Unpolished MBA®
Unpolished MBA
Entrepreneurs are sometimes called "unpolished" because they are scrappy and unconventional when starting a business. On this podcast, we speak with entrepreneurs and innovators. Some went to Business School and have a formal MBA degree while others don't. Did it make a difference? Nope! They share the answer to that as well as other pieces of wisdom. To listen to all episodes, apply to become a guest, or a sponsor go to www.unpolishedmba.com
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Unpolished MBA®
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Podcast website
Latest episode
Jan 23, 2026
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Episodes
Episode 025: Michele Heyward - Reframe F.A.I.L. 13.02.2021 14:27
Michele Heyward , CEO of Positive Hire, is an engineer turned entrepreneur taking on the challenge to help companies recruit & retain BIPOC women engineers, scientists and technical professionals for management roles. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> www.unpolishedmba.com/ep025 Follow Michele Heyward LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelecheyward/ Follow Monique Mil...
Episode 024: Matt Wallaert - Start At The End 06.02.2021 18:36
In this episode, Matt Wallaert , an expert on changing human behavior, talks about being "needfully vulgar" at times while still being a respected scientist, author, and entrepreneur. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> www.unpolishedmba.com/ep024 Visit unpolishedmba.com to listen to all of the episodes and apply to become a guest. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/u...
Episode 023: Mike Tatum - The Employed Entrepreneur 26.01.2021 20:09
This episode is a conversation with Mike Tatum, a military soldier turned marketing guru. He lends his talents to Corporate America, but also runs his own marketing firm and somehow he manages it all. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> www.unpolishedmba.com/ep023 Visit unpolishedmba.com to listen to all of the episodes and apply to become a guest. --- Send in a voice message: ht...
Episode 022 - Chris Walker - If You Know You Know 15.01.2021 18:07
Chris Walker, CEO of Refine Labs, was always meant to be an entrepreneur. He took his "bad ideas" and created a multi-million dollar business for himself. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> https://unpolishedmba.com/ep022 Visit unpolishedmba.com to listen to all of the episodes and apply to become a guest. ---
Episode 021 - Steve Blank - Do Something That Matters 12.01.2021 13:04
This episode is a conversation with Steve Blank, a world-renowned Entrepreneur and Entrepreneurship Professor at Stanford University, Columbia University, and UC Berkeley. Steve Blank on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveblank ---
End of Season 1 Message 10.12.2020 1:14
This is the final episode of Season 1 and for the year 2020. Stay tuned for what's ahead on the Unpolished MBA in 2021. If you'd like to be a guest or listen to prior episodes go to www.unpolishedmba.com.
Episode 020 - Sheffie Robinson - She Flipped It - Entrepreneur to MBA 10.12.2020 23:39
She flipped it---Sheffie Robinson, the CEO of Shamrck , is a talented developer turned MBA. Listen in to understand the back story around why she's currently completing her MBA and how she's navigated the tech world to become a tech startup founder. To read the transcript for this episode just go to —> unpolishedmba.com/ep020 Visit unpolishedmba.com to receive more informati...
Episode 019: Blanca Catalina Garcia - Bring Your Full Self 28.11.2020 21:08
This episode is a conversation with Blanca Catalina Garcia , an innovator and educator building a vibrant, multicultural, and empowered entrepreneurial and tech startup ecosystems. She creates and cultivates spaces where people with diverse stories can feel supported to grow, thrive, and go to the next level. We talk about the challenges many Black and Brown women face in the tech startup wor...
Episode 018: Matthew Sciannella - A Means To An End 12.11.2020 24:18
This episode is a conversation with Matthew Sciannella, a writer turned marketing strategist for B2B industrial companies after obtaining his Master's degree. He finally made the jump after spending many unhappy years in a job that he performed well in, but hated. If you can identify with that, you'll certainly want to listen to this episode. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---...
Episode 017: Andy Raskin - The Unlikely Underdog 30.10.2020 24:51
Listen to this conversation with Andy Raskin, an entrepreneur and previous tech startup founder that many people underrated throughout his journey. Upon learning how to tell stories in a compelling way, similar to a movie screenwriter, the trajectory of his career changed. Surprisingly, his degrees from Yale and Wharton played just a small part in his journey, earning him the status of "self-emplo...
Episode 016: Dan Sanchez - Marketing Maven and 6 Month MBA 26.10.2020 29:22
Listen to this conversation with Dan Sanchez, an experienced marketer (and entrepreneur as of 2023). We talked about how he aggressively completed his MBA in 6 months and realized how much it filled in the gaps of information that he didn’t know were missing. As they say, you don’t know what you don’t know, so listen in as Dan describes his startup experience and the journey to becomin...
Episode 015: Dan Chan - Silicon Valley Startup to Magician 26.10.2020 12:00
This is a conversation with Dan Chan, an early employee of PayPal before its IPO, and now a magician to the stars of Silicon Valley. He has an untraditional career, but a business background that has enabled him to create a profitable business doing what he loves. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> https://unpolishedmba.com/ep015 Follow Dan Chan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.co...
Episode 014: Julian Roberts - Unlocked 26.10.2020 21:08
Listen to this conversation with Julian Roberts, an Executive Leadership coach who threw in the towel for Corporate work to focus on unlocking another’s potential while unlocking his own at the same time. TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> https://unpolishedmba.com/ep014 Visit unpolishedmba.com to receive more information on how to become a guest. --- Send in a voice mess...
