Testimonial: Neal Kunkle (MSSM '23)
Discover how Neal Kunkle, a Master of Science in Software Management alum, leveraged an interdisciplinary education to expand his business knowledge and advance his career in the automotive software industry.
By Tundi Gaspar
Master of Science in Software Management ‘23
Senior Technical Project Manager, Elektrobit
Inspired by the power of software, Neal Kunkle (Master of Science in Software Management ‘23) sought to create powerful products driven by user experience. His career began as an engineering intern at Elektrobit, an automotive software company. Over the years, Neal continued to grow and thrive at Elektrobit, taking on a variety of roles spanning from human-machine interfaces to leadership-based project management.
“I like being involved in all of the different aspects of a project: what motivates people, what motivates or creates situations that happen, either good or bad, and how that impacts the software and the program as a whole,” he explained.
Project management work was a catalyst for Neal in two ways. It sparked his interest in understanding the bigger picture of how software companies operate and motivated him to begin researching graduate programs that could teach it. He began looking for MBA programs that would expand his knowledge, but quickly realized that an MBA was limited in scope; it would not be fully applicable to his software-focused career. For Neal, the ideal program would account for the intricacies of software development and be deeply rooted in technical expertise.
Neal ultimately enrolled in the Master of Science in Software Management (MSSM) at Carnegie Mellon as a part-time student due to its interdisciplinary approach and flexibility, which allowed him to work while furthering his education.
Looking back, he felt the MSSM program provided the distinct software focus he was seeking, furthered his leadership, product innovation, and business skills, and gave him the opportunity to apply what he learned to his career in real time. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, the MSSM program’s faculty comprises current and former industry leaders, which gave Neal direct access to the problems and conversations tech companies were having.
“...seeing the experience of all of the different professors and having all of these different perspectives, [seeing] completely different software, completely different problems that are being solved, and mindsets. That has really been the biggest lesson...”
Now working in Real Time Computing (RTC) at Elektrobit, Neal leads products and projects that enable secure, reliable AUTOSAR basic software in vehicles, supporting functions such as braking, steering, and more. His role has expanded from project manager to defining the company’s products, introducing business models, and directly impacting consumers’ lives.
“I can say I understand products beyond just automotives,” Neal emphasized, crediting the MSSM degree with giving him a greater outlook on building great products.