My twenty-one months at Cascade Capital Companies (CCC) have been a true education in real world business issues. Due to my abilities and my desire to excel on behalf of my employer, I was pro­moted three times in nineteen months at the same time as the com­pany was downsizing rapidly.

I was originally hired as an analyst for a subsidiary broker/ dealer, conducting due diligence reviews on investment products ranging from REITs to capital leasing, real estate, and mortgage-related limited partnerships. I also managed the firm's database operations, prepared budgeting and variance reports, and moni­tored the securities and insurance licenses for 23 representatives in three branches.

Захватывающее начало. Бизнес-школы хотят видеть человека с хорошими математическими способностями, богатым опытом воплощения в жизнь смелых проектов. Этот кандидат пишет, что его двухлетний опыт работы сойдет за 10-ти летний.

Then, as part of a reorganization, 24 people were laid off and I was promoted into management of the parent company. I was told they gave me the position because I could "talk the lingo, crunch the numbers, and work the hours." I certainly did work long hours, but it was mostly because I really liked my job and the work needed to be done. In my new position, I was in charge of three profes­sionals, all of whom were older and more experienced than I, but I had developed a closer understanding of the mission of the depart­ment and the priorities of senior management. I managed relations with approximately 400 broker/dealers and a total of approxi­mately 5000 sales representatives available to sell our products.

Этот параграф указывает, как на сложность работы кандидата, так и его смекалку.

I tracked sales and commissions and managed marketing projects through a computer database I reorganized and managed myself. I created sales incentives for the representatives, designed and desktop published promotional materials, and prepared the quarterly reports on the seven REITs we were offering. I created a useful subset of the total universe of reps by calling all 400 broker/ dealers and getting them to identify their top players. This allowed us to build closer relations with the most active and promising reps.

My performance in this position gained the attention of senior management, and the SVP tapped me to assist him and the product manager in developing two new products. As the rest of the com­pany was suffering another layoff and plummeting asset values and gross revenues, we designed a corporate sale-leaseback fund that generated $13 million from retail investors by taking advantage of the LBO climate. Then we decided to develop the company's first product targeting institutional investors, a secondary offering of Cascade Capital's Trust 6, in the process of which I prepared all the analysis upon which we structured the offering and participated in the proxy solicitation process. Then, I called up pension fund con­sultants and sold them on the product, creating relationships with 150 reps and consultants. (This was a particularly strong accom­plishment in light of the performance of real estate-backed invest­ments at this time.) I also wrote all the presentations for the pension plans. With this new product we raised $12 million in commitments in six weeks of intense activity.

Then, in a reorganization of the marketing department and a re-focus of the company's strategic direction, I avoided another layoff and was promoted to the position of Associate of a CCC subsidiary, Cascade Capital Institutional Advisers (CCIA), working directly with Donald Kugel, president of both CCIA and CCC. I monitor our total portfolio, prepare in-depth analysis of our products, design quarterly updates, prepare proposals, and correspond with real estate consultants and with institutional investors directly.

As I was climbing this corporate ladder, a ten-year career com­pressed into less than two years (I am by far the youngest person in my company), at every step of the way I was promoted because I identified with management's objectives and because I kept delivery and performance well in excess of their desires. This has been at times difficult, as the company is run by five highly talented indi­viduals (four now) who do not often agree on much. Teamwork and cooperation were words used only in the marketing literature.

In fact, there was a time when senior management seemed to be in a logjam, and every partner seemed determined to advance a sep­arate agenda. We in middle management were actually being choked off from vital information to do our jobs. To help facilitate communication between departments, I founded a twice-monthly, informal gathering of departmental representatives to discuss issues and problems. This quickly became known as the "Breakfast Club," and it has been instrumental in creating a friendly and coop­erative working environment in which information can be shared openly and constructively. I can now pick up my phone and call any middle manager in the company directly to learn what I need to know. Middle management in the company is actually much more effective as a business than the top brass.

In spite of his personal brilliance, the CFO went out the door for failing to see any common purpose with the rest of management. When I saw Dean Witt's message in the U.T. catalog, "We strive to create an academic community of student and faculty working toward the achievement of a common goal—the attainment of excellence," I knew I was headed in the right direction. The combi­nation of advanced technical instruction and a real teamwork phi­losophy has become a central criterion in my evaluation of MBA programs.

Вы должны показать инициативу, а не только усердие в работе.

I am drawn to U.T. for several reasons: (1)1 am a Texan, and the opportunity to pursue my graduate education in Texas is preferred, (2) I intend to start a real estate-related company in Texas, and the personal connections available to me as a U.T. graduate would be invaluable, (3) my "bottom line" nature is drawn to the combina­tion of low cost and high value available at the University of Texas at Austin's Graduate School of Business, and the faculty is one of the most respected in the nation (I've done my homework), (4) my weakness is one of your greatest strengths: accounting, and (5) I believe the economy of Texas is headed for the stratosphere, and I want to be there for it.

Ever since I was 13 years old and working on a construction site for my father's commercial/residential development company, I have wanted to launch a real estate-related company. My first job was "debris remover." The next summer, the foreman gave me my first promotion: he gave me his old tool belt complete with a ham­mer and a measuring tape! Ever since that time I have pursued excellence in real estate-related areas (see resume). My experience in mortgage brokerage, real estate brokerage, real estate law, devel­opment and syndication has provided me with a broad background. I am eager for the University of Texas at Austin's Graduate School of Business to round out my business education so that I can con­tinue to pursue my goals. I hope to be the kind of graduate who will be a credit to U.T. throughout his career.

Thank you for your attention, and I look forward to meeting you personally.