s trying to give skilled and talented people with disabilities the same opportunities as everyone else.”

The topic of disability hits close to home for Eid. One of his best friends had an accident that caused her to lose motor skills. “She lives in Lebanon,” Eid said. “But for me it’s a way to show her I care about making a better world for her.”

Eid met his wife, Ingrid Gonzalez ’05, when they were classmates in the Global MBA for Latin American Managers program, a dual-degree program with Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico. Eid had intended to leave Mexico for his MBA, but after receiving a promotion at his former job, he also wanted to keep working. The distance-learning program, which uses live satellite technology, allowed him to do both and gave him the international education he was looking for.

“That program opens you up to the rest of the world,” he said. “It puts countries together to talk about problems. It gives you a global mindset.”

Photo: Lea Ellermeier Nesbit is in the middle

By Virginia Mungovan

When Lea Ellermeier Nesbit ’94 saw a news report that technology giant 3M had bought a dental company for $97 million, she knew the time was right to sell her startup. Nesbit and her partner had launched Lingualcare in 2003 with no money or customers, but after four years their customized orthodontic braces had successfully gone from concept to reality.

The product was unique because it was 100 percent customized, making it easier for orthodontists to place it on the back side of the teeth, completely hidden from view. Lingualcare was not only manufacturing and selling these braces, the company held several patents related to the dental technology.

Nesbit knew she had a valuable product, but she didn’t wait for 3M to approach her. Instead she tracked down the investment banker who made the $97 million deal and hired him to help sell her company. 3M presented a cash offer for Lingualcare in 2007, and Nesbit and her partner decided to sell.

Getting to that point was not easy, though. “I didn’t get here on the straight path, that’s for sure,” laughed Nesbit, a Nebraska native.

Her father died when she was young, and Nesbit became estranged from her mother and left home at age 16. After that, Nesbit was left to her own devices.

“I dropped out of high school,” she said. “I had to. I needed to get a job.” While working, Nesbit earned her GED and even attempted college at the age of 17. “College didn’t go well,” she said. “I came back to work as a short order cook for a hotel in the morning and I sold shoes in the afternoon.”

But Nesbit did not believe this was all life had for her. “I decided I was meant for more,” she explained. At 19 years old, Nesbit took another try at college and never looked back – earning her bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at El Paso and her MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management.

“Coming out of Thunderbird I was changed. Thunderbird made the world a smaller place for me. I wasn’t afraid of not being able to figure it out,” Nesbit said. “You realize it’s just about people and those people have the same hopes and dreams and fears that you have.”
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Three T-birds recently found themselves together in Monterrey, Mexico during a business meeting to discuss process automation and paperless business.

Garth Knudson ’99 – who shared this great photo with us – has been working for the past four years in international sales for HandySoft, a software and solutions vendor based in Washington D.C. One of his roles is to develop partnerships in Latin America, so he has been working with T-bird Enrique Vignau ’00 (2nd from left) since 2010.  Most recently, he met Ruben Dario Trevino Gonzalez ’00 (on right).

Thank you T-birds for sharing this photo with us! Have a photo to share? E-mail alumni@thunderbird.edu

Siobhan MacDermott ’05, Chief IR and Policy Officer for AVG Technologies in the Netherlands, rang the opening bell in the New York Stock Exchange when the company went public on Feb. 2, 2012. 

MacDermott, who is pictured in the front wearing pink, shared this great photo with us.

Congratulations to MacDermott and AVG Technologies!

Share your news and photos at alumni@thunderbird.edu

This note comes from Gary Miller, T-bird alumnus class of 1973.

“We had a good group of friends in school and nothing has changed. Constantine Theodorou flew in from Athens, Greece, while all else flew in from around the USA.

We all enjoyed getting caught up and plan on seeing each other annually. In the photos are Constantine Theodorou, Gary Miller, Jimmy Sanchez,Norm Gottlieb, Peter Wallin, Bob Lautz, Baxter Urist and Santiago Hinohosa.”

Thanks for sharing Gary! Want to share your alumni stories? Email Alumni@Thunderbird.edu

From left to right: Salmon Rabie, Marty Mohn Brady, Ken Paley, Shirin McElhinney Borrett, Nelle Newton Placek, Lisa Hamilton Youngdahl and Laurie Krieger Kohl.

Seven T-birds from the Class of 1977 recently reunited in Aspen, Colorado after 34 years.

The group had a great visit sharing stories of their children and world travels.

A special thank you to Marty Brady ‘77 for sharing this special picture with Thunderbird!  Have you gathered with T-birds lately? Share your photos with us at alumni@thunderbird.edu

In photo: Front Row (left to right) Lorrain McCord ‘97, Mortada Mohamed ‘81, George Hiller ‘72 & Richmond Chapter Leader, Eugenio Reyes ‘92.
Back Row (left to right) Elizabeth Glynn ‘85, Kelly Fish ‘90, Barney Lehrer ‘89 Not pictured: Kelly Murphey ‘88

Eight T-birds recently discovered that they had more than their Alma Maters in common.  They also serve on the same board.

The National Association of Small Business International Trade Educators (NASBITE) has a total of 24 members on its International Board of Governors and eight of them are T-birds.

At a recent Board of Governors meeting in Charleston, South Carolina, the group gathered from across the U.S. and Mexico to further their organization’s mission of advancing global business practice, education and training.

Elizabeth Glynn ’85, Export Advisor/Global Trade Educator of EMG Global Business Solutions took the time to share this great photo with Thunderbird.

Thank you Elizabeth! If you have recent photos with fellow T-birds to share, please send to alumni@thunderbird.edu.