Ashish Tiwari (PhD94)
Professor, Henry B. Tippie Research Fellow

Q1 What are you reading?
String Theory—a collection of tennis-themed essays by David Foster Wallace.

Q2 Who is inspiring you?
Humanitarian non-governmental organizations like Médecins Sans Frontières which are often the only source of critical medical assistance for some of the most vulnerable populations threatened by armed conflicts, epidemics, or natural disasters around the globe.

Q3 What is the best part of your day?
When I am out on the tennis court or at the gym.

Jennifer Marietta-Westberg (PhD00)
Principal, Cornerstone Research

Q1 What are you reading?
The River by Peter Heller.

Q2 Who is inspiring you?
Best of Both Worlds podcast by Laura Vanderkam and Sarah Hart-Unger.

Q3 What is the best part of your day?
7:30-8 a.m. I have set aside every day to read fiction.

Nicole (Cook) Gunderson (BBA04)

Managing Director, Global Insurance Accelerator

Q1 What are you reading?
The Moment of Lift, How Empowering Women Changes the World by Melinda Gates; Sea Stories, My Life in Special Operations by Admiral William H. McRaven (author of Make Your Bed);  Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong—and What You Really Need to Know by Emily Oster (we’re expecting our first child in July!).

Q2 Who is inspiring you?
The founding teams of the eight InsurTech startups in the Global Insurance Accelerator. I’m the managing director of the annual 100-day program based in Des Moines, Iowa, and it is inspiring to see them working so hard to solve important problems facing the insurance industry.

Q3 What is the best part of your day?
A meaningful part of my job is centered around my ability to connect startups with the right people to help them, so I take a lot of gratification when those connections are fruitful for both parties. And, going home to our dog!