Graduation was a blast!

It has taken a few days to process such a regal and emotional day, and I am not sure I am there yet. It is hard to articulate how both fulfilling and wistful it was.

Over just two years, you get to really know many students, given the intimacy of the Case Method and office hours. People share many personal details, and I do the same. Every class is unique because it depends on the singular combination of personalities present. That also happens during office hours and the group Coffee Chats and Fun Fridays that I host with students. No two sessions are alike.

It is difficult to articulate how special each student is and how far each grows and develops in just a few years. It is a marvel to watch them grow in confidence and ability.

Before, during, and after graduation, I received many notes, emails, and texts from my students as many reflected on their HBS experience. I was both an observer of and a participant in their journey. I hope they never forget our time together.

HBS is a different school today from when I was a student. The student body is now 45 percent women, and international students comprise about 40 percent. The school is now need-blind for all students. A good number are first-generation to college.

But what has stayed the same is the impact. It is a truism, but the experience is transformative. You leave a different person, a more-evolved version of yourself. It is a conceit, but I feel that HBS made me a better person. The skills and knowledge you gain are great, but the school also subliminally exhorts virtues: honesty, compassion, altruism, and a desire to learn forever.

There are so many memories from graduation: the student who tearfully introduced me to his new baby, the laughs with colleagues, the dramatic change in weather from lightning to scorching heat. The smiles and looks of disbelief of students, seconds after they received their diplomas. Their parents’ joy. The tears.

Teaching at HBS is most definitely a calling for those alumni who return. But what could be better?

Congratulations, Class of 2024 and Section F! The  best is yet to come! I am so proud of you all and already miss you terribly.