As Dave Price was nearing retirement from the U.S. Army after an exciting 24 years of service, he reflected on what he wanted to do with the next phase of his professional life. (So much for early retirement!) For the past five years, his work had centered around modernization and innovation within the Department of Defense (DoD) and general intelligence community. As he began delegating responsibilities ahead of his departure, he kept receiving calls from a variety of colleagues in different sectors. He had unknowingly become the go-to resource for those trying to implement their own innovation and modernization efforts. Dave realized, if this was a need, perhaps he could form a consulting business around his expertise.
Dave already had a couple of Master’s degrees—an MBA and an MS in Strategic Intelligence—along with various certifications, such as a Six Sigma Greenbelt. He felt he had a lot of practical experience helping people adopt agile project methodologies—but there was still something missing. “I didn’t have anything that I could point to and say ‘I really do know what I’m talking about.’ I had a lot of what we refer to as ‘war stories’ and I didn’t have much exposure to commercial and academic sectors.”
The MIT Edge
As he researched various options, Dave discovered the Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation, and he realized this was exactly the kind of credential he was looking for. “My MBA served me well, it provided foundational knowledge to help understand things at the academic level, but it didn’t seem very practical or applicable. What I got from MIT was a lot of practical and useful knowledge.”
He also appreciated that the faculty weren’t just academic lifers hiding in their offices. “Faculty were consulting on a number of projects; some had their own businesses they were running. When people asked questions, they could give really great answers that weren’t just theoretical or academic. They were real-world answers to help explain the concepts being reviewed in class. That was hugely beneficial.”
A fortuitous favorite
“I just want to be clear; all the courses were awesome! Hands down though, my favorite course was Leading Strategic Change with Elsbeth Johnson.” Dave wasn’t even supposed to take this course. A colleague was scheduled to attend and had to drop out at the last minute. They needed a replacement or risk losing the funding altogether. His loss was Dave’s gain.
Dave really connected with the various practical frameworks. “I wish I had her way of breaking up work so much earlier in my career. It would have helped me a lot.” Additionally, the lengthier course timeline (five days, versus the more common two-day format) allowed for the class to dive deeper into the topics, as well as build stronger connections with each other.
“My MBA served me well, it provided foundational knowledge to help understand things at the academic level, but it didn’t seem very practical or applicable. What I got from MIT was a lot of practical and useful knowledge.”
“Because you’re there longer, you could make more friends. The cohorts are also so diverse. For me diversity was whether someone was wearing a different color camouflage uniform! So, it was great to be a part of such an international group from across many industries. We have a WhatsApp group and we still have discussions and are in contact.”
(And yes, that colleague who couldn’t go is now trying to go to the next iteration after being told, “You missed the best class ever!”)
Feeling validated
Mastering Design Thinking also holds a special spot of honor. He left that course feeling “vindicated and validated.” Implementing change and innovation is not easy, especially in a highly bureaucratic system such as the federal government. Dave was feeling that his lack of charisma or providing clear guidance was hindering the organizations ability to adapt , having faced an uphill battle the last five years against people who were perfectly content with the status quo and providing constant negative feedback towards any of his innovation efforts. . During the very last slide of the course, the faculty focused on the fact that making these decisions (and pushing them through) is indeed hard work. “He said you’ll be perceived as a dictator and then shared all these different personal examples of what he had been through. I thought if an MIT professor is experiencing this, then it’s not just me. I’m not a bad leader and it’s not that I couldn’t explain things well—it’s that people sometimes just don’t want to change. And that made me feel so much better. I still use that last slide and show it to other fellow change agents to prepare them that this is a real phenomenon. Emotionally, that was the best feel-good moment I had during my Executive Certificate journey!”
New friends and experiences while at MIT
Advice to others
Dave had taken courses at other institutions, but things really clicked for him with his first course at MIT. “On day one, I just felt like ‘this is exactly what I was looking for!’ And so, it felt natural to go all the way through and get the Executive Certificate.” For anyone considering an Executive Certificate (or even just one course), he emphasizes the hands-on learning as a differentiator. “You’ll be well-served in terms of design thinking and the very practical examples from the professors and the members of your cohort who come from a variety of industries and countries! I don’t know what other school will have that for you, but I can definitely say you’ll get that at MIT”
What’s next?
This is hopefully not the last time we’ll see Dave on campus. While he’s one course away from earning an Executive Certificate in Management and Leadership, his eyes are on a bigger accomplishment. “I was actually talking to Elsbeth about the Advanced Management Program (AMP). She’s put that bug in my ear … I’m trying to block of summer of 2025 for that. That’s on my wish list!”
Learn more about Executive Certificates here.
Contributed by Elaine Santoyo Goldman