Ameya Deshmukh

Georgetown University, McDonough School of Business

“I’m a curious and ambitious problem-solver with a passion for technology.”

Hometown: Dubai, UAE

Fun Fact About Yourself: I love to travel and explore different cultures. I have lived across 3 countries (India, UAE, USA) and traveled to 24 of the 48 contiguous US states as well as to 20 countries across 3 continents.

Undergraduate School and Major: Purdue University – West Lafayette, Mechanical Engineering major, Economics minor

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: I spent 3 years at Adidas as an Innovation Engineer. I also pursued a Pre-MBA internship doing Product Marketing & Strategy for a London-based Tech startup called Fintricity.

What excites you most about studying in Washington, DC? Sitting at the intersection of global business and politics as well as home to a thriving tech and social impact entrepreneurship scene, Washington DC provides a unique ecosystem of opportunities. This interesting mix of industries gives the city a distinct culture which is young, energetic, diverse, and passionate about social justice. I am also excited to be in a historic city, and looking forward to explore the many museums around town!

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of Georgetown McDonough’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? What drew me to McDonough was its distinct focus on global business. The program offers unique opportunities such as the Global Business Experience (GBE), which is taken in the spring semester of the second year. The course provides MBA students with an opportunity to travel abroad to consult for leading global employers on real-life business problems. It sounded like a great opportunity to explore different business environments and build a global perspective.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Georgetown McDonough? I am particularly excited to join the Georgetown Technology Club. With my goals of pursuing opportunities in Tech, the club offers access to employers by hosting the Tech Day and boot camps and training sessions on tech tools like R, SQL, etc. The club also works with the career center to plan a Tech Trek, expanding the networking opportunities with employers.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: It was being able to completely automate the material handling process within the Indianapolis Manufacturing facility at Adidas using Automated Mobile Robots (AMRs). This was my first large Capital Expenditure Digital Transformation Project and required collaboration with various technical and non-technical teams across the business unit. Additionally, recognizing the disruption to the physical manufacturing processes, the project called for extremely hands-on change management and training component. The successful implementation and transition to automated material handling provided an 8% efficiency gain and $400K overhead cost savings.

How did COVID-19 change your perspective on your career and your life in general? The pandemic helped spotlight some of the pressing issues in our world around healthcare, global supply chains, and social inequity. Coming from a manufacturing and supply chain background myself, this helped validate my work experience and sparked a realization of the numerous opportunities I had to contribute to our society in combatting some of these issues. This last year has helped crystalize my career goals of wanting to build innovative products in the clean tech and supply chain space.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point and what do you hope to do after graduation? My three years as an Engineer at Adidas helped me realize my interest in Technology and Strategy and sparked a desire to transition into a strategic, product-related role in Tech. As I mapped out my steps to achieve this goal, I recognized the gaps in my business and strategic thinking skills. I realized that an MBA would provide me with the business foundation and leadership training to complement my technical experience and bridge the gaps in my skills. The MBA would allow me to successfully make the career transition I desire and equip me with the tools to become a successful business leader.

What other MBA programs did you apply to? Michigan – Ross, Cornell – Johnson, UW – Foster, Carnegie Mellon – Tepper, NYU – Stern.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Georgetown McDonough’s MBA program? Be proud of your accomplishments and journey so far! Everyone has a unique story to tell, and Georgetown wants to hear yours. In addition, do your research about the program and know how you want to contribute to the community here.

DON’T MISS: MEET GEORGETOWN MCDONOUGH’S MBA CLASS OF 2023