Building a Global Network with SP Jain – Nabeel Rahman’s Executive MBA Story
After earning a degree in pharmacy and starting a career with a leading pharmaceutical chain, Nabeel Rahman (EMBA 2020) soon realised that this might not be his true calling. Within a few months, Nabeel decided to make a change in his life and move into a field that interested him immensely – Supply Chain. 6 years and several promotions down, Nabeel is currently a Supply Chain Manager with the Abu Dhabi Medical Devices Company – Madeco.
Having achieved so much in his career already, why did Nabeel decide that he wanted to enrol for the SP Jain Executive MBA? We caught up with him to find out.
Q. How did you know that it was time for you to do an MBA?
Nabeel: Even though I was doing well in my role as a Supply Chain Manager, I did not have the scope for a lot of career progression. I felt that this was due to the skills I lacked in business strategy, finance, and operations. An MBA was the best way for me to build these skills, and that is when I started researching and decided to enrol for an Executive MBA that would help me study without taking a break from my career.
Q. How did you discover SP Jain’s EMBA?
Nabeel: SP Jain’s weekend EMBA brought together a group of professionals from diverse backgrounds and industries, and this was one of the main reasons I joined the program. During the 18 months I spent at the School, I was able to build a network, that I could not even imagine before. I honestly feel blessed to have been part of a cohort full of experienced peers and gain from their in-depth industry experience.
Q. What fond memories do you have from your time on campus?
Nabeel: The best memory I have from my SP Jain EMBA is the learning experience I had while interacting with the highly experienced faculty from both industry and academic backgrounds.
Right from our Global Immersion Project (GIP) and working late nights on group projects and assignments to improving my public speaking in the SPJ Toastmasters Club, getting into debates with my peers, participating in Executive Career Acceleration Pathway (ECAP) sessions that helped us understand topics outside of our MBA curriculum, and making friends that I know will be with me for my whole life – these 18 months have been truly remarkable for me. By the end of this period, I could thoroughly understand my SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats), which I feel blessed for.
Also, I must specially mention Dr Gary Stockport (Professor – Strategy, Dean – Executive MBA, Chair – Examinations Board), who drove us through Business strategy in such a brilliant manner. His guidance to complete the GIP is commendable and helped improve my skill set tremendously. Today, I am regularly using these new skills and expertise in my day-to-day job.
Q. Have you seen any changes in yourself after graduating from the program?
Nabeel: Problems at Work (PAW) is one of the core components of the SP Jain EMBA curriculum, and this helped me solve quite a few work-related issues – it taught me how to think differently. I remember how the PAW session about quality management once helped me find the root cause of a major variability in one of our manufacturing processes.
Another major change I can see in myself (that my Manager acknowledged as well) is the improvement in soft skills, Emotional Intelligence, and the understanding of trade-offs while making decisions.
Wish to read more stories from SP Jain’s Executive MBA students and alumni? Click here.
