In this episode of Conversations on Careers & Professional Life, we go inside the Autumn Quarter Integrated Case Competition at the Foster School of Business—a one-week sprint where MBA teams analyze an acquisition case, submit a written recommendation, and deliver a 25-minute presentation to faculty, alumni, and industry judges.

I speak with three students from finalist teams:

 * Nat Fernandes (Class of 2027) – whose team placed third, emphasizing early alignment and organized execution.

 * Josh Gonzales (Class of 2027) – part of the second-place team, highlighting team cohesion built from day one and the importance of energetic delivery.

 * Andrew Parriot (Class of 2027) – from the winning team, reflecting on iteration, practice, and transforming earlier missteps into strength.

We discuss: • How teams approached analysis, collaboration, and slide design • The value of early relationship-building and role clarity • The pressure and payoff of presenting to the entire class • What these students learned about communication, strategy, and themselves along the way

A great listen for prospective MBAs, current students preparing for next year, and anyone curious about how high-performing teams deliver under tight deadlines.

Students Reflect on Foster MBA Core Case Competition

On this episode I share a principle that shows up again and again in great communication but is often overlooked by professionals: you have to earn attention before you earn understanding.

Too many presentations, meetings, and messages begin with dense context, background, or data. But audiences don't start in "information-processing mode." They start in attention mode — scanning for relevance. If the opening doesn't grab them, the content that follows doesn't land.

The core idea of this episode is simple but transformative: Engage first. Then inform.

Attention Is the Gatekeeper

We live in a world of constant distraction. Phones buzz, inboxes refill, and meetings stack back-to-back. You can't assume your audience is ready to absorb information the moment you begin.

That's why starting with engagement is essential. As the episode puts it, if the first thing your audience hears is a spreadsheet, a data table, or a wall of bullets, "their brains will tune out before the thinking begins."

Engagement isn't entertainment — it's a form of cognitive kindness. It tells your audience: Stay with me. This matters.

What Engagement Really Means

Engagement doesn't require charisma or theatrics. Instead, it's about delivering an emotional or intellectual spark that primes the brain for meaning.

In the episode, you highlight several practical ways to create that spark:

 * Start with a story — even a single sentence can establish stakes or human connection.

 * Lead with a recommendation — clarity itself is engaging.

 * Share a surprising fact — novelty triggers curiosity.

 * Pose a thought-provoking question — questions pull the audience mentally into the conversation.

 * Create simple tension — the gap between "where things are" and "where things could be."

These techniques aren't gimmicks. They are proven attention triggers that open the door for the logic and evidence that come next.

Why Engagement Works

The episode lays out the psychology clearly: engagement activates emotion, and emotion primes the brain for comprehension.

This echoes Aristotle's frameworks — Pathos sets the stage for Logos. When your audience feels something — interest, tension, surprise — they become more open to understanding and retaining information.

Engagement isn't a bonus. It's the bridge between attention and insight.

Then Inform: Delivering the Content

Once you've earned attention, now you can deliver the substance. The episode reinforces a familiar structure for this phase:

 1. Lead with the key recommendation

 2. Share the top supporting reasons

 3. Present only the evidence necessary to make the case

Engage First, Then Inform: A Better Way to Start Any Communication

Structure isn't a formatting exercise. It's the foundation of every clear, persuasive communication. Whether you're giving a presentation, writing an email, or leading a meeting, structure is the difference between an idea that gets ignored and an idea that creates action.

In the latest episode of Conversations on Careers and Professional Life, we explore why structure matters so profoundly — and how leaders, students, and professionals can use it to communicate with more clarity and impact.

Why Structure Matters

Human beings aren't wired to process information in random fragments. We make sense of the world through stories — beginnings, middles, and ends.

As you put it in the episode, we're not "data digesters"; we're storytellers. And when communication wanders, attention wanders with it.

A clear structure reduces cognitive friction. It guides your audience through the idea. It shows respect for their time and sets you apart as someone who thinks and leads with intention.

The Universal Arc: Beginning → Middle → End

The classic story shape applies perfectly to business communication:

 * Beginning: What's the point?

 * Middle: Why does it matter?

 * End: What should we do?

In practice, this means starting with your main idea — the recommendation, insight, or conclusion — and only then walking people through the reasoning.

This mirrors the Pyramid Principle, but it also aligns with how executives think: give me the destination first, then show me the path.

