Each candidate who embarks on the EMBA Global journey has a career goal in mind. It could be about accelerating, transitioning, networking, or starting their own venture. These goals are the driving force that keeps them thriving despite busy schedules, personal commitments, or long commutes.
Bogdan Tatarchevskiy, our 2017 graduate, shares below his personal experience and growth before and after the EMBA Global programme. His story is a testament to how the programme helped him become the inspiring leader he is today.
You have an outstanding multicultural background, working in various parts of the world, such as the US, UK, and Luxembourg. Why do you think you needed a programme like EMBA-Global in your career at that point? What were your motivations and job roles back then?
I have always been interested in social impact investment. My early career investment experience was in raising capital and managing financial projects with an international microfinance network FINCA International. After that, I worked as a Managing Director at Developing World Markets, a U.S.-based company focused on social impact investment and asset management delivering capital to more than 2.5 million entrepreneurs across the globe. All in all, before EMBA, I worked on investment projects in 40+ countries investing across multiple impactful themes (small- and micro-enterprise financing, renewable energy, water and sanitation, fintech, education, low-income housing etc). Still, I felt that I would benefit from an executive programme that would provide me with a better grasp on the ever-changing disciplines of today’s world of finance as well as allow me to further develop many of the so-called “soft” skills.
EMBA Global programme was a natural choice for me. I was attracted by the opportunity to leverage my prior experience to build further my managerial and leadership expertise. I gained a lot of new knowledge with the core classes that allowed me to focus on financial, investment, accounting, statistics, and managerial fundamentals but on a higher level than I experienced in my day-to-day work. What is more, the programme setup worked well with my busy schedule. Very often my classes were a stop on the way back to New York from due diligence trips in Africa and Asia.
What was that course/ faculty/ experience that exceeded your expectations?
I would have to name quite a few of such classes. The leadership and managerial courses help you discover and reinvent yourself as a much stronger leader. Electives and international assignments present a unique opportunity to expand outside the core and build expertise around your strategic goals.
All the knowledge I was acquiring from the programme and from collaborating with my classmates was useful right away in my work. On any given day, I could play out a scenario for how to handle team management situations, tackle a new approach to analysing parts of a quirky financial report, or obtain useful contacts for potential collaborative projects.
I’d also add that the EMBA experience provides an opportunity not only to go deeper in the areas where you already excel but also to expand beyond your current field and explore topics you may have never considered otherwise. This is a rather unique place and especially attractive because here you have access to the best professors as well as extremely motivated classmates.
What were the most important learnings and skills that you took from the programme and still apply to this day?
I still keep my EMBA name tag and my personal values card in my wallet (yes, you will learn about those early in the programme). So, indeed, my experience has been positive across the whole range of classes but most of my focus was on the management, negotiations, entrepreneurship, and leadership courses. The skills I learned during my studies at EMBA have continuously been a constant presence in my day-to-day working toolkit.
Could you share how your career has progressed since graduating from the EMBA Global programme and what your current roles entail as sitting on various Advisory Boards?
My goal was not about changing my career, my focus was on growing personally and professionally fast in the areas where I didn’t have enough expertise. EMBA-Global gave me that boost and changed my life in many ways. I made progress with the company I was with at the time. We’ve expanded our portfolio and the team, and I was promoted to become a partner at the firm.
A few years later, I moved from New York to London where I was offered a job as Deputy Director at the Soros Economic Development Fund, the impact-first investment fund focused on tackling social challenges along with delivering financial returns. The scope of my work expanded significantly, as I and my team have been investing in projects and funds focused on climate, health, independent media, ethically responsible tech, and energy transition projects among others. I also constantly update my expertise. Recently, I have been involved in work in the newly emerging and quickly growing sectors of fintech, climate tech, ethical tech, and insurance tech, as well as AI platforms and solutions, joining the boards and advisory positions with promising companies whose work I feel passionate about, helping them change the world to be a better place.
If only given 3 words, how would you describe your experience within EMBA-Global?
It was about learning, self-discovery, networking. I would also add one more word: it was actually quite a lot of fun too.
Do you have any final advice for upcoming EMBA-Global candidates?
Roll up your sleeves and be prepared for some hard work. But also be open to meeting new people. What I found great at EMBA was the support of my new classmates who helped me get through not just the team projects during the course but also become friends for life.
In addition, it is important to recognize how much of an effort the programme is for the people around you as much as it is for you. In my case, first and foremost, it was my family whose backing and support I had all along. Also, I had enormous support from my colleagues and the firm I was working with.
And, yes, book your flights as much in advance as possible! Save on those miles, they will come in handy. But I should say, it was all worth it.
For more information regarding our EMBA-Global programme, click here.