The four at the Red Ants Pants festival
A thought struck four first-year students of Harvard Business School last November, as they discussed summer internship possibilities: Why not leave the beaten path of working with a high-profile company and actually set out on a learning adventure?
They gave it a thought and six months later embarked on a 60-day and 6000-mile journey. An exploration to study entrepreneurs in the little known corners of the country and see innovations for real. Their journey, or rather movement called MBAs Across America, has already got the MBA community abuzz. The four – Amaris Singer, Hicham Mhammedi Alaoui, Casey Gerald, Mike Baker were not bosom pals before, but now realise they share a common goal – that experience is not about big money, just big learning. Today, they are in Las Vegas exactly half way through their expedition. They move to Albuquerque (New Mexico), New Orleans (Louisiana), Asheville (North Carolina), and Washington DC. PaGaLGuY spoke to Hicham who says the final aim of the group is to build a network to support entrepreneurial ecosystems for today’s and future MBA students.
Mike and Hicham at a local cafe near White Sulphur Springs
The four come from diverse professional backgrounds (tech, retail, and marketing economic policy) and family backgrounds too. Of the four, Hicham spent several months in India when he worked at Google Asia-Pacific, based out of Gurgaon, Mumbai, and Bangalore. “We see this summer as much more than a road trip; we see it was a call to action for our generation of MBAs.” said Hicham.
Their experiences have been loaded. For their first stop, the team worked with Detroit’s Social Club Grooming Company that has given hair cutting a brand new spin. In Montana, they got together with Sarah Calhoun, founder of the Red Ants Pants company which makes work wear for women as well as the Red Ants Pants Music Festival. “What we saw was that this community has turned a lonely cow pasture into an unforgettable music festival and celebration of women leaders, working family farms, and rural communities. Now that is one powerful community,” said Mike. In Boulder, they came in touch with the MADE Movement, an advertising agency that is dedicated to supporting resurgence in American manufacturing. “These guys left what are considered ideal jobs at a good advertising agency to create a venture they were passionate about,” Hicham cited another example.
Amaris basking in rustic delights with the Red Ants Pants guys
The journey of course did not happen for free. The team raised $15,000 through a crowd funding campaign as well as a sponsorship by Four Points by Sheraton which has agreed to sponsor their housing for the summer. The team invites PaGaLGuY readers to join the movement by liking them on Facebook (www.facebook.com/mbaxamerica), following their blog (mbaxamerica.tumblr.com), or reaching out at [email protected]. Besides hoping that their cars don’t give away for the next four weeks, the four are looking at few creature comforts. Together, the travelers want to write a different story about the business future: one where dreamers, doers, and purpose-driven MBAs come together to make their local communities stronger.
L to R: Amaris, Mike, Hicham and Casey at Made