Max Waibel was a recipient of a fellowship and scholarships from the Haslam and Stokely family funds.
Transportation and logistics have been on Max Waibel’s (’14, ’19) mind for as long as he can remember. Though he started out on the water during high school, working for a tugboat company that assists stranded boaters on the lakes and rivers of Tennessee, he was determined to earn his MBA before turning 30.
When Waibel first attended the University of Tennessee’s Haslam College of Business in 2010, private support from donors helped him have a range of experiences. He completed an internship with Norfolk Southern Railroad and even took classes on an ocean-going vessel through the international Semester at Sea program.
“A lot of the opportunities I had during my undergraduate experience just would not have been in the cards for me without some financial support,” Waibel said.
After graduation, Waibel joined Norfolk Southern in field and network operations. With a bachelor’s degree in hand, he rode trains through rural America and worked in command centers for network planning.
Private support enabled me to have a variety of experiences and get a feel for what I want to do. Those opportunities helped me figure out what I’m going after and opened up so many more options.
– Max Waibel (’14, ’19), recipient of a fellowship and scholarships from the Haslam and Stokely family funds
“Network planning is like working in an air traffic control center,” Waibel said. “With two-mile-long trains, you have to be strategic in your choices.”
During his experience working on the railroad, Waibel kept returning to notion of specializing in the business of transportation. Looking into MBA programs around the country led him back to UT, where he received a fellowship and scholarships from the Haslam and Stokely family funds as well as the college’s general fund.
“Tennessee was the best option, and I’m a really big believer in the product UT and Haslam offer,” Waibel said. “It’s something that I saw when I came out of undergrad. You can tell the respect people in the business community have for UT. It’s not just letters on a paper; it means something to them.”
Waibel graduated with an MBA and plans to work on the planning side of logistics management. He has several prospects around the Southeast.
“Private support enabled me to have a variety of experiences and get a feel for what I want to do,” Waibel said. “Those opportunities helped me figure out what I’m going after and opened up so many more options. There’s really something special about UT’s programs.”
In the long term, Waibel would like to start his own company. It will likely be a consultancy that helps others build or expand their business models. He sees opportunity there because the industry is changing and growing rapidly.
In the short term, though, he has plenty to celebrate with his newly minted MBA. He graduated at 27 years old, three years ahead of schedule.
