Kyle Pearse

Background

My Career Journey

I started my career with Bank of Ireland in Dublin on their graduate programme, shortly after I completed my MA in September 2008, which was interesting given what was going on in the world at the time. My start date was the day after the Irish government provided a blanket guarantee for all Irish banks – which was a pretty landmark moment.

At the end of the graduate programme, I joined the European leveraged finance team in Dublin in 2010, and in 2012 I moved to New York to join the US leveraged finance team. I spent four years with the firm in NY, before moving to London in 2017, where I am currently a director, leading European healthcare coverage for our corporate banking business. In this role I work together with my colleagues across our investment bank and global markets divisions to deliver bespoke financial solutions to our clients.

The programme

Choosing the Imperial Executive MBA

An MBA was always at the back of my mind, ever since I started in banking. I explored the possibility of enrolling when I was in the US, however I never felt as though I was at a place where I could commit two years of my life to it. As I researched different schools it became clear that Imperial College Business School was an obvious choice given its excellent reputation globally. The key driver for me was its linkages to the wider Imperial College London community and its leadership in STEM subjects. The ability to tap into that community is key for me as I seek to learn more and grow as a person. I was fortunate to be accepted to a few schools, but Imperial really was the standout choice.

Programme standouts

What makes the programme unique for me is the combination of everything – the School itself, the teaching and staff, my cohort, the location, Imperial’s reputation, the wider College community, and the flexibility of the programme. All of these add up to make Imperial College Business School a truly unique experience. Furthermore, the alumni network is excellent, and I have really enjoyed hearing from business leaders in our Guest Speaker series, most of whom have a connection to Imperial. Other factors such as the Executive Leadership Journey, which allows us to discover and hone our leadership style, are unique to Imperial when compared with other schools I was accepted to.

What is the most rewarding part of the programme?

There are two elements that I’ve found particularly rewarding. The first is the interaction with my cohort and the relationships that have developed. We have a diverse cohort with each person bringing their own unique personalities and abilities, which makes for a phenomenal environment to learn and succeed in together. My second point would be a general reintroduction to learning. When you get to a certain stage in your career your learning can start to stagnate, so the MBA rekindling that within me has been incredibly rewarding.

Applying the learnings to my role

Working full time in conjunction with your studies means you can apply any learnings as soon as you have the opportunity. For me that has manifested in a few ways. Some of the marketing theories for example have been instrumental in helping me to generate some good momentum with new and existing clients, while I was also able to put the theory from Organisational Behaviour to work for some hiring processes and in the development of my own team. Furthermore, from a leadership perspective, the Executive Leadership Journey allows you to understand and develop your own leadership style, which you can start to apply immediately.

Opportunities

Benefits of the Imperial community

The wider community at the university was another key driver in choosing to do my Executive MBA at Imperial. The obvious benefit is the networking that the community allows for, taking you outside the Business School to engage with those in other departments such as engineering, music, medicine, etc. One of the things that I have enjoyed the most was an introduction to coding, which was completely new to me. Additionally, there are frequent IB Knowledge articles and webinars, which allow you to develop your understanding of key issues facing the world, such as energy transition and the role of deep tech in moving society forward to name but a couple.

"The wider community at the university was another key driver in choosing to do my Executive MBA at Imperial. The obvious benefit is the networking that the community allows for, taking you outside the Business School to engage with those in other departments such as engineering, music, medicine, etc"

Growing in my career

My career goals have never been about hitting a certain level or title, rather it’s been about continually evolving by improving my skillset and knowledge base and seeing where that takes me. The Executive MBA has made me realise I needed to focus more on this evolution, so that has been a positive. There is no doubt that I am in a better position to grow in my career already because of the programme.The modules are giving me a more fulsome basis of business knowledge, filling in holes that I knew about and others that I did not. This last factor is one of the beauties of the programme - you are learning about those 'unknown unknowns’ which can be a significant factor in your career going forward.  

Tips

Advice to prospective students

In essence, I would say go for it! Request a profile review, speak with the Programme team, connect with current students and alumni for a conversation. It’s an investment in yourself as a person and you want to make that investment with the best information you can. I toyed with the idea of an MBA for years and I have been extremely happy with my decision. I look forward to our teaching weekends and engaging with my cohort. For me the Executive MBA is a way to unwind from work and recharge through learning and engagement with my cohort, all of which I thoroughly enjoy. However, it is a significant commitment which everyone should be clear on when they start, but it’s a commitment which you will feel the benefits of for the rest of your life.