Background: Bangladeshi Male (29 year old at time of Matriculation)
Personal Brand: 29 year old Bangladeshi Male with experience of Venture Capital Investing and Startup Operational Roles in an Emerging Country. I hope to combine my emerging market experience with the global perspective and best practices available through a US MBA to become a global VC investor, focusing on Emerging Markets.
Applying to: Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, MIT Sloan, Chicago Booth, Columbia
Education: 1. Undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, 3.92/4.00 (considered the top Engineering School in the country)
2. MBA from Institute of Business Administration – University of Dhaka, 4.0/4.0 (considered the top Business School in the country)
3. CFA Charterholder
GMAT: 770 (50Q, 46V)
Why I’m looking for a Second MBA:My existing MBA experience happened immediately after my undergraduate degree. This resulted in my classroom experience often being theoretical, as I did not have the work experience required to relate classroom lessons with real world examples. (It is common for universities in Bangladesh to accept MBA students with no work experience)
I pursued an MBA to pivot to a career path in Finance. My choice of pursuing Engineering as an undergraduate student had been made at a very young age, and at that time, I did not have the career path related information in order to make an informed decision. I realized 3-4 years into my undergraduate degree that my interests would be more suited towards a career in the financial services sector. A local MBA was my entry point into that career path.
While my existing MBA has helped me make the switch to the career path I want, it is very much a local experience. My career aspirations are global, and the Bangladesh-based MBA does not provide me with access to global opportunities. A global MBA provides me with access to those global opportunities.
Work Experience:
Role 1 (4.5 years, current full-time role):Working as an VC Associate/Analyst in the Asset Management Arm of a leading Financial Group in Bangladesh ($160M+ annual revenue, Included in Top 30 Public Market Index). I joined in their Leadership Development Program (10 chosen from 20,000 applicants). Promoted twice in four years (one early promotion)
Achievements:1. Launched the first local venture capital fund of Bangladesh. I was the first employee in the business unit, and paired with a General Manager to help build up the business unit from scratch.
2. Led the Due Diligence for the Group’s first VC investment, including creation of a new transaction structure that solved a major pain point for local startups. The structure we created has been used by the company to raise $3 MM+ of capital from local investors afterwards, including the later round Lead Investor. (this accounts for ~40% of local investment into startups within that period). This was one of the first instances of Corporate Venture Capital in Bangladesh.
Role 2 (1 year, current part-time role, part of Portfolio Management of full-time role):In addition to my full-time role, I work as a Marketing Strategy Consultant in one of our Portfolio Companies. It is a leading Online Grocery Delivery Company with $35M+ in Annual Revenue, and has raised $15M till date from global VCs. It is one of the best funded startups in the country. I manage 3 teams with 20 direct and indirect reports.
Achievements:1. Helped the leadership team identify growth opportunities during Coronavirus induced lockdown that helped the company grow topline by ~60% from February 2020 to August 2020
2. Led the company’s initiatives on new acquisition channels – focusing on Offline Channels. Average order numbers have improved by ~30% over the last 2 months of implementation within target zones.
3. I led the creation of the Category Function within the company, and am leading a key Category at this moment (~2M in annual sales). I Devised and Executed strategies for that category that have helped reverse a growth slump, and improve sales and user acquisition by ~40% over the first two months of implementation.
Community and Others1. Have acted as a Mentor for the largest Startup Accelerator in the country. Mentored 10 startups over the course of 6 months.
2. I also am a trainer through an Ed-tech startup, through which I provide guidance and training to Founders regarding Business Development and Fundraising in the Bangladesh Market. I’ve been able to reach 35-40 Startups through this platform.
Post MBA GoalsShort and Middle Term: Start as a Management Consultant in MBB Startup Practices. (i.e. McKinsey Fuel, BCG Corporate Ventures). These practices place a lot of people into operational roles in Startups, which is my medium term goal.
Long Term: Use my experience in MBB and Startup Operational Roles to become a Venture Investor in Emerging Markets (South Asia, Africa etc)
Narrative:A decade ago, I lived in a city where we didn’t have internet access, and had to endure 8-10 hours of electricity outages every day. Over the last decade, my life, as well as the lives of millions of people around me, has been changed for the better due to the economic and technological development in my country. My work as a VC investor has helped me drive that change in Bangladesh, and I hope to take that experience and translate that into transforming lives across other emerging nations.
What I would appreciate from the experts here:1. A sanity check regarding my competitiveness in my target programs.
2. I'm worried about how my chances will be affected by my existing MBA. I've given an explanation in the post, but would appreciate any comments on this.
3. I feel that my Extra-Curriculars are relatively weak, how much of an impact would this have on my chances?
4. General advice regarding my narrative. While it reflects reality, does it come off as cliche?