Luis Chavez-Brumell ’25

I work at the intersection of business, state, and society. I’ve been fortunate enough to be a leader/manager for most of my career, but I didn’t have much business education. I wanted an MBA to strengthen my management skills, improve my performance, and allow me to better understand the various organizations and businesses that I interact which range from nonprofits and small, local businesses to major companies. Sustainability is also becoming a critical part of my work, and the sustainability track will give me the knowledge and skills to navigate current and emerging issues.

So much of the content we cover in class is useful to me on the job. I coordinated a customer service training for my organization when I took the Customer course. My biggest takeaway was to consider the changing benefits and needs, that patrons and customers bring to organizations throughout their lives, and to realize that customer service needs to be responsive to customer realities. We need to be flexible.

In our leadership development courses, I learned a lot about my strengths and areas for growth as a leader. Managing Groups and Teams, with Professor James Phills, showed me that my teammates wanted to hear more from me and that my contributions made a difference. It’s important to balance reflection with response. My goal is to become a leader who encourages others to become the best versions of themselves and to achieve things that benefit everyone.

I’ve availed myself of so many diverse opportunities at Yale, ranging from a Mahler concert at Woolsey Hall to a Thanksgiving event at the African American Cultural Center and recently a dinner at SOM that brought EMBA and full-time students together. I’m now looking forward to Global Network Week. I’ve enjoyed working with my global virtual team which has connected me with students from around the world who are studying at universities in Mexico and Switzerland.