I like to attend all classes, as every class is a new learning, as they are all cross-functional, says Shakira

Scored the highest marks in Science & Mathematics in Class 10, and aspired to become a Doctor, eventually applied for Commerce, due to the mere fear of the sight of blood that I realised I have, later.

Coming from a community of business-minded people, chose to go forward with commerce and aspired to be the best in it. Hence, chose to become a Chartered Accountant and a Company Secretary, which I achieved successfully, in 2011 & 2010 respectively.

Life happened and years passed, leaving me with a feeling of wanting more from life. Hence, after a long queue of questioning myself, I came up to the conclusion, that MBA programme shall help me out in developing a 360 degrees’ view of a business. Coming from Accounting & Finance background, I lacked confidence in other aspects of business, like operations, sales, marketing among others.

Hence, I started looking for options, as there are many available in the UAE. But again, I wanted to be the best in whatever I put my mind into, hence chose the No. 1 School, present in Dubai, UAE – which is SP Jain School of Global Management for my MBA. And it worked out well, as they have Executive MBA programmes as well, which are available for weekend classes. I couldn’t have asked for more, as being a working professional that is the only time I can assign to my development, and further education and enrolled myself with the School in August 2020 for batches starting from January, 2021.

It’s been over a decade since I was a student, and the thought itself of starting to prepare for the entrance test was challenging. There was an entrance test to clear, which if cleared successfully, shall be followed by a personal interview with the Dean and Deputy Dean. And only after the successful completion of the Personal Interview, shall I be able to enroll myself with the EMBA course with SP Jain School of Global Management.

The entrance exam itself was seeming very stimulating, as it had set of questions from sections like diagrammatic reasoning, Logic, IQ, Reading comprehension and Numerical. Of which, Numerical was the only section I was comfortable with, coming from a finance background.

Hence, I started preparing for the entrance test, it took me 2 days – 24 hours to prepare myself, and to grasp the concepts of all the sections of the entrance test, and I practiced a lot for excelling in all sections. I chose to attempt the entrance test by self-learning, and did not go ahead for any kind of coaching.

I also, practiced 2-3 mock tests with the old entrance test question papers, to gain more confidence, while appearing for the actual entrance test, and time myself. As that is a very crucial element while appearing for the entrance test.

The admissions staff was extremely helpful during the entire process; no matter how many doubts I had. Also, you are allowed only 3 attempts to clear the entrance test. But I wanted to achieve the results at the very first attempt, which I did thankfully.

Since the day I have joined the EMBA course from SP Jain School of Global Management, all my weekends are spent at the Campus, from 1PM to 8 PM, and if the school has arranged for an ECAP (Executive Career Acceleration Pathway) session then I start at 10 AM instead.

I like to attend all classes, as every class is a new learning, as they are all cross-functional for example, Operations management, Strategic Marketing, Human resource management, Business Statistics, Marketing Management, Business Economics, etc., Also, my batch mates hail from different backgrounds and walks of life. I am able to learn from them when we share experiences and forge friendships. It gives me a truly global perspective by having batch mates from so many countries and backgrounds.

Though I am not an expert in the subjects listed above, but at least now I have an understanding of each subject’s vocabulary, and am able to comprehend how it is linked with my area of expertise i.e., Finance & Accounts.

As part of extra-curricular activities, I have joined the SP Jain Toastmasters Club which gives me an opportunity to hone my public speaking skills in a helpful and affirmative environment. 

SP Jain has changed my life and taken it to a whole new next level, as after pursuing operations management, I, for the first time ever in my 15 years of career, visited the company warehouse to understand how they operate. And now I pay visit to the company warehouse quite frequently and came up with some really good ideas to improve the operation cycle time.

Also, after I pursued Marketing courses, I started having market visits with my marketing colleagues. Though I had a lot of questions initially, but later on I started adding value to the way our products are displayed on shelves in the retail outlets.

I happen to head the HR department of my current organization, and after pursuing the HRM course, the way I use to manage HR has completely changed. And I was able to initiate a lot of HR activities, which can even be seen on the LinkedIn profile of the company. Employees now feel engaged with the organization as a whole.

My bosses have been very kind to notice the initiatives that I have taken in my company and praise me for my efforts. But it’s the school that is truly worthy of praises, as it wouldn’t have been possible without the amazing faculties that they have, to achieve this. All the faculties are very thoughtful, and they respond to your questions and are available to help you out even after the completion of courses which is quite helpful for working professionals like me.

About the author

Shakira Kungda Shaikh is a student of the Executive MBA programme at SP Jain School of Global Management. She successfully completed the Company Secretary course as well became a Chartered Accountant in Mumbai. Shaikh holds eight years of work experience in various companies including Sahara Group and then life took her to Dubai. She is a Financial Controller and an HR Director of a leading FMCG Distribution Group in Dubai, UAE.

 

 

 

Note: The views expressed in this article are solely author’s own and do not reflect/represent those of Shiksha