Tony Morash is a UNC Kenan-Flagler School of Business MBA alumni and is now a strategy leader in the defense industry. And like the rest of us, he was not prepared for the whirlwind of uncertainty that struck when Covid-19’s first wave was among us. However, Tony was one of the fortunate ones, as he was working for a company that had a thoughtful and empathetic approach to supporting their employees throughout lockdown. Tony also shares his positive reflections he had about his MBA while he was working remotely from home, as well as answering questions relating to his career transition during Covid-19.
How did the company you worked at handle the initial wave of the pandemic? How did this impact you personally?
Given the uncertainty that came with those early days of the pandemic, my company did well by its employees. The factories and secure facilities had to stay open, so they focused a lot of attention on making those as safe as possible. For the vast majority of us, the company provided a lot of autonomy to make decisions about work from home (before it was company wide policy) and moved quickly once it was clear we had to stay at home. Especially in those early days, there was a lot of consideration for work schedules, childcare, remote needs (technology, equipment, etc.), and I was pretty impressed all around.
What was your thought process around deciding to make a career change? And then, how did the change come about?
I made a career change as things were starting to open generally but while the office environment was still largely remote. I tried to work through the pros and cons of changing roles just like I would any other big move – where is there more opportunity, growth, responsibility? The wildcard was starting a new remote role and working largely separate from my new teammates. Reflecting on my decision to leave my last company, the pandemic undoubtedly contributed to my openness to other opportunities. I enjoy being around people, working through ideas together, and I probably was feeling more disconnected than I wanted to admit after 15 months at home.
How has the last year and a half affected your chosen career?
I’ve been about as fortunate as anyone in that our industry (defense) is relatively insulated to these types of shocks. Our customer is largely the US government, and we were able to work through some of the challenges that did exist much quicker. It does seem like there’s a renewed interest in strategy because there’s increasing competition and desire to take our industry into the next generation in terms of data, technology, and innovation.
Tony’s work priorities have altered since the pandemic. His awareness for his team’s flexibility as well as their circumstances have been taken into high consideration while society slowly opens back up again. While in lockdown, Tony was able to reflect positively on his MBA and how it helped him gain knowledge from management roles. Tony also touched on how he struggled with mental health while in, what felt like a repeated cycle of screen time, making meals and sleeping.
How has the pandemic made you reflect about your MBA?
I spent a lot of time reflecting on the current MBA situation more than my own! Especially as I changed careers and continue to benefit from my MBA and the management consulting role I took after school, I have nothing but positive views of the MBA. But I truly feel for the students who had to go through a year or two of distance learning, work through an unprecedented internship and job search.
There are individuals who obviously faced many great challenges in the pandemic, and I’m not comparing by any means. But those must have been extremely difficult circumstances for folks who came out of the workforce looking to accelerate their careers, build networks, and learn in-person only to be stuck in something unpredictable like this.
Returning to the office, what are some of your priorities when it comes to your work environment, or workplace benefits?
The clear message is that the team wants flexibility. All but two of my team will continue to work fully remote once we return to the office in September. I have a few priorities I’m thinking about. First is to make sure that I’m working to respect each individual’s circumstances. We proved this year that we can be productive and accountable working from home, and we should honor that going forward. The second, sometimes opposing, priority is to continue to build a cohesive team. Even if we’re on chat / Skype / Slack all day, the idea flow is just different. I have to think really hard about using the tools available to build a team that mirrors what we would have in person. Those dynamics are critical to strategy teams, in my experience.
Was work harder or easier to do while quarantine was going on?
In aggregate, it was much harder for me. I enjoy the flexibility, love being around while my daughter is growing up in front of my eyes, but the work part has been hard. I work my best when I’m integrating information, and to do that I need to be listening, talking to folks, sharpening my ideas and even the words I use. I felt like I was doing a lot more of that thinking and synthesis in a vacuum, and that was difficult for me. I spent a lot of time on the phone with my peers and analysts trying to think through things together, but it never quite replicated the rigor that I like to have.
Were you fearful of what would happen to your health and well-being during the pandemic? Did it affect the way you work?
For the vast majority I was not, thankfully. I did have some dark days, particularly in the fall and early winter, where I felt like I was only leaving the desk to eat, workout, and sleep. The energy to reach out to new folks in my company and industry to continue to grow my network and career was basically gone. Those were difficult months for my mental health and well-being. I was pretty hard on myself because I felt like it was largely self-inflicted too – that I just needed to snap out of it, and I could go back to normal. I think, unfortunately, that was a pretty common experience for a lot of folks who enjoy their work and want to do well in their careers.
Was it a challenge to switch to work completely remote?
The initial change was so abrupt that I don’t know that we had a choice but to make it as smooth as possible. In fact, I think the first two weeks felt a little bit like an extended snow day – folks were sort of worried but generally happy they got to work in sweatpants, avoid the commute, etc. We didn’t know how long it was going to go on for, so it probably wasn’t until month two when we had to settle in and contemplate that this was going to be our lifestyle for a while. Once that came about, the transition had largely been made!
Written by: Julia Posz