Now, Christmas lights appearing across the streets and department stores of London remind us that the first term is nearly over. As the people of London look forward to winter festivals, hot chocolate and baby pancakes (with nutella on top),  I look back at a myriad of eclectic experiences. From looking through the City of London solving mysteries, to learning how to bake a cake, building a vertical farm out of Lego and  hiking up and down the Barossa to save hostages – all as part of an MBA experience at Cass.

Looking back, it is incredible how much we have experienced and learnt from each other during this short time; each student coming from a different background and industry. For me, I came from the world of healthcare. I wanted to do an MBA to develop my understanding of management in the health industry. But, if my experience has taught me anything, it’s that you can’t
achieve great ambitions alone.

Working as a doctor taught me indefinitely that ‘I’ is a letter, not a word. Everything we achieve represents what so many people have inspired, believed and invested in us. So, I came to Cass looking for a network of people who would not only be diverse in their backgrounds, but who can challenge and push me to the next level. I am so grateful I have met individuals who have taught me so much: both in my cohort, and my Professors of course.

When I first arrived at the school, I expected the lectures and high volume of reading we needed to do, but the course has been more practical and intriguing than that.

During our introductory weeks, we had a team activity where we were given iPads and asked to follow the map to search the City of London for clues and complete challenges. Myself and my group were asked to re-enact an iconic movie scene – as my acting skills are terrible my contribution was to direct and film my group’s re-enactment of ‘Run Forest, Run!’ from the movie Forrest Gump. Later in the term we were asked to put our strategy teaching into action with a Cass MBA Bake-off. Each group had an incomplete set of ingredients to bake a cake that they had to negotiate and trade with other groups. We also had to work around the logistics of kitchen equipment and booking times to use them. Using our strategy theory helped focus our strategic approach to this (very delicious) challenge.

Following this, we had a trip to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. It was an unforgettable experience that really brought the class together and facilitated our effectiveness as a team. We worked in groups to complete tasks and practical problems on the school grounds. In the end, we were sent on a rescue mission to save a group of ‘injured hostages’ in the midst of coloured smoke screens – representing the school’s efforts of giving us a realistic experience. The combination of skill-sets in the team was valuable in allowing us to learn from each other and further develop our leadership and followership skills.

Most recently, we had a competition for presenting about oil and energy to an affiliate of the school named the Tallow Chandlers – without using overhead slides. We soon learnt that sometimes the less technology you have, the more creative you can be. In our endeavour for innovation, we presented a case about sustainable food and renewable energy. We explored how we can harvest crops grown using vertical farming methods to alleviate the burden of biofuels on food supply. To illustrate the concept of vertical farming and other statistical figures we utilised child’s play: from Lego blocks, to monopoly  boards and UNO cards. Using children’s games to illustrate our points served as a subtle – though important – reminder: that the decisions we make regarding sustainability today, will affect our children tomorrow.

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It has been an interesting experience studying at Cass and now we are already on the doors of winter. Being a Londoner for nearly 13 years, you can’t help but adore the festive season’s charm: with  people beginning to ice skate on the courtyards of Somerset House and awaiting the opening of Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park.

However, this year has brought interesting and new experiences to the normal traditions. Doing an MBA at Cass Business School has been very full on with the academic requirements and studies, but introduced something different and further solidified the notion of the importance of working as team, it’s important to remember we can go further together, and that team work can make the dream work.

Mashael Alanizi, Full-time MBA (2016)