Featuring Students
John Schultz Puts Theory into Practice at Home and at Work

By Greg Rosenthal
Special to FYI Online

John Schultz (left) with his wife, Teresa.

John Schultz started his own high-tech company already primed for success, armed with solid Web development expertise, four years of technology management experience, and two similarly qualified partners. Still, the 32-year-old Executive MBA student said he knew something was missing.

He certainly was not lacking the required technical knowledge, as he proved while working on the management team of digitalNation, a Web hosting company. Over four years, the company’s annual revenue increased more than tenfold, surpassing $10 million and prompting an even larger Web hosting company to buy it for $100 million in cash in 1999.

“I worked for an Internet company that had massive growth,” he said. “It was like moving from boot camp to the rank of colonel in four years.”

But what Schultz lacked—having studied music as an undergraduate—was a formal management education. He wanted to take a step back, ensure he was following best business practices at his new company, and gain the information and skills he needed to thrive. His drive to make his education match his experience brought him to UMUC.

He soon found himself applying what he learned during his Saturday seminars directly to his work on Monday at NetStrategies, his five-year-old company based in Alexandria, Virginia. In fact, his classroom lessons helped him clinch a contract with United States Pharmacopeia (USP), a nonprofit organization that establishes standards for medicine and medical technology.

Officials at USP wanted to hire consultants to conduct a strategic Web initiative review. During his presentation to USP, Schultz said he emphasized the need to have all stakeholders, including managers and software developers, meet and forge common expectations.

“USP told us we were the only company to say that,” he said. “I learned that philosophy directly from the MBA program—how to get people to feel that they’re invested in the process.”

Using his growing MBA toolbox, Schultz went on to study USP’s business processes, reviewing the organization’s current Web initiatives, decision-making process, architecture, and Web design. He also conducted a competitive analysis of other organizations and offered strategic and project plans.

“The education I’m getting helped us do the entire USP project, which was as much about organizational development and change as about Web development,” he said. “I already had the technical knowledge, but I don’t think I could have done as good a job with that project if it hadn’t been for the UMUC education.”

In fact, Schultz attributes NetStrategies’ success to the way it blends technology with comprehensive business solutions—which is why his UMUC studies gave the company an edge.

“We realized our skills were not just functional from a technical perspective, but we had the ability to build companies,” he said.

Closer to home, Schultz sought to balance work, school, and personal time with his wife, Teresa. At times, he has managed to combine his responsibilities, using his classroom knowledge to help Teresa, a regional marketing director for a division of Estee Lauder, with her own work.

“When we talk together, we see a lot of my coursework in her business, as well,” he said.

While Schultz described his life-balancing act as “a bit of a wild ride,” he said he wouldn’t give up school for anything.

“I’m very encouraged by what I’m leaning and how I apply that to what I do every day,” he said. “I’ve been very impressed by the faculty at UMUC, all true experts in their fields. That type of experience you simply aren’t going to get by just going about your business in your career.”