Eduardo Dallagnese’s wedding day was memorable in more ways than one. Shortly after getting married in the Porto Alegre Brazil Temple, he received a long-awaited call from the admissions office of the BYU Marriott School of Business. The call informed him that he had received the Cardon International Scholarship (CIS) from the Whitmore Global Business Center (GBC) and that he was accepted into the school’s MBA program. Dallagnese’s time at BYU Marriott and specifically the skills he learned in his CIS classes prepared him for leadership roles in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and throughout his career.
Dallagnese, who hails from Porto Alegre, first learned about BYU Marriott and the CIS program during his time as a missionary serving for the Church in Brazil. As a fairly new convert, he didn’t know much about BYU, but he felt inspired to pursue a graduate education at BYU Marriott. The CIS program, which provides loans to international students to help finance their graduate program costs, seemed like the perfect avenue to this education. Dallagnese didn’t speak English at the time, so he asked his American mission companions to teach him.
Upon returning home, Dallagnese devoted countless hours to studying for the GMAT. After taking the test twice and failing, he moved to Orem to study full-time. He still didn’t pass the test the third time, but on his fourth attempt, he succeeded. “When I failed the test the third time, I felt disheartened because I had studied so hard,” he remembers. “Most people would probably stop trying at that point, but I knew I needed to be at BYU, so I never gave up.”
Since being accepted into the MBA program, Dallagnese’s personal life has stayed closely connected to BYU Marriott. In addition to receiving the call about his admittance on his wedding day, he also received his official letter of acceptance in the mail on the same day his wife found out she was pregnant with their first child. “My personal life, including many of the important moments of my past, are somehow tied to BYU,” he says. “The principles I learned at BYU also changed the course of my future.”
One of the most impactful lessons Dallagnese learned during his time at BYU Marriott was how to become a better leader. The CIS program offers classes that focus specifically on leadership skills. “In each of our CIS classes, we studied books about leadership. One that particularly impressed me was Counseling with Our Councils by M. Russell Ballard,” says Dallagnese. “I loved those classes because I learned how to become a respected leader not only in my profession but also in my Church service.” Ballard is a member of the Quorum of the Twelve of Apostles in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Now as a leader at a multinational manufacturing company, Kimberly-Clark, in Curitiba, Brazil, Dallagnese uses his skills to bless others. His favorite aspect of his position as the head of business development of retail, cash and carry, and global accounts is the opportunity to positively influence the people around him. He shares that the company puts programs in place to help employees grow. “My success is not about the gross sales I bring in but focuses more on how I develop the people under my management,” he says.
Dallagnese also uses leadership skills as the Brazil regional director for the BYU Management Society. The BYU Management Society has chapters throughout the world, with the goal of increasing moral and ethical leadership across the globe. As a regional director, Dallagnese oversees 15 chapters.
One of his main goals is to help returned missionaries find direction for their future. The BYU Management society recently brought the Launching Leaders program, which offers a personal development and leadership course, to the Brazil chapters. “The Launching Leaders course helps people become entry-level leaders, which will be a fantastic resource for our returned missionaries,” says Dallagnese.
When he looks back at his time at BYU Marriott, Dallagnese believes his CIS leadership classes changed his life. “I know now why I felt inspired to attend BYU Marriott for my graduate degree,” he says. “I could have received my MBA anywhere, even in my home country of Brazil. However, the unique leadership style at BYU Marriott, exemplified both in the MBA program and my CIS classes, set my education apart from other programs. Because of my BYU Marriott experience, my leadership style focuses on caring about the personal progress of the people around me, which is an important and valuable approach.”
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Writer: Sarah Calvert
