T'97

Chris Weasler

Director of Global Connectivity, Facebook

Tuck makes it easy for someone to be effective in a place like Facebook.

During his time at Tuck, Chris Weasler attended an executive lunch with Bob Galvin, the long-time CEO of Motorola. Elbow to elbow, Weasler asked the legendary business leader for the one piece of advice he’d give an MBA student trying to figure out what to do with his life.

“He just said, don’t get caught up in the specific job or role or function or even company, but land in an industry you want to make a career in because you find it delightful and you have a passion for it,” says Weasler. “That was a pretty powerful bit of advice that I took to heart—and it’s proved over time to be really good advice.”

A self-described gadget person, Weasler knew his industry was mobile. After Tuck, he worked at Palm, helping to launch the first wireless PDA; Nextel; Sprint; and a series of telecommunications startups. Along the way, he developed rare expertise in the spectrum, the internationally governed infrastructure of airwaves that transmits data from a device to cell towers—and makes everything from smartphone apps to radio possible.

Now, as director of global connectivity at Facebook, Weasler advocates on an international level for the spectrum, which will allow the Internet to grow and reach the 60 percent of the earth’s population that currently does not have access. Ultimately, his mission—and Facebook’s—is to help the world connect. To do that, Weasler must himself be able to connect effectively in a company built on relationships.

“You hear all the time that Tuck has such a collegial atmosphere, and at the heart of that is this team-based approach and study groups,” says Weasler. “At Facebook, that’s just how we work.”

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