24 UB School of Management MBAs earn LeaderCORE certification

By Kevin Manne

BUFFALO, N.Y. —  The University at Buffalo School of Management awarded LeaderCORE™ certification to 24 MBA students in a ceremony on April 11 on UB’s North Campus. 

This is the 14th group to complete LeaderCORE, an exclusive leadership development program that spans the entire two years of the UB MBA experience. In total, 548 UB MBA students have earned LeaderCORE certification since the program was established in 2012.

A winner of the MBA Roundtable Innovator Award, LeaderCORE gives students the opportunity to study and navigate real-world business situations while developing a set of clearly identified leadership competencies. 

This year’s graduates are: Mirka Arevalo, Lizzy Bock, Rupsha Choudhury, Lauren Daniele, Amma Darkwah, Brandon Ferrigno, Talia Fuld, Alagie Gassama, Emma Gielas, Harlain Gill, Deepak Hasyagar, Neha Korati, Ashish Kumar, Prasiddhi Patel, Melissa Patino, Kristof Pawelek, Mariam Sadawi, Brihita Saha, Dawn Sakalian, Dylan Schihl, Anirudh Suryanarayan, Madhav Tumuluri, Arianna Wink and Kaelyn Zebraski. 

“LeaderCORE has never been more essential, especially in today’s hybrid workplace where communication skills are critical,” says Marla Kameny, faculty director of the program and clinical assistant professor of organization and human resources in the UB School of Management. “The program helps students make the leap to become professionals and understand what that actually means. It creates opportunities to grow and develop their communication and leadership capabilities.”

LeaderCORE bridges the gap between academic learning and the workplace, focusing on core competencies — such as teamwork, problem solving, adaptability and integrity — considered vital by the business community for effective performance and successful leadership. The program is integrated into every aspect of coursework, career and professional development opportunities, internships and more. 

In their first semester, LeaderCORE students begin their journey with deep self-reflection and personal assessment during which they identify the competencies they wish to strengthen. Each student then creates an individual development plan based on current competencies and career aspirations.

One of the most differentiating features of LeaderCORE is the students’ engagement with a professional coach during their second semester. Through this process, students look back at their development so far, and establish a plan to further develop their leadership skills as they finish their degree and embark on their careers.  

The last step to certification is the certification defense, where candidates are required to present and defend their learning portfolios and provide examples of how they have successfully put their newly developed competencies, at all levels (fundamental, advanced, exemplary), into practice. Each candidate is interviewed by a pair of trained assessors, one from within the school and the other an experienced business executive, who determine the final certification.

External assessors have praised LeaderCORE as a great differentiator for both the school as an institution and for each of the participants. Program graduates receive a micro-credential — a digital badge that houses information validating their newly acquired skills that can be shared on social media, digital résumés and e-portfolios. 

“The program continues to evolve and is highly praised by both employers and students,” says Kameny. “One assessor this year, who is a seasoned HR professional, commented how the students and program have been getting better each year. As someone who recruits from schools all over the country, this assessor noted that not many possess the people skills that our LeaderCORE grads do.”