We recently caught up with three members of the Columbia Business School Executive MBA Program to learn a bit more about their background, their reasons for choosing to pursue an MBA, and why they selected Columbia. We also learn a bit more about the Columbia Business School Executive MBA Program and what each student has planned for after they complete their program. Read more about Elizabeth, Alex & Maria in the pages that follow.
Elizabeth Arnall, Columbia Business School, Executive MBA
School and Program:
Columbia Business School Executive MBA Program
Hometown:
New York, NY
Elizabeth Arnall, Columbia Business School, Executive MBA
Undergraduate Institution & Major:
Trinity College, Hartford, French
Pre-MBA Work Experience:
24 years of work experience in financial services.
Why Business School? Why Now?
After 24 years in financial services, this is the first question I get asked, as a lot of people assume I am approaching the peak of my career, but I feel I’m not even past base camp! I love to learn and to be challenged, and couldn’t imagine a better time to start my MBA at Columbia Business School: I have enough work experience to appreciate and absorb what I’m learning, while at the same time, I feel that I have so much more ahead career-wise, and my CBS experience will be key to the journey.
Why did you pick your school/program? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to attend?
I chose Columbia Business School for its reputation and location: like its tagline says, Columbia is “at the very center of business.” The quality of the professors, guest lecturers, and student population that Columbia attracts is unparalleled and provides an incredibly rich learning environment.
What do you think is your most valuable or differentiating contribution to your graduating class?
I hope that my work experience will be a resource to my classmates, both in terms of knowledge as well as for perspective on career development. And I am not shy about asking questions in class and hope that this is helpful as well!
Fun fact that didn’t get included on your application?
I had to dig deep into the cobwebs of my brain to refresh my memory on Algebra II for the Executive Assessment. And I really enjoyed it.
Advice to current prospective applicants:
It’s never too late to apply, career-wise. I have been blown away by how much I’ve learned in the last six months and look forward to all that lies ahead.
What is your initial impression of the school’s students/culture/community?
Columbia Business School’s students, culture and community are amazing. The school attracts and values people who have different and unique perspectives – among my classmates are engineers, scientists, doctors, marketing specialists and attorneys. While we are all looking to get different things out of the program, we have two traits in common: intellectual curiosity and the feeling that we are all in this together. It is a true community and one that I am proud to be a part of.
Alex Zhang, Columbia Business School, Executive MBA
School and Program:
Columbia Business School Executive MBA Program
Hometown:
Xi’an, China
Alex Zhang, Columbia Business School, Executive MBA
Undergraduate Institution & Major:
Northern Arizona University, Finance
Pre-MBA Work Experience:
7.5 years in finance. (Banking, Credit Ratings, Private Credit Investing)
Why Business School? Why Now?
In the beginning, attending business school was my ‘next big goal’ after I completed my CFA journey. Then I realized I needed to expand my network beyond other finance professionals. Business school is a perfect way to open up my horizon. I wanted to meet other people from different professional backgrounds. That’s why I decided to apply to business school.
Why did you pick your school/program? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to attend?
When Columbia Business School says ‘at the very center of business’, they really mean it. The fact that CBS is located in NYC is an important factor. Especially for an EMBA program, CBS enables me to keep working in the city while attending school. It’s a clear winner.
Having friends who went to the school also helped. Several former colleagues and close friends attended Columbia. When I spoke to them, all of them spoke highly of the school. The outstanding professors, the impressive career management center. I knew CBS was the right choice.
What do you think is your most valuable or differentiating contribution to your graduating class?
Probably the fact I am planning a career change through attending Columbia Business School. Some students switch jobs during the program, while few decide to change careers. I started a sustainable consumer products company while in school. Transitioning from wall street to being an entrepreneur is a very big and interesting change. My most valuable contribution to my class would be showing fellow classmates that this is a possibility, too.
Fun fact that didn’t get included on your application?
Starting my own company as a result of the MBA. When I applied, I was considering staying in Finance or switching to IT, not becoming an entrepreneur!
Post-MBA Career Interest:
Continuing to manage a successful startup!
Advice to current prospective applicants:
Join Columbia Business School! It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Be confident because you bring something interesting to the table. The community will become better because of you.
What is your initial impression of the school’s students/culture/community?
It’s very diverse. If you are interested in hedge funds, you will find people who can’t stop talking about long-short strategies; If you are interested in entrepreneurship, you will find successful founders in the alumni list; Whatever your heart desires, you will find like-minded people and a GREAT community here.
