Alum Takes on Smith’s Three "C"s for MBA Class of 2010

The MBA Class of 2010 heard from Dontá L. Wilson, MBA ’05, the keynote speaker during lunch on the first day of the weeklong orientation events. Wilson, president of BB&T’s $2.5 billion Northern Virginia Battlefield region, spoke to students about taking advantage of their Smith experience, in particular the three “C”s that define the theme of this incoming class — curriculum, career and community.

Wilson encouraged students to take advantage of all the opportunities at the Smith School and the strength of the MBA program curriculum.

“Smith is going to teach you how to think,” he said. “They’re going to teach you how to not only think, but how to apply and then create value. You must take advantage of that.”

Wilson spoke about the value he got from his Smith education and the network he built while in the MBA program. He counts many of his former classmates as business associates today. He also spoke about the career he built from what he learned as Smith – the second “C”.

“Your purpose, your contribution, can be economical and it can be profitable,” Wilson said. “Why not profit from your purpose?”

Wilson encouraged students to determine their life’s purpose by pinpointing their talents and desires — what they’d be doing if they didn’t need to be paid and if they had no fear of failing. “Find your purpose, then choose a job that aligns with your purpose, and you’ll make more money than you ever imagined, because you’ll be better at it.”

Finally, Wilson talked about the community at Smith and the importance of creating what he called a “winning circle” of people in your network. “Your network determines your net worth,” he said.

Wilson stressed that a “winning circle” should include three groups: “Been-theres,” mentors with the wisdom to give advice; “Going-theres,” allies that you can leverage; and “Want-to-go-theres,” those below you who you can mentor and count as advocates for life.

Wilson shared a personal story of how he mentored one junior employee with extra help on the weekends going over cash-flows. The banker mastered the concepts and went on to quickly worked his way up through BB&T and now he and Wilson work closely together. He has returned Wilson’s favor on several occasions, providing valuable assistance on key projects and a welcome bonus for Wilson for his help.

Above all, Wilson asked the MBAs to take advantage of all Smith has to offer to add up to strong curriculum, career direction and sense of community.

“If you do that, I promise you this will be the best experience you ever have in your life. I know this was one of the best experiences I ever had in my life.”

Wilson joined BB&T in October 1995 while in college and worked in bank operations, working his way up to the position he now holds. He is co-founder and CEO of Wilson Capital Management, a multimillion-dollar real estate holding company. He also is a member of the Smith School’s Board of Visitors and serves on the boards and committees of several nonprofit organizations.