Wie sich der Führungsalltag mit einem MBA-Diplom verändert: Drei Tipps von Claudio Feser

Gewinnen Sie Selbstvertrauen aus dem, was Sie erreicht haben. Hinterfragen Sie weiterhin, was Sie zu wissen glauben. Und behandeln Sie andere Menschen gut. Diese drei Ratschläge gibt Claudio Feser als Associate Dean der Executive School der Universität St.Gallen den Absolventinnen und Absolventen der MBA-Klasse 2026 mit auf den Weg. In seiner Rede zeigt er zudem auf, warum ein MBA-Diplom auf die Toilette gehört.

«Good afternoon, graduating Class of 2026, proud families and friends, distinguished faculty, and the MBA team.

Thirty-five years ago, I sat exactly where you are sitting today.

I remember the excitement.

I remember the pride.

I remember the feeling that, after years of hard work, I had finally achieved something significant.

I also remember there was a graduation speech.

And by the next morning, I had forgotten every word of it. The same thing will probably happen to this speech. But you still have to sit through it, listening to an old guy trying to bestow wisdom on you. So please bear with me.

I am not Steve Jobs.

I am not Jensen Huang.

I have not built a unicorn.

And unlike many commencement speakers, nobody has ever suggested I deserve a Netflix documentary.

So if you were hoping for a story about becoming a billionaire before the age of thirty-five, I am afraid you are in the wrong room.

What I can offer is something different: lessons from a lifetime spent at McKinsey and the University of St. Gallen, where many of the leaders now at the helm of some of the world’s most respected organizations first developed their capabilities.

Today, I would like to leave you with three pieces of advice.

Advice #1: Hang your MBA diploma in the toilet.

Not the guest toilet.

Your toilet. The one you use every day.

I am completely serious.

Today, you have earned an MBA diploma from one of Europe’s most respected universities.

A diploma from HSG carries weight. It comes with tradition, recognition, and prestige. And it comes with status.

It might come across as vanity, but status actually matters.

Status is a well-documented human motive.

Research consistently shows that status is connected to wellbeing, self-esteem, and, importantly, confidence.

So be proud of what you have achieved. You have earned it. Let it give you confidence.

The best leaders I know take risks, make decisions, and act.

Without confidence there is no action.

When you look at your MBA diploma every morning, let it remind you of what you have achieved.

Success however, has a negative habit: of moving the goalposts. There will always be someone richer, faster, smarter, or more successful. Curated LinkedIn posts will make sure of that.

Economists call this positional competition.

It makes us compare ourselves sideways. And sideways comparisons rarely make us happier. They make us feel inadequate.

Instead, look backward.

Compare yourself to the person you were yesterday. Let that diploma remind you of something simple:

You achieved something difficult and meaningful. Let that achievement give you confidence.

But confidence is a funny thing. Too little of it and we never act. Too much of it and we stop learning.

Which brings me to my second piece of advice.

Advice #2: Be confident, but stay off Mount Stupid.

There is a famous finding in psychology called the Dunning-Kruger effect.

When we first learn something, our confidence often rises faster than our competence.

We learn enough to feel smart. Not enough to realize how much we do not know.

That is Mount Stupid.

The dangerous moment when we stop learning because we think we already know.

This matters even more in the age of artificial intelligence.

AI can generate information, analyses, and recommendations in seconds.

What it cannot do is exercise judgement. It cannot answer the question:

“Given everything we know, does this make sense, and what should we do now?”

That requires judgement.

And judgement begins with intellectual humility.

The best leaders I have worked with share that trait.

They think like scientists.

They hold opinions lightly and treat them as hypotheses.

They do not say:

“I think…”

or

“I believe…”

They say:

“My hypothesis is…”

And then they ask:

“What might I be missing?”

“Who sees this differently?”

“What assumptions am I making?”

“What evidence would change my mind?”

The best leaders combine confidence with judgement.

So how do you stay off Mount Stupid and build judgement?

• Choose challenge over prestige.
• Seek difficult problems.
• Surround yourself with people who disagree intelligently.
• Work for bosses that challenge you.
• And fail often enough to keep learning.

And when you find yourself looking at your diploma in the toilet, look at the date. It shows you what you knew then.

It will also remind you that that knowledge has to grow into judgement.

Stay intellectually humble and keep questioning yourself. That is how judgement grows.

Advice #3: Treat people well.

You have probably heard the phrase:

“Luck favors the prepared.”

I think that is true.

But it is incomplete.

Because opportunities rarely arrive through websites, or through formal applications processes.

They arrive through people.

Many of the most important opportunities in your career will come through people you have not spoken to in years.

Former colleagues, classmates, bosses, and acquaintances.

What sociologists call weak ties.

Which brings me to a phone call I received six years ago.

Out of nowhere, Karolin Frankenberger, now our Dean, called me. At the time, I was retiring from McKinsey. She asked whether I would help with a lecture and a small project.

Years earlier, she had wanted to transfer from Germany to Switzerland within McKinsey. The move mattered enormously to her and her young family. There were obstacles. She didn’t ask for it, but I made a few calls, solved a few problems, and helped.

To me, it was a small gesture. I had forgotten about it.

She had not.

The lecture became more teaching. Teaching became a professorship. A professorship became my current role as Associate Dean.

One gesture.

One relationship.

One unexpected phone call years later.

That is how opportunities often arrive.

She didn’t call me because she thought I was competent. That was hygiene. Many others could have done it. She called me because she remembered how she had been treated. She remembered that I had listen, tried to understand what the problem was, and helped her.

People rarely remember every slide you presented or every analysis you produced. But they remember how you treated them. Whether you cared. Whether you helped.

The best leaders I know received many opportunities.

Some may have come through luck. Many came because they treated people well.

So, when one day you look at that diploma hanging in your toilet, remember:

Nobody ever opened a door for you because of that diploma.

They opened it because of the character of the person whose name is on it.

Class of 2026,

Celebrate today. You have earned it.

Years from now, you may not remember much of this speech. Maybe not even tomorrow.

But I hope you remember the diploma in the toilet.

Let it remind you:

• Be confident.

• Challenge what you think you know.

• Treat people well.

Because your achievements will give you the confidence to act.

Your judgement will prepare you for the opportunities that will come.

And the trust you earn from others will open doors you never knew existed.

Congratulations, Class of 2026. Thank you.»