A Simple Structure That Works Everywhere: What → So What → Now What

You referenced Matt Abrahams' framework from Think Faster, Talk Smarter [https://fastersmarter.io]:

 * What: The headline or central idea

 * So What: The significance — why it matters

 * Now What: The implication or action

This structure keeps communication focused and future-oriented. It helps audiences quickly understand context, importance, and next steps. And when you use it, people stop interrupting with "What's your point?" because you've already answered it.

Slide Structure: One Idea, One Message

Every slide should tell a mini-story:

 * A clear title that states the point, not a topic

 * A single idea supported by one graph, chart, or set of bullets

 * Visuals that reinforce your narrative rather than compete with it

The slide is scaffolding — not the building. Your voice delivers the narrative; the slide supports it.

Meeting Structure: Avoid the Rudderless Hour

Unstructured meetings drift. Structured meetings decide.

A simple three-bullet agenda can turn an hour-long discussion into a 20-minute decision. Before any meeting, ask:

 1. What's the goal?

 2. What's the sequence that gets us there?

 3. What decisions or actions do we need?

Structure creates momentum, momentum creates clarity, and clarity creates action.

Editing as Structural Discipline

Editing is structuring. This is where Chekhov's Gun becomes a communication tool: remove anything that doesn't serve the message.

Ask: If I cut this sentence, slide, or data point, does the meaning change? If not, remove it.

Editing isn't erasing work — it's generosity. It gives your audience time and brings clarity. Remember the ABCs!

A Simple Method for Structuring Anything

 1. Identify your main point.

 2. List two or three reasons that support it.

 3. Add only the evidence necessary to prove those reasons.

 4. Arrange it in a natural sequence — then cut everything else.

It's deceptively simple, but rarely done well — and that's why it stands out.

The Leadership Signal

Ultimately, st

Structure Matters: Why Good Ideas Need Great Organization

On this episode, I cover the ABCs of professional communication, just as I teach them to my MBA students.

One of the simplest ways to elevate your professional communication—whether you're writing an email, pitching a strategy, or presenting to senior leaders—is to filter your message through three words: Active, Brief, and Clear.

They sound basic, almost obvious. But in practice, they create a powerful discipline that separates high-quality communicators from everyone else.

Active: Own the Message

Active communication is energetic, direct, and accountable. It starts with the choice to use active voice—"We analyzed the data" instead of "The data was analyzed"—but it goes beyond grammar.

Being active signals leadership. It tells your audience who is responsible, what action is being taken, and why it matters. It brings confidence to your tone, clarity to your reasoning, and momentum to your message.

Brief: Respect Attention

Being brief isn't about cutting until your message feels hollow. It's about stripping away anything that dilutes the point.

In a world full of competing priorities and overloaded inboxes, brevity is a form of respect. Shorter sentences, concrete words, clear slide titles, and focused agendas make your message easier to absorb—and easier to act on.

Brevity doesn't mean simplicity of thought; it means simplicity of delivery. You're curating the signal, not broadcasting the whole noise.

Clear: Make Understanding Effortless

Clarity is the culmination of the first two principles. When your message is active and brief, clarity emerges naturally—but it still needs intention.

Clear communication uses plain language, not jargon. It uses structure—beginning, middle, end—to guide your audience. It uses formatting and visual hierarchy to make information scannable. Above all, it ensures that your audience never wonders: What does this mean, and what should I do with it?

Clarity is not optional. It's the price of admission for influencing decisions.

Why ABC Matters

When communication is active, brief, and clear, it's easier to trust—and harder to misunderstand. Your audience feels more confident in you. They're more likely to remember your message. And they're far more likely to act.

Whether you're writing a memo, drafting a slide deck, or speaking in a meeting, the ABCs give you a repeatable way to refine your thinking and elevate your delivery.

Active shows ownership. Brief shows respect. Clear shows mastery.

Together, they define the core of effective business communication.

The ABCs of Professional Communication: Active Brief And Clear

Logos, Ethos, Pathos: The Ancient Keys to Modern Persuasion

In this episode of Conversations on Communication, I explore three timeless principles that sit at the heart of all persuasive communication: Logos, Ethos, and Pathos.

They come from Aristotle, but their power is as relevant today in an MBA classroom, a boardroom, or a client meeting as it was in ancient Athens. When you learn to apply these three deliberately, your messages become sharper, more credible, and more emotionally resonant.

