Essay 1: Please describe your short term professional goals (post MBA). (200 word limit)

Upon completion of my MBA, I see myself working for a leading Strategy Consulting firm, like McKinsey, in the capacity of an Associate Consultant. This would provide me with the opportunity of working with various clients on different assignments, and in turn help me in gaining a practical learning experience towards understanding the intricacies involved in managing and running a business successfully. This would also provide me with an unparalleled opportunity to build my network. I believe joining a firm like this will equip me with the practical expertise to realise my ultimate objective of running a business of my own.

IESE will greatly help develop the business foundation necessary for me to achieve my career goals with its commitment towards producing global business leaders through courses like “Corporate Strategy”. Furthermore, the fact that the school recognises the importance of the Corporate Summer Internship is extremely important to me because it will provide me with the opportunity to gain valuable experience in my industry of choice. Additionally, the Consulting Club with its mission to educate and train students to enter the Consulting industry through sessions with professional consultants would provide the essential opportunities for a first step into the industry.

Word Count: 200

Essay 2: Please describe your long term professional goals (post MBA). (200 word limit)

In the long term, I envision myself working in the capacity of a Senior Manager for a leading Strategy Consulting firm and gearing up towards an entrepreneurial venture in the Consulting industry, as mentioned in essay 1. The focus of my firm would be to provide consultancy services to Small to Medium Sized Enterprise (SMEs) clients, since such companies are the main contributors to a country’s economy and require considerable assistance in strategic planning and industry positioning. I believe the knowledge and experience gained and the network established during my placement as a Consultant would definitely help towards providing the necessary know-how and expertise for establishing my own company within the same industry.

Furthermore, the Entrepreneurial Focus provided during the IESE MBA program would lay a good foundation for my long term career goal. Specifically with its second year “Entrepreneurship Course”, which would provide the opportunity and experience to develop business plans, and further, provide opportunities to present these plans to actual investors.

Word Count: 163

Essay 3: Describe two substantial accomplishments and one failure in a professional or private endeavour. (600 word limit)

"Who could be more proud than I to have a son like you!"
Getting to hear those few words were an achievement for me that I've always been most proud of. Coming from a society where being a widow with a young child is literally a curse, my mother and I unfortunately experienced this situation first hand after my father's demise when I was 8 years old. Working two jobs, as well as fighting a considerable number of property cases for over a decade, is how my mother was able to provide me with a stable upbringing that culminated with my coming to Singapore to pursue a college education. This provided me with the opportunity to prove my own worth, which I took advantage of by doing well during my degree and landing a good placement in a multinational organization after graduation, where I've not only been steadily climbing up the corporate ladder but also at a faster rate in comparison to other colleagues at the same level. It was a combination of all this that finally led to the above statement, which makes me proud because it provides me with a sense of achievement of being able to live up to my mother's expectations. This innate sense of responsibility has always made me strive to learn more, achieve more and succeed, for myself, for my mother and for my future family so that they would never have to suffer the way my mother and I did.

Another substantial accomplishment, as also mentioned above, is that I have managed to climb up the corporate ladder at a faster rate in comparison to colleagues at the same level. On the basis of achieving performance evaluations of 110% and 126% respectively in the first two years of joining the organization, I was promoted twice and went from starting off as an Assistant Engineer to being assigned the designation of Senior Network Engineer. From being a part of the 1st level operations team, I took over the responsibilities of Delivery and Project Management as well as Pre-Sales, and finally was assigned the responsibility of supervising the operations team.

My first professional failure occurred a few months after joining my current organization. I was assigned to an important project on a proposal for a customer setup, along with three other members from different departments. Each team member’s contribution was important to the success of the project due to the tight deadline faced. But a few days into the project one of the team members had started missing meetings and was not making any contributions. Because of which our progress had come to a halt since our work depended greatly on the other member’s input. I decided to confront the person on the matter, which proved to be a bad decision since he retaliated and this made matters worse. Considerable friction was created between us and as a result he completely stopped attending meetings. Hence, the team failed miserably at completing the project.

