Previous Occupation: Director – Risk and Compliance, KPMG
Sector: Consulting
Work Experience: 15 years
Personal Interests: swimming, cycling, music, movies

Tell us about yourself – your profile, your professional life after ISB including your career progression.

I have recently relocated to KPMG’s London office for a period of two years and will be working on the High Growth Markets agenda specifically covering the Indo-European corridor. My key focus area will be to help serve Indian companies who have an outbound agenda in Europe as well as European companies who are keen to expand their footprint into India.

To give a recap, it has been seven years since I graduated from the ISB in 2003. After a short stint in the ITeS industry, I returned to the Big 4 and my last six years at KPMG have been fruitful and rewarding. While in India, I worked with the Risk and Compliance function and managed some of KPMG’s largest accounts in the Consumer and Industrial Markets sector, including Unilever.

What was your key take away from the ISB? How has the ISB helped you in your career?

The biggest takeaway for me is the soft skills. I learnt the ability to interact with a diverse group of people. Pre-ISB I was more of an independent player. As a Director with Risk and Compliance I was responsible for a team of over 30 professionals. I learned how to interact, how to set and manage expectations. In client delivery, the technical perhaps I knew before the ISB. However, the soft hands with which to manage clients – this I learned at the ISB.

In contrast, my new role is all about business development. I am required to know about market assessments, valuations, market entry, strategy, etc. A lot of what I learned at the ISB will come into play here. The ISB qualification played a key role in my getting this assignment.

Tell us about your association with KPMG

It has been an exciting 6 years. Like all long relationships, this has had its share of ups and downs. Overall, it has been satisfying and rewarding. I enjoy the work and I like the people I work with. The opportunity to interact with diverse people is exciting. I have made a lot of new friends and contacts.

What is your vision for the School?

It must be recognised as a top 10 school. Despite its Financial Times ranking, the recall and visibility in the world is still low. We perhaps need to give it more time, maybe another 5 years but by then the ISB must have equal recall and recognition to Insead.

What are the strengths that the School can leverage upon and areas it can improve?

The School now has 10 batches of alumni. It must create more forums for alumni. The biggest advantage the world’s top schools have are their alumni – their networks and the ability to leverage on them to build business. This is true for the IIMs and IITs too. This must come true for the ISB. There may even be a case for taking in a more diverse pool of students. On an aside, I was at small alumni event in London in May. About 10 of us met up, 7 were working in the IT industry in business development. This could change.

What do you think is the alumni’s role in building the school?

Alumni can bring greater visibility in the corporate world and be guest speakers at the ISB or ISB forums, specifically in international cities. The ISB must partner with alums to create greater brand recognition.

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