Throughout National Mentoring Month in January, KU Alumni is spotlighting the strength of the Jayhawk professional network and the mutual rewards of mentorship through profiles of some of the Jayhawks who give their time to mentor fellow alumni and current students on KU Mentoring+, the University’s platform for mentoring, networking and community building.
Below, meet KU alumnus and Jayhawk mentor Art Tsubaki, b’92, c’92, an international executive who owns Tsubaki One Inc. and also serves as a career coach at the University of Utah.
Visit KU Mentoring+ to join the more than 16,000 alumni, students, faculty and staff on the platform and support fellow Jayhawks through career advice and connections.
What motivated you to become a mentor?
Tsubaki: There are three main experiences that encouraged me to consider mentorship. First, I have been fortunate to have opportunities to manage others. Helping former direct reports or peers figure out the steppingstones they needed to advance and then seeing their success was quite rewarding.
Second, I look back on my career, and with the different industries, companies, job titles, and experiences working and studying abroad, I felt like I could give back in a meaningful way.
Third, when I graduated from KU, I didn’t know or use the resources that students have today—certainly the technology to have video conferences for free didn’t exist! I didn’t have the structure of career exploration and knew nothing about using informational interviews. I also didn’t know what I was going to do with my dual degrees (a Bachelor of Science in business administration and a Bachelor of Arts in East Asian languages and cultures).
Today’s KU business students are so fortunate to have the BUS 210 ‘Career Management and Planning’ class—it’s an excellent way for students to wrestle with a career decision and focus their efforts. The informational interview assignment from that class has been the majority of my contact with KU students since 2023.
Helping students who are serious about their future has been very rewarding. The best discussions are interactive, and I answer their questions and help them with goals and career choices. For the students who are just fulfilling a BUS 210 assignment, I still hope I can influence them to understand the potential they can have and the resources available that they can take advantage of, particularly at the KU Career Center.
What does mentorship look like to you?
My parents were great people. There are many things I have tried to emulate from growing up under their roof. But guiding me in a career, understanding the value of internships, how to find a job, etc., was not something I learned from them. I’ve had to do that through the various jobs I’ve had. That’s a lot of hard work that students don’t have to go through. There are alumni who have already experienced those things, and students can get that insight before they graduate.
All KU alumni have their own story about making that career decision and finding a job, working the job, and maybe having to move on to another job for one reason or another. The opportunity to share those experiences isn’t what people normally introspect on, but everyone’s story will be unique.
So, mentorship to me is giving back by being a listening ear; an opportunity to have a deeper conversation with someone who wants to learn; and just being there for the person—providing the support, wisdom, data and experiences that can be useful to a student trying to make a decision on how to move forward.
It’s often easier for a student to talk to a stranger who is interested in being helpful rather than to their own friends or family, since a stranger can be a little more objective and ask questions that friends or family may not think to ask. Some students don’t recognize the options they have before them, so it’s neat to see the light bulb go off in a student’s head during a conversation.
What has been a surprise to you in your experience as a mentor?
Based on student feedback, many of our conversations are a strong point of influence in helping them move forward in their career or education. It’s a surprise to me how often we can have such a meaningful conversation in a short amount of time.
I’ve also been surprised by the sheer number of people who have contacted me through KU Mentoring+. I expected maybe a couple of people every quarter. Since May of 2023, I have counted 132 contacts who have expressed interest in talking, and I’ve spoken to about 51 people as of December 2025.
Why would you recommend someone become a mentor on KU Mentoring+?
OK, my last list!
First, alumni have a ton of experiences that will be useful to a student. It’s more valuable than you think. Even alumni who have been in the workforce for just a few years.
Second, it’s an opportunity to give back. Maybe you won’t be the alum who has your name on a building, but you can make a lasting difference in a KU student’s life.
Third, mentoring has many forms that can fit your preferences, abilities and time commitment. I have talked to 51 students, most just one time. Your support can be to just take a call when a student wants to ask you about your career journey, how you chose your major or job, what life is like at the company you work for, etc. You can choose who you speak to, and it can be for as little or as much time as you want to or can give.
Fourth, I still use informational interviews today and seek mentors. I started a business in late 2020, and I talked to a lot of other people in the industry before I put my first dollar down. The KU Mentoring+ platform is a great way to find people—and find mentors for yourself as a professional.
Finally, I had a great experience at KU. I grew up in Lawrence. My dad was a professor at KU. Even though I have no family left in Lawrence, it is still my home. It is such a grounding experience to hear students talk about their life at KU and recognize that many of the experiences they are having are similar to what I had at KU. That helps me recognize that all the other experiences I have had since then can be of benefit to a current KU student’s future.
