Whether it is jumping headfirst into the high ropes course during an MBA team building activity, participating in sustainability case competitions, or developing new planning processes at Nike, Scheller College of Business Full-time MBA alumna Blais Hickey (MBA 2020), is an advocate for sustainability, responsible business practices, and collaborative problem-solving. Hickey has been named a 2020 MBAs to Watch by Poets&Quants and following graduation, she joined the Nike Global Operations Team.
Hickey is quite familiar with the Nike after interning with them for the summer of 2019 at their headquarters in Portland, Oregon. She had the opportunity to work in Demand and Supply Management within the Asia Pacific Latin America geography. Hickey’s summer project focused on developing a new demand planning process that would better account for the unique challenges presented by such a diverse and fragmented region. In her current career at Nike, she hopes to support the company’s efforts by becoming a leader in sustainable operations and products, both within athletics and in fashion overall.
Sustainability in businesses is a priority for Hickey and Scheller’s Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business is one of the reasons why she chose to join Scheller’s Full-time MBA program.
“The school has a growing appreciation for sustainability in business, and the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business offers unprecedented opportunities to engage in the topic,” said Hickey.
While serving as a Board Fellow for Generation Green, student interviewer, and member of the Women in Business and Strategy & Innovation Clubs, Hickey was also the President of Scheller’s MBA Net Impact chapter. Net Impact supports the development of future business leaders by elevating awareness of sustainability and equipping students with skills to address environmental and social impact issues as they progress in their careers.
“Directing the Scheller MBA Net Impact club has been one of the best parts of my MBA experience,” Hickey said. “Scheller’s emphasis on sustainability is growing, and it’s been exciting to lead the club at the forefront of that charge. We were introducing members to professionals, job functions, and industries with emphasis on environmentally and socially responsible practices and embedding ourselves in the growing sustainability scene in Atlanta.”
Along with serving as the president of one of Scheller’s largest student groups, Hickey completed a Graduate Sustainability Fellow project that focused on “greening” the world’s largest 10K road race and led a student survey that resulted in Scheller College being rated among the top “transforming” business schools in the world by the Positive Impact Rating.
“I could not have asked for a more dedicated student leader. Blais leads by example, serving as a champion of sustainability across the academic, professional, and personal parts of her life. With her can-do attitude and unwavering optimism, Blais led the sustainability charge for our MBA student body’s ever-growing army of change-makers,” said Beril Toktay, Faculty Director of the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business.
Learn more about the Scheller Full-time MBA program.