About Us
Student & Alumni Profiles
Luke Fuszard, HBS/HKS 2010
Business Approaches to Social Impact
I first became interested in the topic of corporate social responsibility when I was an undergrad at the University of Texas, writing my senior thesis on the role of business in society. When I joined Cisco Systems after college I was actively seeking a large Fortune 100 company that had a strong philanthropic presence, not only among its employees but across the globe. I started off as a sales person and then eventually transitioned to a role where we helped establish for-profit academies in Africa and the Middle East that partnered with various country governments to train future engineers on router and switch technologies. So in addition to being a successful venture monetarily, it also built good will in countries like Tanzania, Ghana, and Jordan. Since I've come to HBS, that program has grown tenfold.
HBS Community
Because my career path was not necessarily heading towards the standard corporate role, I thought HBS, in addition to its overall general management curriculum, would be a great way to learn valuable leadership skills to bring people together for a common goal. And the opportunity to learn from people who have had amazing successes in the private and public sectors has been tremendous.
I've also really enjoyed my role in working with the CSR group within the Social Enterprise Club. I'm part of the internal-facing team that is focused on bringing CSR into the curriculum while also enhancing the knowledge and engagement of student, faculty, and staff around this issue. I'm enrolled in the joint degree program with the Harvard Kennedy School in part because I know they have a fantastic CSR program; I'd like to bring everything together and perhaps do an independent project or write a case that will be added to the HBS curriculum. This summer, I'll be working as a senior consultant for the Governor of Wisconsin before returning to HBS for my last year of studies. I'm not completely certain what I'll be doing when I graduate, but I'm interested in returning to Wisconsin to work for the Special Olympics.
