Komal Bapna

Read Komal's story

What was your career and experience prior to studying this programme?

Prior to the MBA, I was working as a Growth and Strategy Manager at Airtel Payments Bank, India's first Payments bank. As a growth marketer, I worked on three top digital priorities for the bank: first, growth strategy for Airtel Pay- our one-stop payments solution, second, handling the performance marketing portfolio with Google, Facebook and Affiliates; and third, optimising the revenue funnel for bill payments and recharges as a category.

As the strategy manager I was responsible for working on the product strategy, forecasting & modelling revenues, building the annual operating plan, and engaging with strategic partners, while delivering key insights to the senior management.

I also collaborated on bank-wide strategic projects over the years including a recommendation engine, fraud risk management system and subscription-based bank accounts.

"The Career Services at the business school, especially the conversations with career consultants have been a constant support in my journey."

Why did you choose to study the Full-Time MBA at Imperial College Business School?

Apart from the central London location and the benefits of doing an MBA overseas, Imperial College Business School seemed to be the perfect fit for my career progression due to its unique focus on entrepreneurship. As someone with a strategic mindset, I was looking for an MBA programme and university that complements my commitment to technology and innovation. So far that has also been the best part of the MBA.

Imperial College London is known for its expertise in STEM and business, and I had no second thoughts about the opportunity to study at one of the Top ten universities in the world. Imperial also leads in research and during the entire course, I can see the exposure to STEM opportunities even as an MBA student.

How are you planning to use your MBA for your future career?

My commitment to a career in technology is unshakable and complements my entrepreneurial mindset. I am extremely passionate about innovating and using new technologies to transform the lives of consumers. With a professional background in fintech and the Full Time MBA at Imperial College Business School, I plan to build on my learnings and experiences to improve our lives by taking up consumer strategy and growth roles in technology firms.

How has the career support at the Business School helped you achieve your goals?

As someone who has been extremely clear about her ambitions, I was looking for guidance or advice to build on my career goals. The Career Services at the business school, especially the conversations with career consultants have been a constant support in my journey. These monthly one-hour conversations helped me progress in my career plan as well as my overall development and well-being. Even the Mentorship programme and networking events by the Career Services have been really helpful in staying connected to the industries of interest.

What are you enjoying learning about the most?

While I enjoy learning about the fintech landscape, it’s an area I have some expertise. When I look back at this past year, I have evolved from a curious individual to a passionate learner with new areas of interest, thanks to the MBA programme. At this point in time, I am absolutely enjoying the negotiation skills I am learning as part of my electives as well as about real-world asset tokenisation using blockchain, which is also the technology behind my Entrepreneurial Journey venture.

"When I look back at this past one year, I have evolved from a curious individual to a passionate learner with new areas of interests, thanks to the MBA programme"

How does the programme help you stay up to date with evolving industry trends, themes and challenges in the real world?

Apart from the case study-driven approach that is followed in almost all business schools, the Full-Time MBA programme at Imperial College Business School provides a unique opportunity to engage with the larger Imperial community. The Business School provides a lot of ways to connect with like-minded people driven by passion on various topics of interest through university-wide electives, events, and networking sessions. I have been able to stay ahead of the curve in areas I had no idea about before the MBA just through peer-to-peer interactions that I have had during my time at Imperial.

Are you part of any clubs or societies? 

I am the head of Fintech at the Finance Career Club at the Business School. I am also an engaged MBA Content Creator writing feature blogs, chairing panels and creating social media content. While both these positions require commitment in terms of time and energy, I think they have been core to my development as an individual. The various interactions I have had as a part of both my extracurricular activities have been socially engaging but also intellectually stimulating. Being involved in these clubs and events gave me various opportunities to represent the business school in blogs and events, one special instance being when I represented the MBA cohort in a student discussion with Imperial College London Provost, Professor Ian Walmsley FRS.

What advice would you give to someone who’s considering applying for this programme?

When I look back there is only one piece of advice, I would give to anyone considering applying: to not constantly worry about what the future holds after the MBA.  It is an amazing quality to be focused on your career goals, but it also acts as a deterrent to gaining the entire experience of the MBA. An MBA is not just an academic programme, it’s a transformative journey one takes, and it changes the way one thinks and interprets the world thereafter. The economy and geo-political landscape impact the job markets globally, but it ideally should not affect the MBA journey in any way.