Venky Nagar

Welcome!

The most important thing for all humans to know is the difference between exponential and linear. The entire world, from viruses to poverty to tech to animals to history to ..., runs on this principle. Exponential growth happens through connections. Nothing seems to happen initially, but once these connections are dense enough, you take a quantum leap and no one can catch you. A cool gif!

My Teaching

I am Venky Nagar, an accounting professor at Michigan. I am here to help you develop into a leader who can 1) rapidly analyze raw data and generate insights; and 2) combine these insights with your keen understanding of employee hopes and beliefs to create a warm yet profitable org. This is very hard because you have to apply many concepts from econ to ops to psych all at once.

The only way to become such a leader is to radically rethink numbers. NUMBERS = PEOPLE! That is, numbers do not represent abstract mathematical truths but instead contain the hopes and dreams of your underlings. This radical mindshift is hard to achieve for both poets and quants, for what you need is not raw intelligence but the empathy to put your underlings before yourself. Numbers are never about you - they're always about your underlings.

Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JP Morgan Chase offers similar lessons from leadership

I was honored to receive the Evening MBA Teaching Award and to be voted the Executive MBA Commencement Speaker in 2018.

My Tech Course

In 2018, I offered a new class on how to think algorithimically. The two sections sold out in 30 minutes! The students were initially baffled by the exponential connections between the theory of computation, Fourier transforms, finance, paper and crypto currencies, AI, Kylie Jenner's superb billion dollar exploitation of Instagram, etc., but quickly rose to the challenge and asked deep questions on the connections between computation and business. Our students can add tremendous value from Day One to a group of CS Ph.D.'s trying to start a firm.

My Students

A Best MBA student profiles me in Poets and Quants: "Who is your favorite professor? This is a hard choice. I am going to say Venky Nagar because he has taught me to think holistically about business problems. He has also opened my eyes to a lot of thought leadership on a variety of business topics. I appreciate that his courses are simultaneously philosophical and practical."

An MBA student describes my teaching style. Undergraduate students also add to the mix, showing that exponential thinking is free from age and race or gender identity constraints.

Another student describes my class