Meet The MBA Class of 2022: Alejandra Scherk, IESE Business School

Alejandra Scherk

IESE Business School, University of Navarra

Creative-thinker and eager-learner; strategy consultant committed to unlock the potential of digital in organizations.”

Hometown: Barcelona & Madrid, Spain

Fun Fact About Yourself: I am not a party anima, but I tend to accidentally get involved in parties. Once, after a late night in the office, I went back to my hotel and ended up in a party full of famous people – I even had a drink with Jon Kortajarena and Ivana Baquero!

Undergraduate School and Major: Universidad Pompeu Fabra, Law and Economics

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: The Boston Consulting Group, Strategy Consultant

What makes the case method so attractive as a means to learn and become a better manager? It would be stepping into a manager’s shoes by being exposed to multiple real-life cases in just two years. It helps you get the managerial mindset by putting your knowledge into practice, through teamwork and open-mindedness.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of the school’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? It is IESE’s balance between a European location and an international environment. The school sits in Barcelona, a place where I wanted to stay after several years of non-stop travel, but it also grants a truly international experience: you are surrounded by 85% of international students; you can take overseas modules and go on an exchange to top schools around the world.

What club or activity excites you most at this school? It would be the Women in Business Club, which is 100% student-run and aims to empower women as leaders. What I like the most about the club is its willingness to make things happen: not only does it organize an annual flagship conference and specific meetings and workshops, but it also ideates and proposes multiple actions, implementing them jointly with the school administration and other student-run clubs.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Building the digital strategy for a Middle East company end-to-end, from setting up their digital department to tracking the value from their digital initiatives. The project was especially challenging because it required alignment of the full organization, but it was also rewarding because we worked with a wide variety of stakeholders, from national C-suite executives to experts from the Far East.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? After three years in strategy consulting and multiple projects, I have created a strong base for my career development. With this foundation, I believe it is the right moment for me to start an MBA. That way, I can build my managerial skills via the case method and the interactions with my teachers and classmates, enabling me to make a move into industry and discover the right field to specialize on.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? I did not apply to other business schools. After connecting with multiple admission teams, attending presentations, and speaking to my career advisors, I realized IESE was the right choice for me. I focused all my energy in the application and hoped for the best.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process? The most challenging question was about tough choice and challenges I had faced. It felt uncomfortable to speak about difficult situations when I had been picturing myself as a strong applicant during the whole process. My take here was to keep it natural and positive: dealing with complicated issues can be good if one learns from them and grows as a person and a professional.

How did you determine your fit at various schools? The key factor for me was the school’s culture and its people. To assess it, I met alumni and current students and spent some time with them, speaking about a variety of topics from their MBA experience to why they chose IESE or their current employment. This gave me a good idea of IESEians’ attitudes and values and showed me that I would fit in their community.

What was your defining moment and how did it prepare you for business school? My defining moment was the day I made it to a 2nd year consultant (which was my initial goal when I started working). I left for a “weekend retreat, to think about next step. I decided to work for one more year to consolidate my skills and prepare myself for my MBA. Doing this helped me to properly prepare IESE’s application and to clarify my ideas, making sure that I was headed in the right direction.

What is your favorite company and what could business students learn from them? I cannot choose only one, there are too many! One of them, though, would be King (the developers of Candy Crush). I think we have a lot to learn from this agile and Digital company, starting with their values: innovation, modesty, agility, care & craft (putting your heart and soul in everything you do), and being fun & friendly (because work should also be joyful).

DON’T MISS: MEET THE MBA CLASS OF 2022 AT IESE BUSINESS SCHOOL

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