Harvard Business School - Yearbook (Boston, MA)

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were all brIght capable and dIscIpIIned Individuals long before we came here and we probably could have attained our eventual standings In life without coming here The kind of neurotic and competitive behavior which we all engaged In IS both unnecessary and unworthy Another trait which pervades this country IS that Americans are uneasy with the concept of an elite and very self conscious about belonging to one Thus ambivalance created by lip service to democracy and at the same time the urge for upward mobility prevents any elite group from coming to terms with Itself and living up to llS full potential For God s sake let s admIt that we are an elite group and let s not be bashful about It' At the same time however lets also accept the Idea of noblesse oblige that because of our unusual potentialitues we also have unique responsibilities to this nation and the world ln the book The Best And The Brightest, too many characters merely regard their roles as safeguarding and accumulating American power without confronting the awesome human Impact of such power for both good and bad Similarly so many of us seem to be guided by nothing that most of us can do more that we have enough going for us that we can afford to put ethics and Ideal above self aggrandizement and more Impor tantly that we can see far enough to know that we should put ethics and Ideal above self aggrandizement To conclude I believe that too many of my fellow MBA s are selling him self or herself short On one hand we don t have anything more transcen dental than the acquIsItIve Instinct to propel ourselves forward on the other hand we are made continuously Insecure about our qualities as IndIvId uals and thereby our ability to acquire the things we want These two feel lngS reinforce each other and create the particular kind of neurosrs that per vades the Business School However, I beleve that my fellow MBAs and their successors can do more not just In making the School a better place but also In rising above the bourgeois mediocrity that so often lies under neath the affluent lives of executives ln short what I think we deserve and can attain IS excellence period rather than just a melange of achievement aggressiveness drive Intelligence shrewdness smoothness etc etc My best wishes for the long journey ahead' . I , . . . . . . I I B . . . ' . , . I . . . . . . . . . . , , . ' r . , . . - 1 , . . I I I I . . . I ' I more inspiring than the acquisition of wealth and status. However, I believe I . - . P . .. I . ' I 1 s , - I ' - ' I F l - ' 1 I N I . . i I . 1 - I I I I I I 'I '

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THE BEST AND THE BRIGHTEST- -On This Side Of The River In another month or so, nearly all of us-members of the MBA class of 1973-will be beginning our first jobs outside of this place. Some of us will be entering firms of recognized stature, some of us will be moving into small businesses or starting our own ventures, but all in all, we do have a good start and the chances are very good that we shall do very well in life. All this sounds rather comforting and attractive. Yet, when we look back upon the last two years, we can remember those nervous study groups where one is unsure whether he for shej should divulge an insight for the benefit of the group or keep it to oneself so that he for shej can star in class tomorrow, those on-your-toes section parties where one tries to stay close to the prof and butter him fand, very occasionally, herj up in the hope that it will margi- nally improve his for herj chances of getting an excellent or avoiding an LP. There is something incongruous between the excellent prospects awaiting us and the kind of crass behavior which we engaged in, Would that piece of paper from the George F. Baker Foundation suddenly transform us in that magic moment? What is wrong? HBS, as one of the most desired breeding grounds for future leaders of this capitalist society, embodies many of its characteristics in exaggerated form. While there are admittedly numerous virtues, I would like to single out two forces which I regard as shortcomings and discuss them briefly, if the ensuing words can provoke some introspection and reflection as we embark on a path that will bring us greater and greater responsibilities, this article would have been more than worthwhile. America, as a young nation, seems to be preoccupied by proving that a person can do something, not content on merely knowing that one pos- sesses the right virtues. To be able to beat the pack in doing something-like getting to the moon-is a uniquely American challenge. The compulsion to prove that American power and wealth can solve the world's problems is exactly what led us into the Vietnam misadventure, so brilliantly depicted in the book whose name I borrowed. Similarly, this urge to prove that one can make the grade seems to predominate our lives at the B-School. ls the qual- ity of a person measured by the number of excellents in his or her report card? And is a person less worthy because he or she manages to land three job offers instead of six as some others have clinched? I believe that we

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