Craig and Sara Pereira
University of Wisconsin‑Madison, Wisconsin School of Business
MBA Graduation Year: 2017
Craig’s Current Job: Category Leader, Kohler
Sara’s Current Job: Senior Market Analyst, Kohler
Craig and Sara have spent the last eight years at Kohler. Both have received numerous promotions, but they found themselves wanting to move into more strategic management roles. Together, they chose the Wisconsin MBA so that they could move their careers forward and support each other in the process.
We chose Wisconsin because we wanted to expand our management skills. We’ve both had a lot of great experiences at Kohler, but we were especially excited to meet our new classmates—other top professionals from throughout the region—to get feedback, share experiences, and discuss what’s happening in the business world.
The opportunity to enter the program at the same time was perfect for us. Earning your MBA can be challenging, but it’s been great entering the program together. We both understand what our commitments are and what going back to school requires of us. Plus, we’re still able to spend time together while studying and learning.
Our peers are incredible. The School does a great job of creating teams they know can be collaborative, while building on each other’s strengths and areas of development. A highlight of the program for both of us has been participating in our individual teams. That leads to a great experience here, and our teammates have been a pillar of support as we work toward earning our degrees.
It’s exciting to use what we’re learning right away. Even in our first semester, it seems like everything started to click and all of a sudden, processes in our offices seemed so much more understandable. It’s great to look forward and know that we’ll be able to make use of so much classroom material.
Whether you enter the program with a partner or on your own, the team atmosphere provides so much support and insight. We have already gained so much from the program, and we are excited to see how our education continues to help us move forward.