Q: Where is your hometown?

A:Bogotá, Colombia

Q:What are you studying at the D'Amore-McKim School of Business and what is your graduation year?

A:My MBA concentration is Marketing and I graduate in August 2018.

Q:What do/did you do in your corporate residency? What are/were your responsibilities? How did you impact the business?

A:My corporate residency is going to be in Hasbro, in Marketing, Global Consumer Insights, specifically in the Strategic Foresight team. I will be responsible for the analysis, follow-up, and assistance in all business initiatives related to the cultural and market trends. The main impact of my work will come from the improved knowledge that Hasbro will have of its client-base, and from the ideas I will recommend relative to the optimal medium-to-long term strategy to follow (i.e., considering a 3-5 year window).

Q:What skills are you building at D'Amore-McKim that you are using in your corporate residency or will use in your future career?

A:Learning teamwork and leadership skills at D'Amore-McKim has been very valuable for my career. These two skills are the basis of business development, and they are taught in the program since day one. Each semester we have a learning team composed of people from different backgrounds and cultures, which fosters adaption to different situations and how to approach challenges in the best way. This collaboration also fosters leadership, as one learns to identify the skills of all the group members and make the best of them when achieving a specific goal.

Q:What has been the biggest take-away from working toward your MBA at Northeastern? What can you do today that you couldn't do before you started your MBA?

A:In my view, earning an MBA is an experience that develops business leaders, teaches them how to deal with a business's needs and requirements, and gives them hands-on experience to handle the different problems a company may face. After the MBA at D'Amore-McKim, you will be ready to understand business challenges in a global way and tackle them from a holistic perspective. The MBA will give me the tools I need in order to achieve my long-term goals.

Q:What has been your most valuable experience so far?

A:My most valuable experience in D'Amore-McKim was The Global Trip course to India in which we did a consulting project with GE Power. This experience helped me to understand how business is done in different cultures and to work from a different perspective. The course is the perfect opportunity to learn from different countries and to apply the learnings from your previous experiences and from school to real-life problems.

Q:Why did you choose D'Amore-McKim?

A:I chose D'Amore-McKim because of the real-world experiences and opportunities it provides, especially the corporate residency, in which you get to apply your classroom learnings in a real company for 6 months. This is a unique feature, and a huge differentiator.

Q:What would you say to a prospective student considering D'Amore-McKim for their business degree?

A:D'Amore-McKim is the best place to learn how to apply your business skills in real world situations. Working for a company as part of the program for 6 months can help you leverage your knowledge into real projects and reinforce your career concentration.

Q:Where do you see yourself in 5 – 10 years?

A:After my career at Coca-Cola FEMSA, I became passionate about consumer goods and services as well as innovation. Thanks to this experience and everything I've learned during the MBA program, I see myself in 5-10 years working in a consumer products company in a leadership role in the marketing area.

Q:How has D'Amore-McKim helped you to become more?

A:D'Amore-McKim has helped me to see understand challenges and opportunities with a business mentality. I have improved my analytical and communication skills and learned how to apply them in the best way in a corporate environment.