I realized that if I had handled things in a different manner it might have led to a better solution to the problem. I was faced with a similar situation again a couple of months later. This time I took a different approach and talked to the person to try and understand the reasons for his not contributing. I was informed that he was being pushed by his management to complete other projects, for which we had a discussion with his manager to address this matter. Once resolved we were able to complete the project successfully and in a timely manner.

Word Count: 599

Essay 4: Describe a recent situation (within last two years) in which you used a contact from your network to achieve a personal or professional objective. (200 word limit)

Recently a friend of mine, who graduated from an Executive MBA program, was aiming for a career shift from the technology industry towards banking and had contacted me because of my personal contacts within the banking industry. I informed him of all the contacts I had in the different banks and the various positions they were in and tried to understand his area of preference within the industry, which was in Investment Banking Research. Accordingly I talked to the most relevant contact, Jamil, who was working in the Fixed Income Research department of a reputable Investment Bank and arranged for a meeting so that he could discuss and advice my friend on the requirements, in terms of skills, for a placement within his department. Furthermore, Jamil also referred my friend to other contacts of his from similar departments in other banks. Once my friend was clearer in terms of the sort of placement he would prefer to apply for, Jamil helped find a suitable opening within his department as well as in the departments his contacts were placed in. Eventually my friend was called for an interview and was successfully able to land a placement in his area of preference.

Word Count: 200

Essay 5: Describe the most difficult project (personal or professional) that you have faced recently (within last two years).
(200 word limit)

The most difficult project that I faced recently was which involved a setup for a major client that would contribute significantly to my company’s revenue. This required working with a new set of application tools that were recently included in our portfolio by the parent company in Germany, but no expertise for these tools existed in Singapore. Therefore, the project required considerable coordination with German colleagues, vendors and various teams within the company, all within a tight schedule. I took the responsibility of gathering know how on the tools to be used, due to my application development experience, and worked with senior team members to first understand the current processes. My ability as a fast learner and my analytical skills helped me in understanding the complexities of the project. Furthermore, I took the initiative to setup and integrate scripts to further enhance the application as per the requirements and created the relevant operational processes for meeting the agreed Service Levels to reach our final target. My initiatives, efficient handling of major parts of the project successfully and working together with the team as an effective team player, enabled the team to successfully achieve its project objectives in a timely manner.

Word Count: 200

Essay 6: Describe a recent situation (within last two years) in which it was difficult to convince others. (200 word limit)

For a call-centre project, my team was responsible for the regional voice infrastructure, and the colleagues in Germany for the PABX equipment. In case of an infrastructure outage, standby engineers in Germany would be asked to route incoming calls from the respective PABX system via international network.  Since outages occurred in the morning, the route configuration took considerable time because of time difference. This meant lost calls, and hence, penalties to the company.

I proposed to let my operations team manage the PABX system, thereby saving time in resolving problems. The Management objected saying one year of training was required for managing PABX systems. I suggested that instead of providing training, colleagues in Germany could provide only specific commands required for the emergency. I further stressed that this would save considerable costs and speed up the process. There was still an objection that since managing the PABX was the German team’s responsibility, they should be doing the configuration. I again stressed the cost saving aspect and provided an estimate for the costs saved and reassured the management of competence in managing such situations. Finally after giving much thought, the proposal was finally accepted and added to the operational process accordingly.

Word Count: 200

Essay 7: I wish that the application had asked me... (200 word limit)

What personality trait do you believe will help you succeed?

“Dare to be different” – is the motto I’ve always lived by. Whether in personal or professional life, my objectives, my likings, in fact whatever I do is usually out-of-the-norm, because of which I’ve always managed to stand out from the crowd. This trait is aptly evident in my will to challenge convention and look for a better, more efficient way to accomplish tasks. The biggest example can be taken in my choice of pursuing a European MBA. In agreement with the general perception, all friends, colleagues and family members have been urging me to apply to US schools only because of better career options. But my want of a diverse culturally rich learning environment, with very similar career opportunities, if not better, drives my decision.

This aspect coupled with my personality traits of confidence, the want to take initiatives, being team oriented, and my exceptional ability to adapt to different situations provides for the right formula for success.

I aspire. I plan. I execute. Cliché or not, this has been the cornerstone leading me from a fledgling student to a business professional, fully prepared to pursue my MBA at IESE.

Word Count: 200