Exploring Program Management and Business Development Post-MBA

Today we’re talking about partnership management at Microsoft. Our guest is Manuel Cerrutti. He’s an MBA 2018 alumni and a Partner Development Manager in Microsoft’s Toronto office. You’ll hear him talk about how he positioned his experience in the manufacturing industry to land a role in tech and how to land a software partnerships role at Microsoft right out of school.

This week we're talking about two roles that are quite popular among MBAs - Program Management and Business Development. Our guest is Erin Johnson. She's an MBA 2017 alumni is a Sr. Business Development Manager at Top Hat (edutech startup based in Toronto). Just after graduating, Erin worked at Amazon as a Sr. Program Manager. You'll hear her talk about what it was like transitioning from accounting/finance in the energy sector to tech, and why she believes both program management and BD are great options for MBA grads.

This week we're talking about how new MBA grads can get into product management. Our guest is Jonathan Lau. He’s an MBA 2016 alumni and has been a Product Manager at both Instacart and Loblaw Digital. Jonathan is currently teaching the Introduction to Product Management bootcamp course at General Assembly. You’ll hear him talk about the five ways that he sees MBAs get into product management, tips on how to tackle product cases, and advice on determining which product management opportunities are the right fit for you.

Today we’re exploring an operations role that’s often found in Canadian tech offices where there are sales teams - Sales Operations, Sales Strategy, or Sales Finance roles.  Our guest is Jason Huang. He’s an MBA 2008 alumni and a Head of Sales Strategy, Operations & Enablement at Amazon in their AWS organization. Prior to that, Jason was at Facebook Canada where he led Sales Planning & Operations. You’ll hear him talk about what Sales Operations Managers do, why he thinks MBA grads, in particular, are a great fit for the role, and what to expect during the interview process.

Today we’re continuing our series on revenue roles by exploring the world of customer success! Our guest is Maheen Memon. She’s an MBA 2010 alumni and a Sr. Customer Success Manager at LinkedIn. She’s also the co-organizer of a meetup group called Customer Success Toronto. You’ll hear her talk about what it’s like to be a customer success manager at a startup (Nulogy) vs a big tech company (LinkedIn), how to leverage your non-tech expertise as an asset, and finally, why customer success is a great gateway into roles like product management.

This week we have Adrian Norville(MBA 2010)on the show. He's a former investment banker turned entrepreneur who has spent time in both product manager (PM) and product marketing manager (PMM) roles at startups across Toronto. You’ll hear him talk about how those positions work together, he’ll share his keys to networking your way into tech and finally, he’ll reveal his DOs and DON’Ts when interviewing for a product management role.

Today we're diving into the world of "revenue"! Usually, when someone mentions the revenue team, people will immediately think of Account Executives or Account Managers. Over the next few episodes, we'll be talking to alumni that work on revenue teams but aren't in traditional sales roles.  This week's guest is MBA 2012 alumni Shady Ghattas. He’s the Global Director, Consumer Products Industry Solutions at SAP. Shady joined the company right after he graduated and has held a few different solutions advisory roles. You’ll hear him talk about what a Solutions Advisor or Customer Experience Advisor does at a large enterprise software company, he’ll share tips on how to successfully land those roles post-grad, and finally, we’ll reflect on his eight years at SAP and what he’s learned about career progression during that time.