Sri Josyula, MBA 25 – Investing in Yourself To Invest in Your Family

On this episode of the OneHaas Alumni Podcast, meet Sri Josyula, an EWMBA 25 and Product Management Leader for Seller Experience at Max Retail.

Growing up in Hyderabad, India, Sri was surrounded by books and academia. Both her parents hold PhDs and spent their careers as Professors which gave her early exposure to a lifelong learning mindset. After moving to the U.S. and earning a master's degree from the University of Southern California, Sri built a career in tech, but never wanted to stop challenging herself.

Sri joins host Sean Li to dig into what it really takes to pursue an MBA as a working parent. They also explore the support systems that made it all possible, how she built that community of support, and is now giving back to it through her substack, “Raising The Bar (And Kids)”, a place for parents who are navigating ambitious career moves alongside family life.

*OneHaas Alumni Podcast is a production of Haas School of Business and is produced by University FM.*

Episode Quotes:

On carving her own pathways in her career

“ I always want to find myself in an uncomfortable place, meaning, "Hey, if this is too comfortable for me, that's really not something I want to continue doing," because learning always comes when you are stretching yourself, you are finding yourself in a place that you don't find comfort in.”

On growing up in a home with professors

“Regardless of the time of day, my house was always full of books — both my parents poring through them, their lecture notes, all of it. So I think this was my very early start of "student always," without even realizing I was absorbing all of this, just constantly seeing my parents read, reread, and revise their lecture notes to make them better year after year.”

On the importance of creating community and support systems

“ I grew up believing that you help people just because you have to help them.

You don't help people expecting something in return. And when you genuinely do something, it does come back to you…When you are there for somebody, they really want to be there for you when you need it the most. And I think this is how a genuine relationship is cultivated.”

On why the MBA was worth it

“My biggest takeaway as a parent going through the program was this essential shift in mindset that the time you invest in yourself is not time taken away from your family. You're expanding the pie for everybody in your family because they're all growing with you.”

Show Links:

• LinkedIn Profile
• Raising The Bar (And Kids) | Substack