Harvard Business School (HBS) Students Launch Podcast On Entrepreneurial Journeys
In September 2019, two Harvard Business School RC (first year) students, Alex Spencer and Bryce DeFigueiredo, started a podcast ‘Start HBS’ which features conversations between HBS students and folks who have been on audacious journeys starting meaningful ventures.
Both Alex Spencer and Bryce DeFigueiredo are MBA candidates at Harvard Business School’s class of ‘21, and share a wealth of experience between them. Alex has previously worked with Amazon and was part of the team responsible for building the Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning software that powers Alexa and Alexa enabled devices. Bryce, on the other hand, has worked as the Product manager at Lucid, a Utah based company which provides cloud based visual productivity solutions.
The podcast, which is entirely student-run, was conceived by Spencer and DeFigueiredo during the admitted students’ weekend, and now also features several other fellow students, including Isabel Yap (EC), Zeynep Yavuz (RC), and Joseph Lee (RC). Talking about starting the podcast, Spencer says:
“The goal behind starting the podcast was to create a conduit for students to learn from and connect with alumni who have been where we’d like to go. The podcast creates an opportunity to have conversations we otherwise wouldn’t have—an opportunity to learn from entrepreneurs who have been on audacious journeys and started meaningful ventures. It has lived up to that. What I didn’t expect is how much fun the ‘Pod Family’ would have together while creating and recording podcasts.”
Adding to the statement, DeFigueiredo says:
“We try to get the story behind the story of the success our guests have had. We’ve heard anecdotes from a CEO who once got fired, a business leader who ran a travel company during 9/11, a former Nike executive who has worked with athletes like Kobe Bryant, and a founder who sported a handlebar mustache for a good chunk of his RC year at HBS.”
The podcast has recorded seven episodes so far, and has hosted guests including Spencer Rascoff (former CEO of Zillow), Joel Peterson (MBA ’72, chairman of JetBlue Airways and Professor at Stanford GSB), and Matt Oppenheimer (MBA ’08 and founder of Remitly.com).
Spencer recalls the conversation with Spencer Rascoff particularly engaging. During the episode, Rascoff talks about the challenging moments of his career, especially the time when his startup, hotwire.com, sold airline tickets to the 9/11 hijackers. He further shares more anecdotes about learning the hard lessons of life, both in professional and personal life.
“Hearing Rascoff talk about his journey was impactful for me. I’ve reflected on our conversation quite a lot over the past few weeks since recording,” said Spencer. “He changed my viewpoint on how to build relationships with those I would most like to learn from. These moments of continual learning and connection are what make the podcast a fun and rewarding endeavor.”
You can check out the podcast here.
Source: The Harbus
