UCD Smurfit MBA Blog

Archive for the ‘Authors 2011-2012’ Category

I had the privilege of coaching the leaders of tomorrow at UCD Smurfit and have been asked to reflect on the experience during the past year. The one-to one coaching experiences started a little earlier with the Exec (2-year) MBA students in November. As coaches we each met our coachees for this first coaching session at this stage. Most of them had a pretty clear idea of what they would like to achieve from the experience, although many were unsure of the process (as is the case for anyone who has not experienced coaching before).  The topics broadly related to specific business challenges, leadership style and career. This first session allowed us to gain a common understanding of the end goal as well as raising awareness of the challenge they faced. Most walked away with areas to reflect on before we would meet again.

By the time the 2nd coaching session came around (late January/ February), there had been a noticeable shift in perspectives. Due to the increased gap between the coaching sessions this year and the time available over the Christmas break, it was obvious that ample time had been available to the MBA students to consider their challenge. At the beginning of each coaching session I have a tendency to reflect back on where we left off so that the coachee can bring me up to date. At these coaching sessions I was invariably met with ‘Goodness at lot has changed since we last spoke’. At this point a path was emerging and during this coaching session we would continue to thrash out the situation and options that emerged.

Between session 2 and 3, my coachees went on their International Trip to either Brazil or China. They returned fulfilled by the trip albeit a little overwhelmed by virtue of the fact that so many things were now coming together. They were trying to keep the day job going, assignments were kicking in en-masse and the end of the MBA loomed. There was a mixture of relief (in terms of the juggling this necessitated) and also sadness at the prospect. These guys have juggled for two years now and many described the camaraderie in the class and the ‘hole’ they would feel in their lives which they wanted to fill with something else constructive.  We continued our coaching conversations reflecting back on the initial goals which were set. Broadly speaking we stayed very much on course and in the main, MBA students achieved what they had wanted from the process.

What strikes me from the experience is the concept of the coaching process being akin to stepping on ‘the balcony’. The Executive MBAs are endeavouring to juggle work, MBA programme and their personal lives for 2 years and the coaching process allows them a little time to step out of all this and reflect on a challenge which is important to them. For the coaches it is rewarding to see this journey and support them in the challenges which they face.

- Eadine Hickey, Executive Coach on the UCD Smurfit MBA

Day 5 (continued.): We landed in Rio de Janeiro after four exciting days in Sao Paulo and headed straight to Corcovado, where the monumental statue of Christ the Redeemer is located. Once arrived, we were left standing in awe of the legendary figure and the spectacular view from the top of the mountain. In the evening we had a Brazilian style dinner at a local Churrascaria.

The group at Corcovado

Day 6: The day began with a presentation by major development bank BNDES in down town Rio. It was very interesting to find out how Brazil was preparing for major sporting events including the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games in 2016. Following the insightful morning session, we had an eclectic lunch at Café Colombo. We then attended a meeting with Brazil’s largest company, Petrobras. After that we were free to explore Rio and the beautiful Ipanema beach by night!

Day 7: We had a meeting with Deloitte that morning and then visited Vigário Geral, one of Rio’s favelas for lunch and presentations by the social enterprise organization, Afro Reggae. It was a once in a lifetime experience where we witnessed a few exhilarating music performances and got to do some drumming ourselves! The final dinner was held that evening at one of Brazil’s finest restaurants, Porcao Rio’s. Most of the group then headed to Lapa, probably the most happening place in Rio on a Friday night!

Getting a taste of Brazilian music

Day 8: The last morning in Brazil was at leisure and I took that opportunity to visit the landmark Sugar Loaf Mountain. We all then boarded the flight back to Dublin after an intensive week of work that gave us a wonderful opportunity to get a first-hand experience of rich Latin American culture and understand how it influences business and society.

