Biography
As a C-130J Test and Acceptance Pilot with the Unites States Air Force, Pete Gac entered the Evening MBA at Goizueta with practiced leadership skills. However, Pete quickly realized the business environment required a variety of skills from its leadership. “I learned to recognize my blind spots more effectively. By conscientiously identifying my strengths and weaknesses, I can more clearly tailor my style to fit a given role or situation.” The Evening MBA taught Pete how to understand business challenges in a more structured way, allowing him to tackle vague problems by creating a possible course of action and then presenting those solutions to senior leaders. “From my current role, I was able to illustrate resource constraints, propose a solution and expand our operations horizontally into a new program.”
With his military background and a technical degree, Pete entered the Evening MBA to learn business fundamentals to expand his professional network with the plan of separating from active-duty military service post-graduation. His hope is to begin a career in consulting or general management ideally for the aerospace and defense industry.
The Evening MBA also provided the right mix of flexibility and on-campus experiences for Pete, allowing him to discover a close-knit community. “Professors provided great insights into their own journeys, and my classmates were incredible allies as we all sought to take our next steps. Additionally, the Career Management Center coaches provided exceptional coaching, workshops and networking assistance.”
One of the most important aspects Pete found through the Goizueta community was how much alumni and other professionals wanted to help business school students. “I don't think that I did anything unique, but my network grew because of formal networking events, LinkedIn activities and word of mouth connections. All of the contacts I made were enthusiastic about sharing their own experiences and sharing success tips.”