Larsen students hear from industry leaders as part of Krannert Leads panel

Krannert School of Management students in the Larsen Leaders Academy (LLA) heard from an impressive line-up of speakers during this semester’s Krannert Leads gathering. Krannert Leads is a TED-talk style event that brings distinguished alumni and other industry leaders to campus to share their professional wisdom with LLA students about one of the three mottos that the academy follows: learn, lead, and live.  

In October, academy students heard from Thomas J. Falk, Assata Gilmore, Paroon Chadha, Dr. Beth McCuskey, and Katie Gearlds. Together, their stories touched upon leading in the C-Suite of a major multinational corporation; coaching a Big 10 basketball team; founding multiple companies, and more. 

Not only did these speakers provide insight into their experiences, but they also gave students advice on how to look at their career goals through different lenses. They also inspired students to try new things they may not have thought about in terms of their career goals, as well.  

“Leadership looks different for everyone,” Gilmore, past Purdue Student Government President, said when speaking on transparency while serving in student government.  

 “Only bad thing about failure is if you don’t learn from it,” past CEO of Kimberly-Clark Falk said.  

 Chadha, co-founder of several companies, including Passageways, wanted students to know that “early decisions, staying the course, and compounding your knowledge will allow you to be successful.”  

And Vice Provost for Student Life at Purdue McCuskey wants students to know that “leaders will be curious about everything.”  

Purdue women’s basketball coach Katie Gearlds reminded students to “lead by example.”  

Students were able to engage with the speakers and ask them questions during a Q&A. Krannert Leads is just one of many academy events that allows LLA students to learn from diverse leaders and develop their professional networks. This event left students with more knowledge about the business world than before.