One more semester to go, and then it's graduation day
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Moe Hachem
- August 27, 2025
One more semester to go, and then it’s graduation day.
And unless something goes terribly wrong, I’m on track to graduate with high honors.
Just wrapped up an intense few months diving deep into global strategy, value creation, pricing, supply chains, operations, and customer segmentation - all under real-world time pressure and team dynamics.
From live debates about Coke vs. Pepsi to decisions on where to locate production to maximize ROI - this semester was a crash course in navigating global complexity with focus and discipline.
The final stretch
The capstone? A multi-year market entry sim project focused on Latin America.
We built strategy across marketing, ops, and finance - aligning channel mix, production, pricing, and ad spend across multiple decision cycles.
We pressure-tested theory, weighed tradeoffs, navigated fires and pivots. A true trial by fire.
We reined it in. Created a data-driven (and data-informed) model. Grew our cumulative net contribution by 950%. And developed a forecasting tool that could predict return on sales within a solid confidence range.
We essentially created semblance of order out of data chaos.
And honestly?
I didn’t expect to enjoy it this much, but I did. I loved it.
Lessons I’m carrying forward
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Data is gold, but not king
Judgment, context, and disagreement matter just as much. -
Integration wins
Ops, marketing, and strategy only click when they reinforce each other. -
Simplicity scales
Expansion is tempting, but focus is what drives sustainable gains. -
Margins > growth-at-all-costs
Sometimes, saying no is the smartest decision. -
Systems thinking beats silo thinking
Every decision creates ripple effects, inside and outside the org.
One more semester to go.
The goal: finish strong and graduate by year’s end.
Tired? Absolutely, but also proud, grateful, and more prepared than ever for what’s next.
