Jordan Davidson Pursues Business Interests in Fuqua’s New MMS Program

Hello Duke fans!  This month I wanted to highlight the Fuqua School of Business’ new “MMS: Foundations of Business” program and one of the first students to ever enroll in it… our own Jordan Davidson.  Over the course of nine months, Jordan and his classmates will learn the fundamentals of finance, accounting, marketing, strategy, operations, decision analysis, and management, expanding their career options with a broad skill set.   The MMS program is taught by Fuqua’s No. 1-ranked faculty (according to BusinessWeek) and students have access to Fuqua’s world-class Career Management Center.   To give you a better idea about the program and Jordan’s experiences so far, our fifth-year guard answered a few questions…

What have been the biggest differences between your undergrad work and your experiences in the MMS program?
It’s been the time that is necessary to dedicate to out-of-class work.  My professors expect you to be really prepared for every class.  Not that they didn’t have that expectation in undergrad, but it is paramount in this program because of “cold calling.”  You have a name tag in class and you don’t raise your hand to participate.  They just call on you randomly.

How have you adjusted to the MMS curriculum?
Fuqua has the No. 1 faculty of any business school in the country so that’s great.  Since we have so many students who have majors like mine (psychology) that don’t necessarily involve a business background, they baby-step you through the curriculum first and then they take you to a Master’s level.  In other words, they start out explaining the fundamentals and then they take you pretty deep into the intricacies of finance, marketing, strategy and different aspects of business.

You’ve taken six courses now.  Which has been the toughest and which have you enjoyed the most?
The toughest one has been finance.  It’s one of the three I am in this term.  Being a psychology major, I never focused much on quantitative studies and finance is almost solely quantitative.  It has been the biggest challenge but it has been great learning about managing portfolios and things like that.  My favorite class is also one I am in this term called “Business Strategy.”  Will Mitchell teaches it and we look at different case studies involving domestic, European, and some Asian businesses.  We look at their strategies for expansion and breaking into new markets so it’s been interesting.

Students in the MMS program come from a variety of backgrounds and majors.  How has that impacted your studies so far at Fuqua?
They do come from all kinds of different backgrounds and schools.  I think we have about 60 Duke graduates and 40 from Ivy League schools and various other colleges.  They come from Econ backgrounds to psychology backgrounds like myself, to anthropology backgrounds, and more.  That makes for a diverse classroom and an interesting set of experiences.

How does the program challenge you to be a leader and how have your basketball experiences helped you in that capacity?
Fuqua is what they call a “team school.”  You are divided into five-person teams.  You do half your course work in those teams and the other half on individual basis.  Being able to collaborate in these teams in a productive manner is important, and the team leader switches every project.  Being able to lead your team when it comes time is a lot like this team setting and what I’ve learned from Coach.  The skills that he and the program have equipped me with really help in those settings just getting everything done and organized, and being able to motivate your team to work productively together.

Have you guys done any interesting projects or events to help build leadership and camaraderie?
We went to a campground and did various leadership-oriented physical challenges.  We did the ropes course and different relay races and things of that nature.  It was a fun day.  You got to know your teammates better.

Where will we see Jordan Davidson five years from now?
Hopefully I will be partnered with one my teammates and will have opened my own business by then, maybe with Zoubs, and hopefully making some money somewhere.

If Coach K were to teach over at Fuqua as part of this program, what would you name the title of his course?
Leadership 101: Just Get It Done.  He would be an unbelievable businessman!

“The MMS program, like all of Fuqua’s programs, places a huge emphasis on the ability to work in teams. Fuqua’s students are a team in every sense of the word: the program design and rigor of the academic experience require them to work together; they share a common goal for success; they understand individual achievement enhances the entire team; and they fully embrace placing the good of the team before their own self-interest.

Having a student like Jordan in the program clearly is a tremendous asset to the MMS experience, as he brings an outstanding sense of teamwork to the program.  As a student and an athlete, he models the behavior Fuqua aspires for in MMS students.  Further, Jordan is an extremely generous and collaborative member of the Duke community, making an outstanding contribution as a teammate in the classroom as well as on the court.”

Kathie Amato (Associate Dean for MMS Program)