Meet IE Business School’s MBA Class Of 2019

Niv Fonea

IE Business School

“Israeli, married, Navy background with a career FMCG marketing, super curious, derived by passion.”

Hometown: Tel Aviv, Israel

Fun Fact About Yourself: I was a monk for 2 months in a Kong Fu temple in china, training 10 hours a day, no common language and away from 2010 civilization.

Undergraduate School and Major: Economics and Business administration Tel Aviv University

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: CCSD Manager at Nestle

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far:

I believe that my biggest accomplishment in my career by now, is that I manage to find in every role the opportunity and the employers’ support to make a change. Of course, this is what makes a job so interesting, fulfilling, and fun, so I see it as I great accomplishment for myself.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? Modest and genuine, no matter what they did before or where are they from. Most of them are modest. I was afraid that most people will try too much to prove themselves. But by now, people are being modest.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? Top-ranked school with great reputation and best value for money. It was also a one-year programs (which was very important for me, since my resources were limited). I found it was the best school for the tuition, location, and cost of living. It’s a high-ranked school and it offers scholarships. Other than that, you got a lot on less time. It’s intensive, but it’s worth it!

 What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? I’m looking forward to the Tech Lab. As for myself, I want to change path in my career, from FMCG to tech. The Tech Lab can really prepare myself to this kind of challenge and provide me with a first-hand insight about the industry.

I’m also looking forward to the marketing and entrepreneurship clubs. I want to meet different backgrounds and learn from others about their careers. I believe this the best learning we can do in this MBA. Looking forward to hearing fresh and new ideas and meet interesting people.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? I wanted to upgrade my career, be better business-wise, do my best to reach my goals, learn about other industries, and have the chance to be exposed to international markets and knowledge.

How did you decide if an MBA was worth the investment? I spoke with MBA alumni and by investigating the different MBAs online. I searched rankings, opinions, salary tables. But most of all I wanted to something big with my life, and it is pretty big

What other MBA programs did you apply to?

London Business school

IESE

How did you determine your fit at various schools?

The first factor was value for money. In other words, I checked recruiters, ranking, feedbacks and costs.

Tools: Articles, GMAT Club, constants, and schools websites.

The main tool to understand the culture of a school is finding alumni who could give me honest feedback.

Career goal: Checked top recruiters from the school and the school’s focus. For me, I wanted to find a school that teach corporate innovation.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? My defining moment was finishing was finishing the Navy training. It showed me that hard work worthwhile.

What do you plan to do after you graduate? I still don’t know. I haven’t decided on my exact career path, but definitely want to stay in Europe and in the field of marketing and sales (either tech or FMCG).

Where do you see yourself in five years? I see myself as a marketing director of a large company, or general manager in medium one. But definitely in a high management position in a place that will allow me to make an impact.

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