Mba Essay

In a small pond, there was a fish who knew his little pond very well. However, the fish became curious about the larger world so he rode the rains and went out into the lakes. Being a curious and adventurous fish, he explored the lake and was amazed by its size. But then the fish learned about the ocean, so the fish began his trip down the river, setting out for the ocean.

Like that fish, I too have followed a pathway, expanding my world as every opportunity has come my way, and eagerly looking forward to the next. Along the way, there have been several factors that have influenced my career and the choices I have made.

Initially, I majored in electronic engineering because I believed technological insight was a prerequisite for a future business leader, and because I view electronics as especially important in an information society. I continued to study electronics at the graduate level to obtain further technological knowledge. During this time, I did considerable research on digital image restoration, and my research was published in the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Journal, the premier engineering journal, and I became the first Masters-level student in my graduate school to have a paper accepted by IEEE.

After receiving my Master's degree, I accepted a position at AA Electronics (AAE) where I knew I would have the best opportunities for broadening my engineering experience in the business world. My reasons were two-fold: first, AA was the leading company in display field, such as LCDs and monitors, which is my specialty; and second, AAE is the leading company within the larger AA Group (a major Korean chaebol (conglomerate)), so I expected to acquire extensive knowledge about business management systems by joining the company. And my reasons proved to be correct. I am proud to be part of the history-making team at AA, developing Korea's first-ever LCD Projector and the world's top-selling CD-ROM drive. Along the way I won a Korean Technology Prize and the Chang Young-Sil Prize for best new development.

However, during that time I also won an investment contest in the new employee training course, and that caused me to ask myself: What are my aspirations? Where am I going with my career? What really makes me happiest?

Deciding to change my career from engineering to another field eventually arose from two decisions. First, I felt confined to working on one part of one product, and second, I am happier when I am able to change the whole system. For example, while at AAE, I represented my research center at the Fresh Board, a group of representatives from each sector of AAE, and I worked actively to enhance the engineers' desires to improve the quality of their lives. We were successful in implementing a bonus for the Researcher of the Month, another bonus for a superior patent, and so on.

And so I began a job search, looking for firms and positions where I could learn more about what made a company successful and at the same time increase my IT knowledge, because it was clear to me that IT business will be the core of future business in Korea.

Believing that future value is crucial in evaluating a company, I developed an analytic and future-focused technology roadmap that includes three partsÐ'--insourcing, outsourcing, and M&AÐ'--and negotiated with venture capitalists. Initially, we encountered difficulties inducing investors to fund our work because most Korean venture capital companies were interested only in the Internet, while our item was the mobile Internet. In the end, I played an important role in negotiating US$5 million in capital from CCC as a strategic planning manager.

The International Management Development Institute in Switzerland reports that Korea, "is 7th in the world in the amount invested to R&D, but 28th in technology competitiveness". I believe this discrepancy is due to ineffective analysis of technological trends and business perspectives. I have spent significant time learning the importance of the role of venture capital and the promising opportunities that can emerge. This knowledge, combined with my experience in the engineering field, has enabled me to become a leader in the entire Korean venture business.

Each of these road marks along the way has brought me to the clear definition of my long-term goal: to establish my own venture capital firm, which I believe is one way to effectively distribute the finite resources of the world. I decided on this goal based on my ten years of business experience.

However, I need more preparation before I can confidently pursue my career aspirations. Part of becoming adequately prepared for the next step is to pursue an MBA degree, and I feel strongly that Wharton is the best place to fulfill this need. Furthermore, now is the best time to pursue an MBA because as I change to my new