Director of Business Development, BioPharma Services Inc.
Based in Europe & Canada
EGMiM class of 2013-15
What is your professional and academic background?
I studied my undergraduate degree in general management in Zurich, with a minor international management, and I have worked in the hospitality industry for 10 years, managing a restaurant group in Zurich with 12 locations and a team of 160 staff.
What attracted you to apply for the EGMiM programme?
I had an interest in international management stemming from my undergraduate degree, and the intercultural exchange within the EGMiM programme was very attractive, particularly the diverse group of students from across the world, and the 3 different global module locations. The LSE is also a great brand, which added to the appeal of the programme.
Did you also consider an MBA? If so, why did you choose EGMiM?
Yes. The MBA course I considered required more international experience than I had at that time. I chose EGMiM because of the international focus, LSE brand, and also the great location in London.
How has the programme helped the general development of your career?
The programme has been a significant help in my career, as it’s enabled me to move from the hospitality industry to a very different area in the healthcare sector. I actually met my current CEO in the programme - he was a student in my cohort, and now he’s my boss! I am now responsible for Business Development in the EMEA region, which is a key strategic function for my company, as the root of all our other work.
How have you applied specific learning from the classroom in your work/job role?
The programme curriculum covers the most important managerial and business topics which managers today need to understand. In particular the marketing course has helped me a lot in my current field of work, with responsibility for sales. The global and intercultural focus of EGMiM has been invaluable. Learning about intercultural management has been very important because I deal on a daily basis with people from most regions around the world, including North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. For this role, understanding different behaviour and working styles across cultures has been essential for my success. Without an understanding of intercultural management that wouldn’t have been possible, so the intercultural exchange and globally diverse student body in the programme have been the most important thing for me.
How has the global/international focus of the programme helped your career?
The global focus of the programme has helped me to be more open in my work and my mindset, embracing the different ways of doing business which exist between different cultures. I knew about this phenomenon and some of the theories behind it from the international management component of my undergraduate degree, but EGMiM has helped me to understand how I can deal with these issues in my work. I now know not just what targets I need to achieve with intercultural management, but also how to achieve them, which has helped me a lot to be more successful in my career. Our Deputy Programme Director Dr Connson Locke has a great analogy for this: “Give a man a fish, and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish, and he will eat for a lifetime.” EGMiM taught me “how to fish”, and that analogy has stayed with me throughout the programme and after I graduated. I understand the way to achieve things, in order to reach my targets.
What has been the best thing about completing the EGMiM programme for you?
For me, the best thing about completing EGMiM has been the network I have built and the relationships which have grown both during and in between the classroom modules. The LSE brand is of course also extremely valuable, and it’s a great credential in life to be a part of the exclusive group of people who have studied here.