Tomas Jauregui

Cambridge Judge Business School

“Creative and ambitious, comic book creator, and hungry for adventure.”

Hometown: San Isidro, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Fun fact about yourself: I have been doing musical theatre for over 10 years now, and I am like one of those actors who always gets cast as the antagonist.

Undergraduate School and Degree:

• UCLA Extension – Certificate (with distinction) in Business & Management of Entertainment
• Universidad de San Andrés – Bachelor of Business Management

Where was the last place you worked before enrolling in business school? Endeavor Argentina – Senior Associate. Endeavor is a global non-profit selecting, supporting, and multiplying the impact of high impact entrepreneurs and their businesses.

Where did you intern during the summer of 2020? I was working in my full-time job pre-MBA

Where will you be working after graduation? I am currently exploring opportunities in the Gaming Industry.

Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School: I hold the position of Co-chair for the Culture, Arts, Media, Sports & Education Special Interest Group at Cambridge Judge.

Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school?  The achievement that fills me with pride during my time in Cambridge has been successfully launching and funding a Kickstarter campaign for my original comic book, Endless Moons. It was a comic that I started working on back in 2017 while attending story workshops at UCLA and could be described as ‘Anastasia in Space’. It has been a marathon rather than a race, having the patience to execute its development until it was ready. And I would like to highlight the immense support from my CJBS cohort to help me spread the word and backing for a copy of it. The boost of confidence they have provided me on this adventure has been invaluable.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? As a Senior Associate at Endeavor, I was lucky enough to be able to propose, set up, and launch a new acceleration program for start-ups in the Argentine ecosystem. This six-month program, Scaleup Argentina, granted me the opportunity to continue developing the pipeline of potentially high impact entrepreneurs in the ecosystem, and, to help Simpleat (a healthy meal delivery service company) with their Chile expansion and seed investment round.

Why did you choose this business school? I always wanted to experience living in the UK, especially with London being one of the top world centers for entertainment. But what made me decide on Cambridge was the opportunity to experience studying in a university with the richest history and a one-year program that would get me back into the workforce quickly. I was also excited by the CJBS two consulting projects and a summer internship behind me, as well as the Arts & Media Management Concentration. This seems to be ideal for the transition into the entertainment sector that I am looking for.

Who was your favorite MBA professor? Choosing a favorite professor is particularly hard this year after the dedication shown by the school to provide top-level education and adapt to a blended approach. If I have to choose one, I will say that Dr. Allègre L. Hadida, our Creative Arts and Media Management Professor stands out the most. She excels in engagement, fomenting students’ interaction, and providing up to date information and research to learn about the industries discussed in class. She is also a comic book collector so I might be somehow biased towards her being my favorite.

What was your favorite MBA event or tradition at your business school? Sadly, because of the Covid-19 restrictions, we could not experience the full potential of formals and traditions that Cambridge has to offer, yet. However, our cohort’s Cambridge Business School Club’s leaders were able to pull off a Holiday/End of 2020 Dinner by creating groups of six by their College and booking Browns, the go-to restaurant next to Cambridge Judge, who provided an amazing multi-course meal for us all.

Looking back over your MBA experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently and why?Looking back on my MBA experience so far, I would have made use of the different libraries that the Colleges in Cambridge have to offer, to study or enjoy reading when fewer restrictions allowed it.

What is the biggest myth about your school? That Cambridge is not just an historic place you have heard of growing up, but it is the perfect blend of fascinating traditions and constant innovation, provided by its community of researchers, entrepreneurs, and companies living here.

What surprised you the most about business school? What surprised me the most, coming here, has been the impact that a university like Cambridge can have when building a network. Coming from Argentina, I knew I had to work extra hard to start getting new acquaintances and people in the entertainment sector, if I was hoping to transition into it. What I noticed is that when reaching out as a Cambridge MBA Student, people truly appreciate and respect you, and enthusiastically look forward to connecting and having a conversation with you.

What is one thing you did during the application process that gave you an edge at the school you chose? When applying to Cambridge, I made my case particularly focused on how my creative background could provide a different perspective for the cohort. Making use of my hobbies in musicals and writing, together with my experience working with entrepreneurs and the desire to transition into entertainment, I believed I was offering a unique background to add to the class.

Which MBA classmate do you most admire? I am blown away by the people I get to share this experience with every day, so this might be the hardest question to answer. But when I think about admiration, I believe that Maggie Simpson is the first one to come to mind. Incomparably engaging in class with the most positive energy, she is a person you would always want on your team. A natural leader that proves in every situation that she has what it takes to accomplish goals. Maggie is our cohort’s Sports Co-chair and Entrepreneurship Special Interest Group Co-chair, too. I am very grateful for sharing this experience with such an inspiring friend.

How disruptive was it to shift to an online or hybrid environment after COVID hit?

Given that our cohort started the academic year in September 2020 with the pandemic well established, I believe we were prepared for the new learning environment that came with it. Thankfully, the Cambridge Judge Business School has been giving its very best to provide its students with the possibility of a hybrid learning experience during our first three months, with top-class online tools and safety measures for in-person classes. In our second term, given the worsening COVID-19 conditions, we switched to fully online. While this might not have been what we expected after enjoying in-person classes in the first term, I truly believe we are a resilient cohort, full of risk-takers, who are willing to make the best out of what we have been given. No matter the new environment, students are very actively pushing online initiatives, such as mixers, challenges, and panels, to prove that with crisis comes opportunity and growth.

Who most influenced your decision to pursue business in college? The biggest influence in my wish to pursue business in college has been my uncle. A Wharton MBA Alumni, he has always been an example of growth and healthy professional ambition, proving that with dedication and sacrifice one can achieve aspiring goals.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list? My number one item on my professional bucket list would be to produce video games and animated shows based on my original IP and see them distributed by a major streaming service and video game marketplace. The second one would be to challenge me and go to Japan, and experience being a professional in a completely different working culture and see how I would adapt to make the best of it.

What made Tommy such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2021?

“A true Renaissance man, Tommy epitomizes the rarely achieved perfect combination of artistic and managerial talent we discuss extensively in the Creative, Arts and Media Management course module. He ran a successful creative Kickstarter campaign this year, and his empathy and intelligence shone during our in-class interactions. I am expecting him not only to further develop into an amazing business leader, but also, through his various creations, to shape our popular culture moving forward – I am both rooting for and looking forward to the film adaptation of his first graphic novel!”

Allègre Hadida
University Senior Lecturer in Strategy
Cambridge Judge Business School

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