Arpitha Krishna Mohan

Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto

“An Aerial Yoga and digital tech enthusiast who loves connecting with new people.”

Hometown: Chennai, India

Fun Fact About Yourself: I’ve lived, studied and worked in 8 countries and counting. So, the question ‘where are you from?’ daunts me every single time.

Undergraduate School and Major: SP Jain School of Global Management, BBA (Finance)

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Mindfields, Senior Manager – Consulting

Integrative thinking is one of the cornerstones of the Rotman MBA experience. What does integrative thinking mean to you and how have you been able to apply it thus far? Integrative thinking is weaved into the curriculum here at Rotman and is definitely one of the most attractive elements of the MBA program. From my experience, it has been a new way of approaching and solving problems. We have a tendency to isolate the issue and the solution and in doing so, we miss out on the bigger picture when solving complex problems. With the emphasis on integrative thinking, I’ve been able to take a step back to absorb and synthesize different perspectives and opinions to reach an enhanced solution when working with my teams. It has been a wonderful learning experience and you don’t realize the value of it until you apply your learnings from it in the program and during recruitment too.

What has been your favorite part of Toronto so far? What has made it such a great place to earn an MBA? I would have to say the food! There is so much diversity out here that you never really run out of options to try something new. Outside of that, Toronto has been a great place for pursuing my MBA with the sheer number of career opportunities – the market is definitely growing and Toronto’s proximity and connection to the rest of the regions is definitely beneficial for those who are exploring different career paths. Most importantly, I’ve really learned a lot from being surrounded by people from so many different cultures and backgrounds. It’s hard to believe it until you truly experience it. However, Toronto is so rich and diverse in its culture that you really do get that holistic learning experience – both in the classroom and outside! I’ve enjoyed every bit of it.

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of the Rotman MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? One of the most important factors that played a role in my decision, apart from the people, was the breadth of opportunities to develop my skillset out of the classroom. While the traditional classroom setting is great to deepen your knowledge on all things business, a lot of the learning happens outside the classroom. The Self-Development Lab (SDL), Leadership Development Lab (LDL) and the numerous other labs are fantastic opportunities to hone your professional and personal skills. SDL and LDL, particularly, attracted me to Rotman as I was keen to focus a lot more on the ‘softer’ skills to develop and shape my leadership skills.

What course, club or activity have you enjoyed the most so far at Rotman? While it’s hard to pick just one, I would have to go with being a part of Women in Management Association (WIMA) as my most favorite experience. Having predominantly worked in a male-dominated field, I am a huge advocate for promoting more women in leadership roles. It has been incredible meeting other female-identifying students at Rotman, understanding their perspectives on women’s progression in the workplace, and learning from their experiences too as part of the WIMA community. Along with this, the opportunities that we’ve had to engage with women leaders has been incredible.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: It would be the time when I led the implementation of a new ‘way of working’ at Mindfields by leveraging OKRs. This initiative was extremely important to the firm as we wanted to reset our 5-year strategic priorities and goals with a stronger emphasis on building an inclusive and collaborative work culture. It’s always challenging to introduce a new methodology organization-wide and more so change the way people work together. Nevertheless, it was absolutely rewarding to step out of my comfort zone and pick up a new skill with people and performance management. The methodology is fully embedded in the organization and is an integral part of the employees’ and organization’s identity.

Describe your biggest accomplishment as an MBA student so far: It may sound cliché or rather simplistic but the biggest accomplishment for me so far in my MBA has been my ability to overcome the many challenges I’ve faced as I switched from a full-time job to full-time studying at the other end of the world. It was not the easiest to get back to studying full-time after several years out of school while also settling into a new country during COVID. There are so many priorities, opportunities, and decisions one would have to make and I’m proud of how I’ve been able to navigate through these various hurdles and keep my chin up!

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into the Rotman MBA program? It may sound repetitive, but I truly believe in this as I look back at my time as an applicant to the Rotman MBA program – It’s important to spend time reflecting on what excites you and what makes you ‘you’. Further, one should understand why you really need an MBA right now from Rotman. If you have a solid answer to those questions, let those stories reflect in your application. Take the time to engage with the Rotman community (they’re all fantastic) and enjoy the process. It may feel stressful when you are going through it but it’s all worth it in the end – trust me!

DON’T MISS: MEET TORONTO ROTMAN’S MBA CLASS OF 2023