#705 – Faculty Spotlight: A Conversation with Ari Shwayder and John Branch

On this episode of the Working for the Weekend podcast, Seth Atkinson, WMBA ’25, interviews two part-time MBA academic core professors: John Branch, clinical associate professor of business administration, and Ari Shwayder, LEO lecturer of business economics and public policy. The professors explore their journies to Ross, their research and teaching focus, and what they love about teaching the future of business leadership. 

To learn more about the hosts, participants, and resources discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/working-weekend. 

• Host: Seth Atkinson
• Guests: Professors John Branch and Ari Shwayder
• Executive Producers: Ajay Baabu Muthuswamy and JT Godfrey
• Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman

In this new podcast, Sharon Matusik, the Edward J. Frey Dean of the Ross School of Business, invites alums in the C-Suite to discuss their path to business leadership. Listen to the first episode with Robert Isom, MBA ’91, CEO and President of American Airlines: https://myumi.ch/GkmEp.

• Host: Sharon Matusik
• Guest: Robert Isom
• Executive Producers: JT Godfrey, Tedra White
• Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman

On this episode of the Working for the Weekend podcast, Weekend MBA student Peter Woodman, MBA ’25, interviews the leadership team of the Part-Time MBA Program. The panel explores the current state of the PTMBA programs at Ross, exciting developments in business school education; Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and more. 

To learn more about the hosts, participants, and resources discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/working-weekend. 

• Host: Peter Woodman
• Guests: Professor S. Sriram and Lizette Korn 
• Executive Producers: Ajay Baabu Muthuswamy and JT Godfrey
• Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman

On this episode of the Working for the Weekend podcast, Weekend MBA students discuss the DEI case competition hosted in late October by the Part-Time MBA DEI Committee. The panel explores the importance of the competition, what motivates their interest in DEI, the impact of the case competition, and more. 

To learn more about the hosts, participants, and resources discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/working-weekend. 

• Hosts: Kristian Georgiev
• Guests: Alison Weir and Kiley Gardetto
• Executive Producers: Ajay Baabu Muthuswamy and JT Godfrey
• Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman

On this episode of the Working for the Weekend podcast, Weekend MBA students discuss their recruiting and internship experiences. The panel explores the internship process, balancing their full-time jobs with recruiting, resources available for Weekend MBA students, and more. 

To learn more about the hosts, participants, and resources discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/working-weekend. 

• Hosts: Zhen Feng 
• Guests: Dillon Orian, James Yau, and Anjana Chiluka
• Executive Producers: Ajay Baabu Muthuswamy and JT Godfrey
• Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman

On this episode of the Working for the Weekend podcast, Part-Time MBA students share their backgrounds and goals for the podcast this year. Discussing their experiences, the panel explores experiential learning, networking, engaging faculty, podcasting, building community, and more. 

To learn more about the hosts, participants, and resources discussed in this episode, check out a full-length article for this episode at https://michiganross.umich.edu/news/podcasts/working-weekend. 

• Hosts: Lydia Stoltzfus Miller
• Guests: Indhu Venugopal, Kristian Georgiev, Mouhamed Bseileh, Prasanth Muralidharan, Seth Atkinson, Peter Woodman, Ajay Baabu Muthuswamy, and Zhen Feng 
• Executive Producers: Ajay Baabu Muthuswamy and JT Godfrey
• Audio Engineer: Jonah Brockman

An MBA education is expensive. In this episode, host Ajay chats with fellow students Mackenzie and Sashank about the return on that considerable investment. They discuss the meaning of ROI when it comes to higher education, how to maximize your ROI, advice on financing your MBA, and much more.

We'd love to hear from you! Send us an email at WeekendPod@umich.edu or leave a review on your podcast app of choice to let us know what you think of the show. 

Watch for new episodes every other week.

Working for the Weekend is brought to you by the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Episode Producer/Host: Ajay Muthuswamy

Guests: Mackenzie Zondlak, Sashank Tallapragada

Editing: Jonah Brockman

Executive Producers: Ayush Mundra and Bob Needham

Copyright 2023 - University of Michigan

In this episode, host Ayush chats with Professor Aneel Karnani and Managing Director of Part-Time MBA Programs Patti Russo. They discuss how part-time MBA programs have grown and evolved, differences between online and in-person learning, the role of community, and much more.

We'd love to hear from you! Send us an email at WeekendPod@umich.edu or leave a review on your podcast app of choice to let us know what you think of the show. 

Watch for new episodes every other week.

Working for the Weekend is brought to you by the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Episode Producer/Host: Ayush Mundra

Guests: Aneel Karnani, Patti Russo.

Editing: Jonah Brockman

Executive Producers: Ayush Mundra and Bob Needham

Copyright 2023 - University of Michigan

In this episode, host Ajay chats with two fellow Michigan Ross part-time MBA students – one in the Weekend MBA Program and one in the Online MBA Program. They discuss their individual reasons for pursuing an MBA, why they chose their particular format, the differences between the formats, and much more.  

We'd love to hear from you! Send us an email at WeekendPod@umich.edu or leave a review on your podcast app of choice to let us know what you think of the show. 

Watch for new episodes every other week.

Working for the Weekend is brought to you by the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Episode Producer/Host: Ajay Muthuswamy

Guests: Dan King, John Rivalsky

Editing: Jonah Brockman

Executive Producers: Ayush Mundra and Bob Needham

Copyright 2022 - University of Michigan

In this episode, host Lydia chats with a fellow part-time MBA student and a recent grad about the ROI of an MBA. They discuss their individual reasons for pursuing an MBA, applying lessons from the classroom directly on the job, gaining hands-on experience, and much more.  

We'd love to hear from you! Send us an email at WeekendPod@umich.edu or leave a review on your podcast app of choice to let us know what you think of the show. 

Watch for new episodes every other week.

Working for the Weekend is brought to you by the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Episode Producer/Host: Lydia Miller

Panel: Kristy Minielly, Suraj Kandukuri

Editing: Jonah Brockman.

Executive Producers: Ayush Mundra and Bob Needham.

Copyright 2022 - University of Michigan