Episode 013: Bethany Valente - The Puzzle Pieces Came Together 16.10.2020 24:41
Listen to this conversation with Bethany D. Valente, a doctor of business administration with experience that includes working with high tech scientific organizations. Though she doesn't have a science background, growing up with a mom who was a nurse and dad who was an entrepreneur the foundation was laid long ago for what she would become today. This episode is dedicated to the late Justic...
Episode 012: Erika Jefferson - Engineers Think Everyone Else Is Just Overhead 30.09.2020 33:51
Listen to this conversation with Erika Jefferson, a Chemical Engineer turned entrepreneur. Somehow she fell into entrepreneurship several years after receiving her MBA and has since created a thriving business that serves women in science and engineering. We point out some of the stereotypical engineering personality traits and discuss how engineers and scientists can still win in business. Follow...
Episode 011: Dee Acosta - Like Batman But With An MBA 28.09.2020 23:39
This episode is a conversation with Dee Acosta, better known as Batman, but with an MBA. This interview is riddled with his candid thoughts on the impact (or lack thereof) of the MBA on his career, but most importantly how it inspires his family. Follow Dee Acosta LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aacostacub/ Follow Monique Mills LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/moniquemills/ Bio Website:...
Episode 010: Steve Worthy - Question Everything, Embrace Leadership, and Write Stuff Down 28.09.2020 23:11
This episode is a conversation with Steve Worthy. While he is currently an entrepreneur, the majority of his career was in Corporate and he talks about how getting his MBA caused him to question everything. It was a gamechanger for him in many ways, especially as an Executive coach now. Visit unpolishedmba.com to receive more information on how to become a guest. --- Send in a voice message: https...
Episode 009: Emma Gasking - Midwife to MBA 25.09.2020 28:28
This episode is a conversation with Emma Gasking who started her career as a Midwife in the UK and upon getting her MBA, her career took a 180---or as it may seem at first glance. Things didn’t quite work out as she'd initially planned, but it did work out for the best. She's now changing lives, one person at a time. Visit unpolishedmba.com to receive more information on how to become a guest. ---...
Episode 008: Karen Hunter - Six Degrees of Opportunity 17.09.2020 29:56
This episode is a conversation with Karen Hunter, an innovation expert with experience in Corporate as well as consulting for global brands like Coca-cola, Kraft, Snapple, Sara Lee, and Kimberly-Clark. She shares some great wisdom about innovation that applies to both corporations and startups. You’ll never believe what sparked her desire to pursue her MBA. Visit unpolishedmba.com to receive...
Episode 007: Bryan Smith - From Rebel to Resilient 12.09.2020 22:56
I’m sharing a conversation I had with Bryan Smith, the co-founder of a startup called Leon Health Science. He was a rebel growing up but always had the natural instincts to find problems to solve to earn money. With his background in Professional Sports Performance coaching and understanding the data science behind sports performance, he's found a new problem to solve---helping people be bet...
Episode 006: Faheem Moosa - Born Into Entrepreneurship 27.08.2020 21:37
Here's a conversation with Faheem Moosa, a serial entrepreneur with an MBA who had a short stint in Corporate life although he was born into entrepreneurship. His family has had a business for generations---120+ years to be exact. Despite that background, Faheem shares how he still had to invest in learning new things because he, like many entrepreneurs, was missing the essential marketing a...
Episode 005: Walter Ley - Face Down In The Dirt 21.08.2020 19:43
Here's a conversation with Walter Ley, founder of Branch, a tech startup in Atlanta, Georgia. He talked about how not having an MBA can create self-doubt when you’re a new entrepreneur. He also talked about: Having the courage to create something from scratch to solve a problem and understand that you’re going to have some “face down in the dirt” lessons in life overall, not just entrepreneurship....
Episode 004: Tondaleya Carter - The MBA Was Worth It + Being a Decent Person 19.08.2020 24:41
Here's a conversation with Tondaleya Carter, a Realtor from Keller Williams Commercial. She talked about how having an MBA relates to her success in commercial real estate. She also talked about: How she innovated herself out of a job. How while working in “old school” Corporate they didn’t innovate and the people who worked there had been there for their entire career. Listen to how she got...
Episode 003: Monique Mills - Are you "Legit"?---Intrapreneurs vs Entrepreneurs 11.08.2020 19:21
Intrapreneurs and Entrepreneurs ---One is not better than the other, just different. But some will say you're not a "real" entrepreneur if you're only doing entrepreneurial stuff inside of a corporation and collecting a steady paycheck. There's something about letting go of the certainty of an income that earns respect in the startup streets. However, in Corporate, you get the benefit...
Episode 002: Andy Rosic - Throw Out the Rule Book 05.08.2020 24:14
Listen to this conversation between Monique Mills and Andy Rosic, a serial startup founder, advisor, and investor in multiple tech companies. We're in a global pandemic and Andy gives his perspective to those entrepreneurs who want to know: "Do I stop selling? How do I move forward to survive?" TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT FOR THIS EPISODE GO TO ---> https://unpolishedmba.com/ep002 Visit unpol...
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