Rapid worldwide adoption of technologies made digitalisation a top priority for most companies. As the companies rethink their processes, organisation and culture, they also seek talent who possess the right skillset to be at the forefront of digitalisation.
Based on numerous industry reports, it is clear that employers seek candidates with not only solid understanding of how technologies work, as digital literacy is becoming a must, but also a number of soft skills essential for the future of work. These include a clear cognitive flexibility, ability to quickly adapt to change and conceptualise & solve multiple complex ideas, creative thinking skills and innovative & entrepreneurial mindset – all of which are essential to successfully operate in the contemporary job market. Attending a tech-focused business Master is the great answer to obtaining both those requirements – a solid technology understanding and the essential business and soft skill sets.
In this article, we interviewed three of our ESCP alumni, all of whom have chosen to study a tech-related Master’s to build a successful career in the digital age. We asked them to reflect on how their ESCP Master has helped them in landing their jobs and to give one piece of advice to anyone considering a career in tech.
Alois Thieffenat – Senior Consultant at EY Berlin
Introduce yourself, what you have studied at ESCP and what do you currently do?
My name is Alois Thieffenat, a 26-year-old French/German, currently living in Berlin. I am an alumnus of the Master of Science in Digital Transformation Management & Leadership. In my current role as Senior Consultant at Ernst & Young, I am advising large corporations on delivering digital transformations, concentrating on processes within finance & compliance.
How did your ESCP Master prepare you for a career in Tech?
On a daily basis, I translate business expectations into viable technology solutions. In that capacity, my Master’s provided the foundation for making the junction between the languages of business and IT / Tech. Beyond that, our teams strive to showcase, co-develop, and bring to market promising technologies, for instance, in the field of process automation. Looking back, I can see how the courses at ESCP gave our class the right toolbox to make a difference in shaping these technologies.
What would be your main advice for anyone considering a similar career to yours?
To anyone considering a career in Technology Consulting, I’d recommend reaching out to people in the field to understand the realities of the profession. Personally, I respond to every question from ESCP students on LinkedIn. I also believe that internships and working student positions are fantastic ways to get first-hand experience as a technology consultant and provide a significant competitive edge over other talents to land a full-time job.
Aurane Dibeu – Solutions Consultant at Google Paris
Introduce yourself, what you have studied at ESCP and what do you currently do?
I am Aurane, I’m 23 years old and I started to work at Google as a Solutions Consultant after graduating from the MSc in Big Data & Business Analytics at ESCP. In my role, I provide technical implementation services, influence product strategy, develop scalable product tools and support international product launches.
How did your ESCP Master prepare you for a career in Tech?
Prior to ESCP, I studied political science and finance so the Big Data master helped me develop the necessary technical expertise in Python and SQL but more importantly helped me bridge the gap between technical knowledge and business applications. Indeed, we did many hackathons where companies would come to us with business problems and we had to use data science to solve them. It is now exactly what I am doing because I use my technical knowledge to improve Google’s products and help our clients by doing technical troubleshooting.
What would be your main advice for anyone considering a similar career to yours?
I would recommend developing a solid technical expertise by practicing on solving real problems but also to find a mentor that will have the distance and experience to give advice that will change your perspective and challenge you. I enrolled in the ESCP mentorship program and had the chance to have Morgane Peng – Director of Experience Design at Societe Generale – as a mentor and she helped me tremendously.
Manish Chawla – Product Manager at Amazon Luxembourg
Introduce yourself, what you have studied at ESCP and what do you currently do?
I’m Manish Chawla, originally from North India and I studied the Master in Management (MiM) programme at ESCP. I graduated in 2019, with a double specialisation in Go-to-Market and Entrepreneurship – Technology and Digital Economy. Currently I am working as a Product Manager at Amazon.
How did your ESCP Master prepare you for a career in Tech?
A product manager sits between the developers and the customers and bridges the gap between these two very different sets of needs. Hence, a strong understanding of both tech and the business is a pre-requisite to be good at it. My ESCP master’s complimented my bachelor’s in engineering and my technical aptitude to prepare me well for the business side in tech, giving me the skills to translate ideas into scalable solutions. The general curriculum of the MiM introduced me to various aspects of business, ranging from Finance to Operations to Digital Transformation. The Go-To-Market specialisation at the Paris campus helped me better understand customer needs and how companies position their products in the marketing world. The entrepreneurship specialisation, in Europe’s tech hub, Berlin, and a trip to meet start-ups in the Silicon Valley, gave me the chance to interact with professionals and get to know first-hand their vision and their experiences thriving in complex & diverse organisations.
What would be your main advice for anyone considering a similar career to yours?
Technology is growing at an increasingly fast pace, as more and more companies are now leveraging tech to scale and get to their customers more efficiently. In such times, it might seem trivial, but one of the most important qualities is to break down complex ideas and problems into simple solutions. Today professionals need to take a step back from their day-to-day work and think about the big picture; to not focus solely on what needs to be done by tomorrow or next week, but to also understand the value of long-term solutions when making decisions. I’m glad that the MiM programme at ESCP, with the vast knowledge and experience of the faculty, enabled me to gain the business acumen to always learn and grow in my role and to adapt to the ever changing business world.
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The rise of digitisation led to various changes in the job market, requiring an increased level of dynamism and flexibility from employees. As you can read from our alumni, all of their jobs require a good understanding of tech, but also strong transferable soft skills, which can make a critical difference in landing a top job.
ESCP Business School and its range of Master programmes specifically targets soft skills development, as well as expertise in various business areas, including digital transformation & tech. Therefore, if you are seriously considering building a successful career in tech, we invite you to draw inspiration from Alois’s, Aurane’s and Manish’s stories and explore our range of Specialised Masters or Master in Management Specialisations.
