Alejandro Arellano, Responsible of sales & account management for an ecommerce company and graduated from the Global MBA - Strategy and Management track., shares his learning experience at ESSEC Executive Education.
“The vast array of experiences I was exposed to has taught me to be a more effective decision-maker.”
4.4.2023
Can you introduce yourself in a few words?
Alejandro Arellano: My name is Alejandro, a Mexican travel lover who is always seeking for the next adventure. Currently working in the tech industry as a business developer. As a frustrated baseball player who didn’t have the skill to chase a pro career I decided to pursue my industrial & systems engineering studies. That gave me the possibility to work during four years in the agri-food industry as an export specialist and later as a manufacturing engineer. Working with international clients and managing a production team of 80+ workers in the manufacturing plant, were experiences that helped me confirm my taste for working in multidisciplinary environments with people. However, I always knew that my true north was the commercial department.
“ESSEC’s prestige and its multicultural environment were the main differentiators from other schools.”
Why did you choose the GMBA at ESSEC?
Alejandro A.: I knew that a master's was a once in a lifetime project. So if I was going to go for it I wanted to go big. ESSEC’s prestige and its multicultural environment were the main differentiators from other schools. On top of that, I’ve always been in small-group schools, which is something that ESSEC had, and made the fit even more obvious. Moreover, I knew France was doubling down in the tech startup scene, so I knew my chances of pursuing a career were better here.
What was your project when you entered the program?
Alejandro A.: My original plan was to seek a supply-chain job as my skill set was more aligned to this type of role. I wanted to put myself in a position where I increased my chances of getting hired. But deep down I wanted to always pursue a commercial role. So, I was lucky enough to get an offer for an account management job after the program.
I learned the core concepts of finance, economy and strategic management as well as communication & critical thinking. The vast array of experiences and situations I was exposed to has taught me to think differently, and that has made me more empathetic and a more effective decision-maker.
What is your current job position and how did the GMBA help you reach it?
Alejandro A.:The GMBA helped me make a triple jump in my career. