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BRIAN CORNELL (B.A. ’81, Cert ’91)
Board Chairman and CEO, Target

Miranda Fang ('22)
Jason Crockett ('22)
Judy Choe ('22)
Uzair Alaidroos ('23)

The John Wooden Global Leadership Awards

Wednesday, February 1, 2023
Skirball Cultural Center

2023 Honoree will be announced soon.

Cornell

2023 John Wooden Global Leadership Honoree

Brian Cornell (B.A. ’81, Cert ’91)

Board Chairman and CEO, Target

The John Wooden Leadership Fellows
 

Open to students in the MBA, EMBA, FEMBA, UCLA NUS EMBA, MFE and MSBA programs. UCLA Anderson students are chosen when they demonstrate leadership styles that espouse ethics, team spirit, hard work and loyalty. Each applicant should possess an ability to manage change, have an unquenchable thirst for improvement, constant learning and innovation. Their experiences enrich the UCLA Anderson community, and their leadership values echo Coach Wooden's and his Pyramid of Success.

Fellows will be announced soon.

Uzair Alaidroos (FEMBA '23)

Uzair Alaidroos (FEMBA ’23)

Wooden Fellow 2021

Uzair Alaidroos (FEMBA ’23)

Manufacturing Engineering Manager, Northrop Grumman

Who is Uzair Alaidroos?

Uzair “Uzi” Alaidroos, an aerospace manager and engineer and a father, describes who he is by what he has faced over the last two years:

“Twenty-twenty was the year I left a long-time employer for a new one, took on a leadership position with numerous direct reports and significantly more responsibility, began my MBA at UCLA Anderson, and got diagnosed with and defeated thyroid cancer at age 30.”

While it all felt overwhelming, his daughter has kept him grounded. “Before then, it was all about me, what I want to do. But when Lana was born, I got a different perspective on everything. Why am I really here? What’s my reason to work at Northrop? What’s my view on the world?”

Why is he a Wooden Fellow?

“Unlike 90% of the degree-holding disciplines in the aerospace industry,” says Uzi, “manufacturing engineers could not be afforded the luxury of working remotely. I found myself leading a group that was fearful and dejected as a result of our ‘essential-worker’ status. One month into my tenure, a co-worker succumbed to COVID-19.”

That’s when Uzi fully embraced grit and its five characteristics — courage, resilience, endurance, excellence and conscientiousness — as the only way to help his team become confident and productive. He spearheaded empowerment and process improvement initiatives that improved morale. He took this on while also going through two surgeries for his thyroid cancer and attending a top business school — and still earned a 4.0 GPA that quarter.

What inspires him?

Uzi wakes up eager to learn something every day. Getting past the steep phase of a learning curve makes him want to learn “the next big thing,” which is what led him to business school.

His cancer diagnosis was a serious setback to his own well-being, though he looks at it this way: “I never thought about making each day the most productive, most enjoyable until that point. I need to live every day like it’s the best day of my life.

“Leadership is applicable to the entire person, not just in the business setting. Leadership doesn’t end when I walk out the door here today. As a father, it’s my job to be the best possible role model.”

Wooden Awards Highlights
 
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Past Honorees
About the Award
 
As a legendary coach, prolific author and inspiring speaker, John Wooden dedicated his life to motivating individuals to achieve their highest potential. Wooden instilled in others a sense of pride, a commitment to ethics and a respect for teamwork. These fundamental principles translate seamlessly from the sports arena to the realms of business, management and leadership. And they provide the cornerstone on which the John Wooden Global Leadership Program is built at UCLA Anderson.
Learn More About John Wooden