Targeted Career Consulting with Pian Shu, Ph.D.

I offer consultations and coaching programs designed to help you navigate career challenges and build a path that is both professionally rewarding and personally fulfilling. My integrative coaching blends proven methods and frameworks from top business schools with mindfulness exercises that enhance focus and mental clarity. Drawing on my expertise as both a business professor and a mindfulness mentor, I will help you align your work with your deepest values and uncover what motivates you, so that you can turn the projects, tasks, and demands you face into a creative process that sparks fulfillment and energy. As you channel your creative force into deliberate action, you will move forward with purpose and build a career that brings your aspirations to life.

Sight /sīt/. noun. the range of vision; the process, power, or function of seeing

Sphere /sfir/. noun. to form into a sphere; an area or range over or within which someone or something acts, exists, or has influence or significance

Where Clarity Meets Purposeful Action

From a clear understanding of where we are, we forge a path that progresses toward our visions and purposes. Our mind has a focus, and our actions become cohesive rather than scattered. As a result, we build a circle of momentum and commitment to create positive change.

🎄 Hi, I’m Pian

My passion for providing career coaching and consultations grew from my experiences teaching at Harvard Business School and the Georgia Institute of Technology Scheller College of Business. As a professor, I taught a range of topics, including operations management, design thinking, and business strategy. I immensely enjoyed leading large class discussions and guiding students on how to think through complex business cases.

One of the most fascinating aspects of teaching was observing diverse perspectives. Each student brought a distinct way of thinking, reflecting their background, experiences, and learning style. Differing perspectives challenged assumptions and broadened understanding, and as a result, each classroom discussion was uniquely engaging. Even after teaching the same case several times, I was continually surprised by the new and original insights each group of students uncovered.

My experiences teaching in dynamic, discussion-driven classrooms have shaped how I approach coaching and consultation sessions. My methods aim to guide you through a discovery process tailored to your unique perspective, helping you generate new ideas and insights to solve your problems or achieve goals.

My educational background includes a B.A. in Mathematics and Mathematical Economics from Colgate University and a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT. My doctoral thesis examined the career choices of talented individuals and the factors that led them to pursue different paths. This study shaped my foundational understanding of how external factors (such as the economy) and personal preferences can shape one’s career path.

In addition to being a tenure-track faculty member at Harvard Business School and Georgia Tech, I have been a visiting scholar at the MIT Sloan School of Management and a visiting professor at Boston University. My academic research, including work on the uncertainty of entrepreneurial outcomes and the impact of international trade on firm innovation, has been published in leading economics and management journals.

Whether in the classroom or in one-on-one conversations, I have seen the power of thoughtful dialogue in shaping perspectives, uncovering possibilities, and building confidence in the face of uncertainty. Instead of searching for a single “best” solution to tackle a situation, we allow a fluid process that refines your thinking and clarifies your objectives, so that you can make choices aligned with your goals. Some of these goals and action plans may be readily apparent, while others lie beneath and call for deeper exploration.

If you’re exploring your next steps toward a meaningful career, I invite you to engage in this process with me. You can also try a reflective writing exercise that illustrates my approach.

When I’m not coaching or providing consultations, I do creative writing. I love exploring nature and traveling internationally, and a few of my favorite destinations include Japan, Taiwan, and the Dolomites. Films and music also inspire me.

My methods draw on years of academic teaching and advising, combined with training in mindfulness mentoring. I integrate mindfulness into my coaching and consultations to foster thoughtfulness and presence, creating a natural shift from the demands of daily life into a space for meaningful conversation and reflection.

“During a recent career and life transition, Pian offered me insightful perspectives that helped me embrace new changes and challenges. Her sessions were not only practically useful, but more importantly, in a seemingly magical way, allowed us to create a poetic approach to assessing and ultimately overcoming the problems I was facing at the time.”

Emily H., Social Science Researcher