MBA is a one-of-a-kind experience, an opportunity to develop yourself at speed and build professional connections and lifelong friendships. I feel extremely proud and happy that I made this choice to pursue an MBA degree from Bayes Business School.
Why did you choose to study the Full-time MBA at Bayes Business School?
I have a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and worked in HR, primarily in the engineering and construction industry where I progressed from recruitment specialist to Head of Human Resources. I worked in blue-chip construction companies as well as in medium-sized companies and start-ups across Russia, the Middle East, and the UK.
At some point in time, I realised that I not only wanted to explore other career opportunities with a more holistic and strategic view of the business, but I also wanted to add a technological aspect to my work, as I was always interested in innovations and technologies and how society can use them to get the most benefit.
I chose to study the Full-time MBA programme at Bayes for several reasons:
- I was looking for an intensive, one-year programme based in London – one of my favourite cities.
- the programme offered a variety of electives which I was able to choose from to tailor my MBA experience and make it more technology and innovations oriented – something that would help me secure a desired career after graduation.
- Finally, the School’s reputation was important to me and Bayes has been established more than 50 years ago and holds the Triple-crown accreditation.
What part did the Careers and Professional Development team play in your Bayes (formerly Cass) experience?
Development of professional soft skills is a vital part of the MBA programme at Bayes Business School and the Careers and Professional Development team did a lot to help us become the leaders that are sought after by companies of today.
I was impressed by the number of workshops, masterclasses, and webinars that were organised all through the academic year. It was especially rewarding that all of them were led by some well-known professionals or representatives of industry-leading companies and consultancies.
This first-hand experience was of utmost importance to me being a foreign student who did not have that much exposure to the local corporate environment. Having representatives of the Career and Professional Development team providing you with all the resources you need, could not be overrated.
Any MBA programme would not be complete without some good career management tools, and Bayes exceeded all my expectations in this regard.
My favourite ones – and which I think I benefited the most from – included Networking, Better Negotiations, and the Interview Masterclass. I find that networking and negotiation are probably the most important soft skills in the modern world, and the MBA helped me develop them to a much further extent. Whereas Interview Masterclass helped me find my strength relative to specific role and become more confident in communicating my experience and future expectations.
Can you tell us a bit about your role at Chaucer (Bip) and how the Full-time MBA has impacted your career?
Chaucer (Bip) is a digital transformation consultancy with a people-centric approach and these two aspects – digital and people – go well in line with both my previous HR experience and my future aspirations of being on a more digital side of the business.
The opportunity was advertised via Bayes’ virtual career management tool – Bayes Careers Online – and my Career mentor got in touch with me as she knew the advertised role would interest me. She then connected me with Bayes alumni working at Chaucer (Bip), who provided more information on the company and who they were looking for. The role seemed to be really very interesting and matched my career aspirations, and so I decided to apply. After some time, I received a call from them for the initial interview. In total, I had three rounds of interviews including a case study.
The whole process took approximately two months, by the end of which I received the job offer. Chaucer (Bip) does provide work visas but there are some limitations on the number of sponsorships and by the time I applied and received my offer, this option was not available, hence, I applied for a Graduate Visa.
My current role as an Innovation Consultant with one of Chaucer (Bip)’s biggest clients is extremely fulfilling. My responsibilities range from analysing the external market and searching for companies my client can potentially build partnerships with, to estimating the commercial potential for various innovative ideas generated at our business incubator.
Every day I apply something that I learnt during the MBA at Bayes – be it analysing information from various sources to completing marketing intelligence research, making a data-driven business decision, or leading a presentation to engage stakeholders.
I know I could not have gotten where I am today without the MBA degree – or, it would have taken me several years at least.
It was an absolute delight to study in such an international and diverse cohort, consisting of like-minded enthusiasts united by one single purpose – learn, explore, improve, and bring the best they can to the world of today.
MBA is a one-of-a-kind experience, an opportunity to develop yourself at speed and build professional connections and lifelong friendships. I feel extremely proud and happy that I made this choice to pursue an MBA degree from Bayes Business School.