An MBA grad works free for startup: Carrotmob Part (2)

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MBA grad speaks out about the decision to work for free after business school and what compeled her do it.

. . . AND, we’re back with Susanna Schick from Carrotmob, an innovative startup CareerMee profiled last week. Find the story here.

After getting her MBA  from North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler business school, Susanna decided to move out to California and work, free, for a company she really believed in.

What’s more is that this isn’t an isolated incident. A study by by David Montgomery and Catherine Ramus of UC Santa Barbara examines the tradeoffs candidates are willing to make when selecting a potential employer.

It found, to the surprise of all involved, that a reputation for ethical conduct and caring policies towards employees ranked 95 percent as important as the financial package and were willing to give up about $15,000 of their paycheck to get it. Read about it here and check back later this week for a more in-depth review.

And if you think MBAs were just bending the truth a bit on a survey to make themselves look good, we’ve got Susanna, who has given up more than the average $15,000 to work for her ideals. Let hear from her. . .

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CareerMee: Has having an MBA helped you in your role at Carrotmob? AND: Why did you choose to work for an internet start-up, and why Carrotmob?

Susanna: I chose to work as an unpaid intern at Carrotmob because it totally fits with my values, and my passion for saving the planet through conscious consumerism. I get to use what I’ve learned about entrepreneurship, sustainability, marketing, and also tap my large network from b-school. It’s great being with a small and dynamic company where I can be myself. People, including my school’s career management services office, tell me I’d never fit in at a large company, and I think they’re right. I applied to some Fortune 500′s, and wouldn’t turn down the right offer, (I am just an intern here, after all) but I’d think more seriously about the culture shock.

CareerMee: Have you had to make any sacrifices to work for a start-up after business school instead of an established business?

Susanna: Yes, the biggest one is that I am living with my parents. But I made that choice before the Carrotmob internship came up, because I knew I’d rather live with them and be close to San Francisco, where there are so very many companies dedicated to sustainability, than live in a city I’m not excited about and working for a company I don’t believe in.

CareerMee: Do you know if many MBAs are taking similar routes?

Susanna: Because Kenan Flagler provides such an excellent education in entrepreneurship, many of my classmates have chosen to work for startups or even start their own businesses, some of which are focused on social and/or environmental responsibility. It takes tremendous courage of conviction and a willingness to earn less than one did before b-school. I would much rather do something like this that contributes to the greater good and utilizes what I learned in school, than go back to my old job.

CareerMee: Have you found the things you learned in business school to be useful in a practical sense?

Susanna: Absolutely. The one problem I had was that some of the classes felt like I was being fed information through a firehose, to quote our awesome Managerial Accounting professor, Joey Bylinski. So that made it harder to retain what I’d learned, but that’s why I never throw anything away, and also one reason why I stay close with the friends who excel in the areas where I’m weak.

CARROTMOB IN ACTION

CareerMee: Overall impressions of working for a start-up after business schoool – advantages/disadvantages?

Susanna: The positives: It’s exciting and there’s a tremendous sense of potential. I work in a great office culture and in a fantastic neighborhood (South Park in San Francisco has launched a bazillion startups). I work every day with smart, interesting people and I’m learning a ton about early phase business development.

I’m lucky, because it’s a great startup that’s well known, with a founder (Steve Newcomb) who has a history of successful launches under his belt, so I feel like I’m learning more than I would at any other startup solely because of Steve’s strong management talent and transparency.

The only downside: The pay.

Thanks for talking with CareerMee, Susanna, and sharing your story. MBA grads, if you’re looking for work or maybe even want to change careers, check out our site, CareerMee, to put your profile out in front of our over 125 recruiters. Nonprofit, green energy and socially responsible businesses are recruitinng on CareerMee now.

Photo courtesy of Flikr user emdot.