- Vishal Balasubramaniam, Full-time MBA 2011/12

From left: Fergus O’Dea, Nihar Panda, Nicole Blair, Prof. Pat Gibbons, Dr. Brian McGrath, Phillip O’Sullivan and Donnchadh Casey

One of the most challenging and fulfilling parts of the MBA is the significant element of group work required by the majority of our subjects. Learning to manage the different styles, cultures and timekeeping habits of our colleagues has been the source of more than one disagreement this year! But I have seen how team diversity, if properly managed, can drive a team to be greater than the sum of its parts.

I have been extremely fortunate to be part of two great work teams this year and that trend continued as I joined my friends Donnchadh, Nicole, Nihar and Philip on a team for the MBA case study competition. The process began with stiff competition from my fellow full time colleagues, and then the winner would take on a team of UCD Executive MBA students. The eventual winner would then represent UCD at the annual MBA case competition this summer in Dublin.

It is a testament to the ambition and dedication of our class that 15 students, comprising three teams (somehow) found time to dedicate themselves to this competition. We met early in the morning to be presented with a case study, and were then given 4 hours to analyse the case and prepare a presentation of our findings for a discerning panel of judges; Michael McDonnell, Prof. Pat Gibbons, and Dr. Brian McGrath.

We retired to a syndicate room when a brief period of calm while we read the case was quickly followed by a flurry of debate as we tried to corral the stampede of ideas into a coherent presentation. After the quickest four hours I can remember, we were slightly dazed, but ready to present. The MBA class of 2012 have become adept at preparing slick presentations, and the level of preparation has included an incredible adaptation of Toy Story 3, and some trademark guerrilla film making from Stephen Smith. The case study competition was excellent in forcing us to get back to basics and to present without the same level of preparation that we would usually put in. I was very impressed by all three presentations each of which dissected the case from a different perspective and offered various solutions for the company in question to move forward.

The Competition!

All of the teams would have done the full-time class proud, but I’m delighted to report the judges favoured our presentation, and we were awarded first prize and the right, along with the second placed team, to face the Executive MBA team in the next round.

From my experience of the Exec’s they will no doubt raise the bar further and it is up to us to match them if we are to go on to face the other MBA’s from across the country and live up to the achievements of last year’s team.

- Fergus O’Dea, Full-time MBA 2011/12

It’s that time again… it’s the time that companies start opening their doors to MBA students and recent grads.

Internships are popular with MBAs, particularly those who are considering changing career paths.  There are two types, (1) internships for students who have graduated, and (2) internships for students who are in the middle of a two year program.  Whatever your situation, now is the time that those doors open and now is the time to get those applications in.

The majority of internships with multinationals are located inside the US.  There are exceptions, and for those of you who would like to have an experience in another country while performing your internship.  As there are many US multinationals that have internships on offer, I have chosen the following because they offer internships outside of the States.  Here are some details on them:

Company: BASF

Location: HQ is in Ludwigshafen, Germany although BASF is active in many countries

Number of positions available: Various placements

Note: BASF calls the program the Accelerated Development Program for recent grads. Also do a search for “Praktikant”

Company: Credit Suisse

Location:Melbourne, Hong Kong and Singapore close 28 June 2012. Sydney internships close 26 Jul 2012.

Number of positions available: Not specified, but numerous

Note: The application process is quite long, and they will ask you for exam scores(remember SAT and GMAT?)  Set aside some time before taking a stab at this one.

Company: Amazon

Location: Mostly UK and Germany, with some positions EU and worldwide.

Number of positions available: Four titles, several positions in each

Note: For internships in Europe use amazon.co.uk.  For US opportunities, use Amazon.com. (I think you have to register twice).  On the Amazon.co.uk site specific req numbers are: 168865, 154996, 132494, 170988

Remember, this is only a picking of companies that offer internships worldwide. If you choose to go to the States then the choices are virtually limitless.

So, there you go.  Dust off your CV, add your most recent experience, and get it out there.  Getting an internship at one of these companies is far from easy.  You are competing against MBAs from around the world, so companies essentially have their picking of graduates. Whatever the outcome, make sure to send out, make contact, and follow-up.  Best of luck!

- Michael Munevar, EMBA 2011/13