Logos: The Logic of Your Argument

Logos is the appeal to logic — the structure and reasoning that makes your audience think, "Yes, that makes sense."

It's not only about data; it's about connection. Logos ensures that every statement you make clearly links to the conclusion you want your audience to draw. Facts, analysis, and evidence give your message weight, but they need to form a coherent chain of reasoning.

In business, Logos often appears through charts, models, and financial analysis. But data alone doesn't persuade — logic does. The strongest communicators make the relationship between evidence and recommendation unmistakable.

"We recommend expanding into Austin because customer adoption is 25% higher and logistics costs are 30% lower than comparable markets."

That single "because" captures the essence of Logos.

A final note: too much data can obscure your message. Your job isn't to share everything you know; it's to make the most important facts impossible to ignore.

Ethos: The Credibility of the Speaker

Ethos is the appeal to credibility and character. It answers the question, "Why should I trust you?"

Your Ethos comes from more than your credentials. It's built through tone, preparation, and consistency. It's how you show that you've done your homework, that you understand the audience's world, and that your insights come from care as well as competence.

You build Ethos when you say,

"We didn't have complete customer data for the past two quarters, so we supplemented it with qualitative interviews to strengthen our understanding."

That blend of honesty and diligence communicates credibility.

Ethos is also shaped by how you sound and carry yourself. A steady pace, deliberate pauses, and confident posture project competence. Silence, used well, communicates confidence. People decide whether to trust you long before they evaluate your argument — so make sure your delivery earns that trust.

Pathos: The Emotion of Connection

Pathos is the emotional appeal — the part of communication that makes people care.

Logic makes people think, but emotion makes them act.

Pathos doesn't mean manipulation; it means connecting your message to human values, hopes, or fears. It's about showing why your recommendation matters beyond the numbers.

"This expansion could help 10,000 small businesses reach new customers and create jobs in underserved communities."

The data might stay the same, but the emotional frame transforms how people receive i

Logos, Ethos, Pathos: The Ancient Keys to Modern Persuasion

In this episode of Conversations on Careers and Professional Life, I explire one of the most powerful frameworks for structuring clear, persuasive business communication: the Minto Pyramid Principle.

The framework, created by Barbara Minto at McKinsey, is a simple but transformative way to organize ideas. Think of your communication as a pyramid:

 * At the top is your main point — your recommendation, your answer, your “so what.”

 * Beneath that are the supporting arguments — the key reasons your audience should agree with or believe your main point.

 * At the base are the evidence and details — the facts, data, and analysis that give those arguments weight.

The beauty of the Pyramid Principle is that it works at every level. Your entire presentation can follow it, each section within your presentation can follow it, and even each individual slide can follow it. Every idea should ladder up neatly to the one above it.

Why does this matter? Because most presentations and meetings fail not because the ideas are bad, but because the structure is confusing. When you cram multiple ideas into a single slide, include disconnected data, or bury the lead, your audience can’t follow the story.

If everything is important, nothing is important.

The Pyramid Principle forces you to make choices. It asks: What’s the single most important point I want my audience to remember if they leave after five minutes? That’s the point that belongs at the top of the pyramid. Everything else exists to serve that idea—or it doesn’t belong.

Here’s how to apply it. Start with your answer—your key recommendation. Imagine that the most senior person in the room gets a phone call and leaves six minutes into your presentation. If they walk out then, will they know what you’re recommending? Don’t make your audience wait until slide 17 to find out your point. Put it right up front.

Then, support it with your major premises—ideally three. There’s a reason consultants love the “rule of three.” Research shows that once you go beyond three supporting points, credibility actually drops. Four or five reasons feel like overkill; three feels complete.

For example:

“We recommend launching the pilot in Austin—because customer adoption is highest, operational costs are lowest, and the competitive landscape is still open.”

That single sentence is a mini pyramid: a clear main point supported by three reasons. Each reason could then become a section, a slide, or even a paragraph of an email—each with its own evidence and analysis.

Finally, check that every piece of content—every chart, bullet, and image—supports one of those reasons. If it doesn’t, cut it. Anton Chekhov said, “If there’s a gun on the wall in Act I, it must go off by Act III. If it’s not going to be fired, take it down.” The same is true for your slides: if it doesn’t serve your main point, it shouldn’t be there.

Common pitfalls?

 * St

Start with the Answer: The Minto Pyramid Principle

The AIM Framework: The Compass for Every Communication”

Welcome to Conversations on Careers and Professional Life, on this series, I’m going to turn lessons from my MBA course, Professional Communication into practical insights you can use every day.

