How networking is a gateway to discovery

MaryBeth Carson ’24 Two-Year MBA arrived at Kellogg desiring a career change. Having originally graduated from the University of Norte Dame with a chemical engineering degree, Carson is now applying her affinity for numbers in another capacity — thanks to her decision to attend the Women in Finance Dinner as a first-year student.  

Her experience as an event attendee had such a positive impact on her that she decided to co-chair the event the second time around. She shares why she decided to take on a leadership role for the annual event focus on connecting and empowering women in finance and some memorable moments spearheading the effort as well as how she hopes to continue supporting the women’s network upon graduation. 

You’re nearing the final stretch of your time at Kellogg. In a few words or phrases, how would you describe your experience? 

Indescribable. I was excited to come to Kellogg to pivot my career, but what has truly surprised me has been the vibrant community here. I am beyond impressed with the people and friends that I have met at Kellogg who have enriched my time here in classes, clubs and everyday interactions.  

Meeting classmates with the ambition to dive into new career fields, and others who strive to extend their impact in an existing field has been inspiring.  It is a highlight of my Kellogg experience as I know these are friendships that will only deepen over time. 

What motivated you to help organize this year’s Women in Finance dinner? 

Coming into Kellogg, I knew there would be several career options to explore once I graduated, and attending the Women in Finance Dinner last year helped solidify my decision to pursue an internship, and ultimately a career, in finance. Meeting so many incredible female alumnae and students who were also excited about opportunities in finance was an unexpected highlight of the fall quarter for me last year.  

Since this dinner was pivotal for me as a first-year student, I was excited to help plan it as I entered my second year of my MBA.  I wanted to expand the size of the dinner so more students and alumni could attend and allow students to meet several of the amazing alumnae Kellogg has who are excited to continually engage with students.  

Collaboration is at the heart of the culture at Kellogg. What was it like working with your peers Devina Jonathan and Abbey Schmitt on one of the school’s most transformative events for its community? 

I am lucky to be such good friends with both Devina and Abbey, so it was fun to plan an event with two close friends at Kellogg, who also are excited about moving into finance upon graduation. Working over the summer on logistics was difficult with the three of us in three different time zones and over the course of busy internships, but having a strong foundational friendship and commitment to the event was key.   

We had several ideas to change from last year, such as having two featured alumnae as a fireside chat (Kelly Galanis and Jalak Jobanputra) moderated by an alumna and professor here (Karin O’Connor), a dessert networking buffet and the ability to increase the size of our event by increasing the number of our corporate sponsorships.  Having three of us work on the event together allowed us to divide and conquer alumnae outreach, coordinating with sponsors and working with our fantastic logistics and corporate sponsorship team here at Kellogg (a special shoutout to Jennifer Johnson!).  It was a very memorable leadership opportunity here at Kellogg.  

Looking back, what is one you learned as a co-chair that you feel translates into a lifelong lesson or that applies to leading teams? 

One of the most valuable takeaways for me from serving as a co-chair was the tangible benefits of networking.  I met Kelly Galanis, one of our keynotes, from my summer internship and through staying in touch, asked her to come share her perspectives at the dinner. Additionally, extending invitations to other alumnae in finance for our event put me in touch with an outstanding network within the broader Kellogg alumni network. Exchanging stories with Kelly and the other women to hear their perspectives and understand various career paths at this stage of my Kellogg journey is exciting for me because I have increased knowledge of the ways women can be more involved in finance fields.  

If I was not a co-chair, it would have been much more difficult for me to develop these connections with the alumnae because of the lack of touchpoint opportunities. As co-chair, I had consistent conversations with them for one reason or another (e.g. explaining the dinner’s purpose, answering questions, exchanging ideas).  There were many alumnae who, unfortunately, were unable to attend, but they still gave back to the community via recommendations for other classmates or coworkers who they thought would be great additions to the dinner instead.  

What type of impact do you want to have in your community/workplace? 

I was blown away by the generosity of the alumnae who came and spent the evening with us.  In particular, a few women flew to Chicago just for the evening to interact with current Kellogg students.  I will leave Kellogg wanting to repay this for future generations of students by when possible, giving back time to share my own experiences with students.  Leaving Kellogg in a completely different field than in which I started, it is important to me to have met so many successful alumnae in a field I am excited to enter myself.  

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