Matt Pilla, ’23 MS SCM, ’26 MBA: Elevating Military Skills with Business Degrees
Friday, November 8, 2024
After serving in the U.S. Navy for eight years, Matt Pilla transitioned to the medtech industry. However, he wanted to augment his military skills by gaining more business acumen. Pilla, ’23 MS SCM, ’26 MBA, describes how his Carlson School experience transformed his career goals.
What made you decide to pursue a business degree at the Carlson School?
When I got out of the Navy, I started working at Boston Scientific, where the veteran employee resource group invited me to attend a University of Minnesota informational session. I was inspired to learn more about the supply chain field and enrolled in the Master of Science in Supply Chain Management (MS SCM). After completing the program, my career developed differently, and operations became my focus. I truly enjoyed the learning environment at the Carlson School and decided to expand my business acumen further by applying to the Carlson Executive MBA (CEMBA) program in which I am currently enrolled.
How has your military background helped you in the classroom as a business student?
My military background influenced me as a student in some positive ways. For example, I approach tasks more methodically. When faced with a challenge, my nature is to meet it head-on. I often use words like target, mission, and objective when describing schoolwork. Every assignment has an end goal, and having this mental window allows me to be successful as a student, full-time employee, husband, and father of three.
What has been your most valuable Carlson School experience?
The experience where I learned the most was the capstone project for my Master of Science in Supply Chain Management (MS SCM). This project gave me confidence that my ideas and actions can make a significant difference. Working alongside executives also helped me discover I had what it took to handle higher levels of responsibility.
Successful managers will remain coachable and strive to improve their leadership skills throughout their working careers. The Carlson School has tailored its programs with this idea in mind. The professors and associated curriculum promote the idea that leadership can be developed through many topics of study and that it’s a skill set that will remain relevant throughout our professional careers.
How do you feel military veterans are supported at the Carlson School?
I was surprised by the number of veterans who were a part of my first cohort for the MS SCM program. It was roughly 25 percent, and even now, in the CEMBA program, there are several veterans in the first- and second-year cohorts. There is even a specific veteran admissions support team that can answer any questions veterans may have about the application process and how to utilize the education benefits they’ve earned through their years of service.
Program
'23 MS in Supply Chain Management
'26 Executive MBA
Military Service
U.S. Navy
Most Recent Employer and Job Title
Vice President, Operations Execution, Northwest Respiratory Services
The professors and associated curriculum promote the idea that leadership can be developed through many topics of study and that it’s a skill set that will remain relevant throughout our professional careers.
What is your advice for veterans or service members who are considering business school?
If other veterans are doubting their capabilities to go back to school and be successful, I would emphasize that imposter syndrome is a familiar feeling for anyone when transitioning to something new. The military taught us to “fake it until you make it,” and there is some truth to this. Doing the uncomfortable for long enough will eventually dissolve that sense of being an imposter, and I am convinced you will be surprised by what you are capable of.
I have attended classes and networked with PhD students, ER doctors, and company presidents during the two degrees I’ve sought at the Carlson School. The one thing I discovered that I wish I had known earlier is that I could have pursued a career in absolutely anything I had ever imagined, but it was that inner voice that said I was not enough, limiting my potential. This educational environment provides psychological safety and an opportunity to be vulnerable, which can be the catalyst for personal growth.
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