I’m Gregory Heller, and today we’re diving into one of the simplest—but most powerful—tools in communication, professional or otherwise: the AIM Framework, outlined by Lynn Russell and Mary Munter.

AIM stands for Audience, Intent, and Message.

It’s a framework I teach in the very first session of my Professional Communication course, and it’s one that I come back to again and again—because it works in every context: from team meetings to emails, from case competitions to C-suite presentations.

Let’s start with the “A”—Audience.

Before you draft a slide, write an email, or step into a meeting, ask yourself: Who am I communicating with?

What do they already know? What do they care about? What do they need to hear—not what do I need to say?

As communicators, it’s tempting to start with our own perspective: what we want to share, the details we think are important. But effective communication begins with empathy.

When I teach this to my MBA students, I often remind them: if you’re presenting to your project sponsor, that’s one audience. But at your final presentation, you might have ten new people in the room—the sponsor’s boss, colleagues, maybe other stakeholders.

You need to know who those people are and what matters to them.

At work, the same principle applies. A CFO and a Head of Marketing might look at the same data and see completely different stories. If you haven’t thought about your audience, you’re leaving understanding—and influence—up to chance.

So before you even open PowerPoint or start writing, take five minutes to analyze your audience. Who are they? What’s their level of expertise? What are they motivated by? And how do they prefer to receive information—visually, verbally, through numbers, through stories?

That’s the first step: know your audience.

Next is “I”—Intent.

Intent is your purpose. It’s your North Star.

What do you want your audience to do, say, or think after you communicate?

It sounds simple, but this is where so many messages go off course.

If you don’t know your intent, you can’t design your message.

Do you want approval? Understanding? Action? Alignment?

Think of intent as the destination for your message. You can’t land the plane if you don’t know where the runway is.

When I talk with students about this, I often use an example:

Imagine your boss calls you at 5:30 in the morning about a project problem. You’re half-awake and you start talking before you’ve thought through what you want to say. That’s when our thinking outruns our speaking—and that’s when we say things we wish we hadn’t.

Intent brings focus.

Before responding, pause. Take a breath. Ask yourself: What outcome am I trying to achieve here?

The most confident communicators don’t speak first—they think first.

So that’s step two: be intentional about your purpose.

Finally, the “M”—Message.

Only after you understand your audience and your intent can you craft the right message.

Too often, we do this backwards. We start by writing the email, designing the slide deck, or outlining the talk—and then try to retrofit it to the audience.

But when you’ve done the first two steps, your message becomes sharper and simpler. You know what to include—and, just as importantly, what to leave out.

This is where clarity, concision, and structure come in. Every message should have a clear beginning, middle, and end. As I tell my students, “If you can’t say what you’re trying to say in one iPhone screen of text, it’s pro

The AIM Framework

On this episode, I talk about something that comes up all the time in my coaching sessions with MBA students—and that’s networking. I've talked about it before on the podcast on episode 1202 "Reframe the way you think about networking and asking for help" I'll drop a link in the show notes.  I encourage you to go back and give that one a listen.

 

As generative AI has proliferated on both sides of the job search with candidates using it to submit more and more customized applications, and recruiters using it to filter through piles of hundreds or thousands of applicants, relationships are once again increasingly important in learning about opportunities before they are public, and securing interview invites.

 

So many job seekers have what I call the hunter/gatherer mindset in their job search: they scour job boards for opportunities, and submit applications.  I would encourage anyone in an active job search -- or anyone who thinks they might be in an active job search in the next 6 to 18 months, to adopt what I call the gardener mindset.

 

Let’s dig in. (no pun intended)

 

If you’re like many MBA students—or honestly, professionals at any stage—you may have a complicated relationship with networking.

You know you’re supposed to do it. You’ve heard it's important.

But maybe it feels awkward. Transactional. A little sleezy even. I picture Christian Bale as Patrick Bateman in American Psycho with his heavy-bond embossed business card.

 

Maybe you don’t want to “bother” people. Or maybe you're waiting until you have a clear goal or ask before reaching out.

I get it. That hesitation is totally normal.

But here’s the thing—networking is not a one-time transaction. It’s not about reaching out only when you need something. It’s not just about collecting contacts on linkedin like pokemon cards.

Networking—effective, sustainable, authentic networking—is about building relationships over time.

