Krishna Mehta Shah

HEC Paris

“An adventurous and ambitious global citizen, hopping, skipping and jumping her way around the world.”

Hometown: Sydney, Australia (now based in Boston, Massachusetts)

Fun Fact About Yourself: I am a much better cook now than I was a year ago. Who knew salt could make such a difference?! Curries, salads, and pasta are my go-to items.

Undergraduate School and Major: University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia) – Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in Finance and Accounting.

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: J.P. Morgan (Hong Kong) – Team Lead, Associate

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Moving from Sydney to Hong Kong in 2018 allowed me to immerse myself into a completely different culture. I joined the Investment Middle Office Services team at J.P. Morgan, which focuses on servicing the trade lifecycle of top asset managers and pension funds across Asia and Europe. Within 10 months of commencing this role, I was promoted to the client-facing Team Lead position. I am proud to have achieved this promotion in such a short period of time, especially within a new international environment.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? If I had to describe the best qualities of my MBA classmates in three words, then I would say that they are: humble high achievers. The class is filled with accomplished students from diverse backgrounds and everyone that I have met so far has been remarkably warm and approachable. I am excited to get to know my peers better as we embark upon our European learning experience together.

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? The key factor that led me to choose HEC Paris was the schools’ strong and unique emphasis on leadership development. The alumni have spoken a great deal about programs like The Executive Committee (TEC) and the Saint Cyr leadership seminar, as they found them to be invaluable in building their leadership qualities. These programs push students out of their comfort zones and give them the opportunity to reflect and learn from accomplished leaders. I am really looking forward to joining them and challenging myself.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? I am looking forward to joining the Marketing Club at HEC Paris and learning from thought leaders as well as my peers. Given I want to switch both my role and industry post-MBA, the insights from this club will be incredibly helpful as I prepare myself for relevant internship opportunities.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? The most challenging thing that I had to do during the admissions process was to put a 10-minute presentation together on any topic of my choice. The topic that I chose was understanding the growth of wellness apps, such as Calm and Headspace. I found the presentation to be an enjoyable and interesting element of the interview process.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? The three main reasons as to why I am pursuing an MBA are to switch industries, continue developing as a leader, and connect to a strong alumni network. I have always worked with complex financial products over the last 8 years in the financial services industry and would now like to switch into the consumer goods industry and work with more fast-moving tangible products.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? I applied to schools in Europe and in the United States. However, after further considering program length and school location, HEC Paris was my first-choice school.

How did you determine your fit at various schools? Undertaking my MBA at a school which focused on the following factors was very important to me: leadership, diversity, culture, class size, and location. I researched my target schools online and also attended the MBA tour in Australia. Hearing the experiences of past and present students really helped me understand cultural fit. I also looked for schools that had specializations and transformational opportunities that aligned with my post-MBA career goals.

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? Paragliding in Nepal, Pokhara – solitary reflection caused by a delay in jumping helped lift the heavy self-imposed weight of worrying off my shoulders. I was sitting atop a mountain in my early twenties waiting for my paragliding adventure to begin when I had been informed that my trip was to be delayed by a couple of hours. With no connection to my world and nothing to entertain myself with, I preoccupied myself with a hearty reflection on life.

I realized that the world below continued to move at its normal pace whether I actively worried or not. I reflected on the three concentric worry circle exercise I did at a seminar, which wasn’t so clear at the time. The inner-most circle is where you put the things you can change. The second circle is where you put things you can influence. And the third outer circle is where you put things you can neither change nor influence. Sitting there, atop the mountain with no ability to connect and with no flood of new things to worry about, I finally understood the unnecessary burdens of worrying about things that I could not directly impact nor influence. Paragliding and watching the breathtaking expanse of the Himalayan range after that realization was and continues to be one of the most memorable days of my life. I ran off that cliff (with a parachute and instructor) a very hopeful optimist that day – a warrior instead of a worrier.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? Leading the global marketing division of a multinational corporation focusing on consumer products and setting up or being linked to a non-profit organization working on environmental sustainability.