Oral Histories

Videos

Barbara Hackman Franklin

(HRPBA 1963, MBA 1964)

I really think that the whole business school experience — and now I'm talking about both years — taught me to think in a way I hadn't before. Taught me to solve problems, be willing to be analytic, solve problems, and then take action. So it was a question of really learning how to think in a new way that has stuck with me, and has been very important to my career.

Barbara Hackman Franklin created the first White House effort to recruit women into government, was one of the original commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission and was US Secretary of Commerce (1992-93). She is currently President and CEO of Barbara Franklin Enterprises, an international trade consulting firm.

Barbara Hackman Franklin, HRPBA 1963, MBA 1964. Interview by Jeffrey C. Cruikshank, January 9, 2008.
HBS Archives. Baker Library Historical Collections. Harvard Business School.

Joan Colligan

(HRPBA 1963, MBA 1964)

The program, as far as I was concerned, was a wonderful, wonderful opportunity for young women to learn about a world that they would not necessarily have been exposed to either then, or now. And gave them the foundations, and the basic functions of an organization that would allow them to move into the corporate world, or the not-for-profit world, as it is today, and function perfectly well.

Joan Colligan serves as an independent consultant to corporations and non-profit organizations. She previously served as an Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company, Inc., as Vice President Marketing/Planning and Research for CBS/Sony Music Entertainment and as Managing Consultant of the Training and Organizational practice within The Human Resource Partnership (TRP), LLC. Her work has appeared in company and industry publications, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Joan Colligan, HRPBA 1963, MBA 1964. Interview by Jeffrey C. Cruikshank, June 13, 2008.
HBS Archives. Baker Library Historical Collections. Harvard Business School.

Judy L. Allen

(HRPBA 1962, MBA 1963)

I never gave it a blink about not going directly to the second year, if I had the opportunity. I just felt like it would be such an enhancement to my experience level. And I have found in life that it has opened extreme doors for me that I would never have had the opportunity — which may come out in this interview — to pursue.

Judy Ley Allen serves as the Co-Manager of Allen Investments and Manager of Ley Investments. She served on the Federal Reserve Board of Dallas from 1999-2006, and as Chairman of The Round Table of the James A. Baker, IV, Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. Judy Ley Allen was also appointed to the Cultural Arts Council of Houston by former Mayor Kathy Whitmire and has served on the boards of the Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Museum of Fine Arts and the Houston Ballet.

Judy L. Allen, HRPBA 1962, MBA 1963. Interview by Jeffrey C. Cruikshank, June 17, 2008.
HBS Archives. Baker Library Historical Collections. Harvard Business School.

Sara B. Wilkinson

(HRPBA 1959, MBA 1960)

I was, obviously, aware of the fact that we were the first ones to get into the program. I didn't have any classes with the other two women. But I didn't find any trouble. The men in the classes were friendly. They all, of course, were in sections, and study groups, and things, but if I needed a study group I could talk with them.

Sara B. Wilkinson was one of the first three women to receive an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1960. Wilkinson worked at IBM both before and after earning her MBA. During her career at IBM, the 360 mainframe computer system was announced which she was asked to teach in her branch. She retired in 1992 as a liaison between programming groups and the then head contractor on the Space Station.

Sara B. Wilkinson, HRPBA 1959, MBA 1960. Interview by Jeffrey C. Cruikshank, June 17, 2008.
HBS Archives. Baker Library Historical Collections. Harvard Business School.

Excerpts from the Women at HBS Oral History Collection, 2008, Baker Library Historical Collections, Harvard Business School. Inquiries regarding research use of the collection should be directed to Baker Library Historical Collections at histcollref@hbs.edu. Copyright © 2013 President and Fellows of Harvard College.