Speed networking pairs alumni, students

Key points:

• The University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business held its first Executive Connections, a speed networking event that brought 24 alumni executives to campus to meet MBA and Specialized Master’s students.
• Students rotated through 12 five-minute conversations with alumni in real estate, entrepreneurship and leadership roles, a format designed to take the nerves out of networking.
• Every participant said they would take part again, and one MBA student called the evening “one of the highlights of my MBA experience.”

Drew Mitchell (MBA ’08, BBA ’01) rarely needed more than a minute to find common ground with students who sat down at his table during Executive Connections, the inaugural speed networking event for graduate business students and alumni hosted by the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business.

He and Margaret “Meg” Simon (MSM ’27) discovered that her father’s best man was one of Mitchell’s high school friends. Hayden Mascarenhas (MSF ’27, BA ’23) and Mitchell learned they were both ballroom dancers and couldn’t resist showing off a few steps before getting down to business.

“Small world, lots of laughs, and then, right on cue, the bell cuts the conversation off, often mid-sentence,” said Mitchell, partner and senior vice president of development at the Chicagoland office of Holladay Properties.

Mitchell was one of 24 alumni executives and business leaders who returned to campus to meet students in Mendoza’s MBA and Specialized Master’s Programs. The event was built to connect alumni and students through meaningful one-on-one conversations and give students direct access to senior leaders and their insight into leadership, innovation and career strategy.

Spanning industries, functions and career stages, the executives sat in three groups — real estate and investments, innovation and entrepreneurship, and leadership and operations — while students rotated through 12 five-minute conversations. The quick rounds were designed to take the nerves out of networking, and a reception afterward gave students time to pick up where the bell left off or make new connections.

“It was the kind of event that pays off for everyone in the room,” Mitchell said. “Students get real access and practice. Alumni get an efficient, structured way to give back — and, as a bonus, get to reconnect with each other. And for Mendoza, it’s a visible, differentiated program that builds exactly the kind of relationship-driven culture the College wants to be known for.”

 

Proof of Concept

Christina Frank-Lieberg, director of external engagement at Mendoza, designed the first Executive Connections as a pilot. Alumni want more time with students, and students want more time with alumni, but finding that time can prove challenging. “Everyone wants student engagement, but we’re limited by constraints of the calendar year, the recruiting intensity, and the class schedule,” she said.

Her answer was a single evening built for efficiency. Frank-Lieberg recruited alumni across industries, companies and career stages, and both sides came prepared. Executives received student résumés in advance, and students received executive bios. She deliberately kept every conversation short.

“You’re only going to be so awkward and uncomfortable for five minutes,” she said.

While student applicants far exceeded the intentionally small number of spots, every applicant was invited to the networking reception, where Frank-Lieberg said students received a “front row seat to the Notre Dame network.”

The pilot passed its test, and another is already in development. “One hundred percent of participants on both sides said they would do this again,” she said.

Mitchell is among them. “I’d encourage making it an annual tradition, or even twice a year if logistics allow, because the format clearly works,” he said. “For me, this was a reminder of how connected and generous this alumni network still is.”

He also met alum Peter Rienks (EMBA ’16), president of The Rienks Group in South Bend. The two knew of each other but had never exchanged numbers. Mitchell invited Rienks to a networking event in Chicago the following week, which he called “exactly the kind of lasting connection this format is built to produce.”

 

From the Other Side

Three years ago, Nadine Hashem (MBA ’23) would have been on the students’ side of the table. A first-generation Notre Dame MBA graduate from an immigrant family, she started her career in pharmaceuticals. Today, Hashem serves as a group product manager at Capital One in New York, where she leads a team in building a digital platform that helps customers facing financial hardship access debt settlement plans and work toward financial health.

Each conversation at her table took a different turn.

“With one student, we chatted about how we both are running a marathon this year, while with another student, we spoke about their internship in the pharmaceutical industry, and I shared my lessons learned from my time in the industry,” she said.

Other students asked how she navigated career ascension across industries, how AI is changing the role of a product manager, and “perhaps the question that comes up most often for graduate students: how does one know if they are making the ‘right’ career decision after business school?”

Across conversations, however, she noticed a pattern. Irrespective of their industry or function, students place heavy emphasis on picking a career that aligns with what they’re passionate about “rather than the most glamorous gig,” she said.

It’s an insight she’s taking back to her own team.

“Professionals were able to get a lens into what the next generation values and looks for in a career, which is beneficial for consideration in our day-to-day leadership,” she said. “This was a really fruitful event for students who wanted to sharpen their networking skills and ask the vulnerable questions about life after ND.”

In Their Own Words

Students left with a wider view of what’s possible and a clearer sense of how strong and supportive the Notre Dame alumni community can be.

For Simon, the best-man discovery was a lesson in itself. “You can meet someone for the first time and unknowingly already have a connection,” she said. “It showed me how many different ways people are connected through Notre Dame.”

Sia-Linda Lebbie (MBA ’27) was struck by the range of career paths in the room. “I had the opportunity to meet alums from a variety of Mendoza programs who have started their own business, become leaders within their companies and genuinely have great advice on how to navigate the business world,” she said.

The value went far beyond the five-minute conversations, said Diana Stephanie Lara (MBA ’27). “Executive speed networking is one of the highlights of my MBA experience. The alumni were ready to listen, provide feedback and, most importantly, offer their personal support to connect us with resources or opportunities that would take us closer to our goals and expand our network.”

Mascarenhas saw generosity firsthand from every executive alum he met.

Joe Gavigan (BBA in Accountancy ’94), director at the Orlando, Fla., offices of Alvarez & Marsal, walked Mascarenhas through his consulting work. “He even offered to connect me with other people at the firm. I was genuinely touched by how willing he was to help and make a difference for me after just one brief interaction,” Mascarenhas said. “It was a great reminder of how generous and supportive the Notre Dame network can be.”

Mascarenhas started feeling run-down from his recent exams when he sat across from Mitchell. A minute out of their seats, each showing off his dance moves, put the former Ballroom Dance Club president right at ease.

“That moment really stuck with me. Not only did it wake me up and brighten my day, but it also reminded me that even incredibly successful leaders are real people with their own hobbies, passions and personalities. You can be an accomplished executive and still be lighthearted, funny and genuinely yourself,” Mascarenhas said.

“The experience also encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone, approach people with confidence, and be unapologetically myself,” he said. “Sometimes, the most memorable connections happen when you stop overthinking and simply embrace the moment.”

Mascarenhas hopes other students will give speed networking a try.

“You never know who you might meet, what you might learn, or what unexpected connection you might make,” he said. “Who knows? You might even end up ballroom dancing with an executive.”