Meet The McGill Desautels MBA Class Of 2020

Mandy (Meng Meng) Wang

The Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University

“Open-minded, analytical and confident. I place great value in teamwork and integrity.”

Hometown: Montreal, Quebec

Fun Fact About Yourself: Aside from all the math, I am naturally a quiet, artistic person. I enjoy activities like drawing, singing, playing piano, and all sorts of handcrafts. I have always dreamed about opening my own nail salon one day!

Undergraduate School and Major: McGill University, Finance Major

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: TD Asset Management, Associate Institutional Marketing & Sales Support

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Despite winning multiple league of excellence and star awards throughout my roles at TD, the moments when I felt most accomplished was when I proposed and implemented ideas that, after lengthy processes, were accepted and widely adopted. One of those ideas was my suggestion for creating a periodic calibration meeting in my team, which allowed team members to share knowledge and decide on more consistent and accurate ways to produce deliverables. This process improved quality control and ensured that stakeholders consistently received high quality presentation materials regardless of who was assigned to the deliverable. The calibration meeting is still being conducted within the team on a quarterly basis, and I am thrilled to know it is still making a positive impact even when I am no longer part of the team.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? Driven, open-minded and willing to share experiences and ideas. Everyone I’ve met so far has been very open to sharing their thoughts and suggestions. I received great advice on how to be better prepared, how to tackle the job search process and what timeline should be followed to stay organized. I love the team spirit demonstrated by McGill students and how we all see each other as friends instead of competitors. Upon graduation, I will not only have gained a degree, but also a beautiful family.

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? I completed my undergraduate degree at McGill, and it was one of the most amazing and enjoyable experiences in my life. McGill is a reputable institution attracting the most talented individuals from different countries across the globe. One of the reasons I chose this program is because the international study trip and exchange programs are wonderfully designed for us to gain international exposure to cultures around the world. I want to understand these cultures, open myself to new ideas and principles, and learn about different standards and social norms. The adaption process will be both challenging and enlightening and is something I look forward to.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? I plan to attend workshops on presentation techniques with respect to data, analytical thinking and decision-making as well as leadership and networking sessions. Topics related to advanced statistics, analytics and math will be my priority as these will be my major career focus upon graduation.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? Now is a good time to pursue graduate studies from both work experience and personal development perspectives. I just wrote my CFA Level 3 this summer and have established a sound financial base from which to expand into other areas of expertise. My career can benefit from this MBA. It will not only lead to my next role, but also to my long-term objective, which is to hold a position where I can make a significant impact in business processes, particularly those related to identifying and implementing efficiencies in the data analytics field. While working at TDAM, exposure to different areas within the division allowed me to discover my interest in data analysis and data partitioning. My current professional goal is to break into the portfolio analytics field, and the MBA program will help me acquire the necessary technical and managerial expertise.

How did you decide if an MBA was worth the investment? The skills gained through the MBA will not only help me secure my next job, but will be an amazing long-term investment throughout my career. The relationship-building skills, program-specific expertise and network of like-minded individuals will all be beneficial for career growth. My entrance scholarship granted by McGill was a major help that definitely made an impact in making this investment even more worthwhile.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? Rotman MBA, Queens Masters in Analytics. Out of the three programs I applied for, McGill offered both the most attractive curriculum and the most notable entrance award. It was hence an easy decision for me.

How did you determine your fit at various schools?

  1. Reputation: The school’s reputation determines the strength of its network, which is my top priority in selecting an MBA program.
  2. Program Content and Affordability: I am looking for a graduate program with a focus on business analytics, so the university had to be able to offer what I need.
  3. School Culture/Value: This includes class size and setup, criteria under which candidates are selected, activities (both extracurricular and program events), the campus itself, and whether the school places value in making the whole program enjoyable and memorable.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? I can’t say that there was any one single defining moment that shaped me. My personality is shaped by exercising judgement over what I constantly observe from people around me. I think my decision to work at TDAM made a major influence in my life. Working with many of the most successful and talented individuals in the industry, I learned by observing successful people how to interact with others in a more respectable manner, how to build professional relationships and how simply trusting others can reward you so much more, both at work and in life.

What do you plan to do after you graduate? Roles that interest me include: portfolio analytics, risk management, and data analytics.

Where do you see yourself in five years? Working for a well-respected financial institution, in a role related to fixed income portfolio analytics and/or client portfolio management.