That’s where the gardener mindset comes in.

 

Imagine you're a gardener.

You don’t just toss seeds into the dirt one day and expect to harvest a salad the next.

 

You prepare the soil. You plant a variety of seeds. You water them. You protect them from frost. You wait. You come back to check on them. Sometimes they sprout. Sometimes they don’t. Different plants mature on different schedules. Some may require years before you are ready to harvest anything.

 

Think Like A Gardener

On this episode, I speak with Lorraine Rise, career coach, founder and CEO of Career UpRising and host of the Career UpRising podcast. With a background in federal recruiting, Lorraine has spent a decade empowering mid- and late-career professionals through career pivots and values-driven job searches.

We explore:

 1. Redefining Networking Learn how shifting from transactional outreach to authentic relationship-building can unlock access to the hidden job market—especially valuable for MBA students and early-career professionals.

 2. Values‑Driven Job Search Lorraine shares her framework for aligning job searches with personal values and company culture—essential for sustained career satisfaction and resilience.

 3. Smart Use of Generative AI in The Career Search and Preparation From using tools like Perplexity for in-depth employer research to leveraging AI-enabled editing tools (not full writing), Lorraine explains how to stay human and personalized in your job applications.

🗝️ Top Takeaways

 * Cultivate Deep Networks Investing in meaningful relationships leads to job opportunities that don’t appear on public platforms.

 * Anchor Your Career in Purpose A values-aligned job search ensures long-term engagement and less burnout.

 * Augment with AI, Don’t Automate Use tools like Perplexity to research roles and AI editors to refine application materials—while preserving your unique voice

🔗 Resources & Links

 * Career UpRising Podcast [https://www.careeruprising.com/podcast] – Lorraine’s podcast, and my appearance on her show [https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/being-qualified-isnt-enough-with-gregory-heller/id1375805457?i=1000710884108].

 * Career UpRising Website [https://www.careeruprising.com]

 * Lorraine on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorrainerise/]

 * Perplexity AI

Lorraine Rise on the Hidden Job Market, Networking, Values Based Careers, and Using AI in the Job Search

It’s May, and for many of you, that means graduation. Whether you’re finishing your MBA or completing another academic journey, this is a moment filled with possibility—and uncertainty. Especially in today’s job market, it’s natural to feel some anxiety about what comes next.

To support you in your job search, I want to point you to a few episodes from the back catalog that offer practical tools and strategies to help you navigate this transition.

First up: Steve Dalton [https://conversationsoncareers.com/2hjs], author of The 2-Hour Job Search. In our conversation, he breaks down a step-by-step approach to landing interviews efficiently—even in a tough market.

If you’re looking to up your LinkedIn game, check out my interview with Jeremy Schifeling [https://conversationsoncareers.com/linked], co-author of Linked: Conquer LinkedIn, Get Your Dream Job, Own Your Future. He shares insider tips from his time at LinkedIn and how to stand out online.

Jeremy also returned to the podcast more recently to talk about how job seekers can use generative AI tools like ChatGPT [https://conversationsoncareers.com/2024/09/jeremy-schifeling-on-using-generative-ai-in-your-career-search/] to improve résumés, write better outreach messages, and streamline the job search.

Along those lines, Ryan Dickerson [https://conversationsoncareers.com/2024/10/ryan-dickerson-career-transitions-relational-networking-and-using-generative-ai/], an executive career coach, joined me to discuss how AI can support career transitions, especially for experienced professionals looking to pivot or reenter the workforce.

And finally, don’t miss my conversation with Priyanka Natrajan [https://conversationsoncareers.com/2023/10/using-yoodli-for-job-interview-practice-with-priyanka-natrajan/], a Foster MBA who used the AI-powered platform Yoodli to practice for internship interviews. It's a great example of how technology can help you build confidence and polish your communication skills.

You can find all these episodes at conversationsoncareers.com [https://conversationsoncareers.com/] or by searching for Conversations on Careers and Professional Life in your favorite podcast app.

Job Search Advice From the Back Catalog For Graduation Season

Conversations on Careers and Professional Life, from the Foster School of Business office of MBA Career Management Host Gregory Heller has conversations with University of Washington and Foster School faculty, staff, alumni, executives, current MBA candidates and other experts relating to career development, planning, and resilience. If you're navigating a career change, pursuing your MBA, or looking to develop a resilient mindset to help you with your job search, this podcast may be for you!

Gregory Heller

Shows