Maria Villaquiran, Columbia Business School, Executive MBA
School and Program:
Columbia Business School Executive MBA Program
Hometown:
New York, NY
Maria Villaquiran, Columbia Business School, Executive MBA
Undergraduate Institution & Major:
The George Washington University – Bachelor in Business Administration
Pre-MBA Work Experience:
Prior to joining Columbia Business School, I had over 7 years of experience in the financial services industry, serving global banking and capital markets in the areas of risk, regulatory compliance, and anti-money laundering. In EY’s Technology Consulting practice, I am specialized in helping financial institutions improve their KYC processes utilizing emerging technologies. I had significant experience with international regulatory law regarding CIP, CDD/EDD, beneficial ownership, and ongoing customer monitoring. I have assisted multiple global financial institutions in the implementation of KYC policy for 50+ jurisdictions and workflow configuration into EY’s Platform with automation capabilities to assist analysts in performing due diligence reviews. I have worked with EY clients in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Singapore, United Kingdom and the United States.
Why Business School? Why Now?
Today is all about managing speed and risk. I’m at the forefront by helping clients keep pace with today’s digital world, evolving regulatory environment, and ongoing operational cost pressures. As a transformational leader, I’m leveraging emerging technologies and my regulatory compliance expertise to create winning teams that drive value for EY, my clients, and the financial services industry. Over the next 3-5 years, I want to advance to the next phase of my consulting career. To accelerate my career goals, I believe earning an Executive MBA degree from Columbia Business School will allow me to foster innovative thinking, break boundaries in the technology space across several markets, and establish business value for myself and EY. Through a rigorous academic experience, I will be able to develop my core business skills to anticipate change and recognize opportunities with speed and accuracy. The academic exposure and accomplished network will also deepen my existing knowledge allowing me to apply creative solutions in real-time that will position my clients in the future of work, through product development, innovation in technology, and business strategy. CBS will contribute to the advancement of my career as a leader at EY in financial services as I will learn unique perspectives, approaches, and solutions to drive business growth and run a business successfully with the highest performing teams.
Why did you pick your school/program? What factors figured most prominently into your decision of where to attend?
I mainly selected Columbia Business School for two main reasons: 1) Dynamic academic experience and 2) Entrepreneurial mindset. I wanted to develop strategic business management and growth skills that can anticipate change and opportunities in the market, deepen leadership and business skills through program curriculum and experiences and cultivate relationships that can expose new ideas, challenge thinking, and increase network footprint. Moreover, as a consultant, I knew I had to figure out a way to develop an entrepreneurial mindset to create and capture market opportunities with speed and accuracy, learn about disruptive perspectives, approaches, and solutions to face this competitive environment, and acquire skills to create new business models that leverage business strategy and economic aspects to ensure our existing success continues into the future. CBS offered everything I was looking for when compared to the other executive MBAs in the northeastern US.
What do you think is your most valuable or differentiating contribution to your graduating class?
I have a huge passion for diversity and inclusion, leading me to promote cultural initiatives inside and outside the classroom. I truly believe there is power in diversity, but more importantly, in making sure everyone feels heard, appreciated, and part of a community. As such, I believe this is my most valuable contribution to our graduating class – an inclusive community of diverse people looking to make an impact in this world.
Fun fact that didn’t get included on your application?
I have traveled to over 40 countries and lived in 6!
Post-MBA Career Interest:
As I continue my growth at EY, my long-term dream job is to become a transformational change agent for top companies in the world. I have managed change across my industry and I recognize that there are huge shifting forces in the regulatory compliance space, forcing organizations to quickly adapt and manage cutting-edge technology. I want to be a leader that can quickly draw from academic and professional experiences to come up with new solutions and look at changes in the market as an opportunity for growth. More importantly, I want to make companies challenge their operating models and see how they can leverage technology to become proactive, versus reactive, to today’s complex business environment. To do this, I will be leveraging my MBA degree to clearly understand how companies operate and leverage my peers’ expertise and their experiences to enhance my design thinking skills.
Advice to current prospective applicants:
Make sure to visit/engage with current students and try to audit a class. I remember I was trying to choose between different MBA options and what ultimately made me select Columbia Business School was that I was able to audit a class and engage with students. I felt like the individuals taking the class could all be my best friends and the professor was very engaging making the class discussion very impressive and interactive.
What is your initial impression of the school’s students/culture/community?
Our class started the program in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic and I could not be more proud of Columbia Business School for taking the strong stance to make our program Hybrid/flex where other MBA programs simply decided to move everything remotely. It truly showed me that no matter how tough everything was around us, CBS was willing to take a risk and try to provide us the ability to learn in person for those who were willing to be in person. The students are simply the best people I have ever met – strong, independent business leaders who are constantly thinking of how to better themselves and engage in the business world to create impact. I’m so proud of the diverse class CBS put together because a huge aspect of the MBA experience is connecting with your classmates to build a network. Overall, my CBS experience has allowed me to appreciate the time we have together in and out of the classroom. I look forward to continuing to engage with the CBS community during the last year of my EMBA and beyond.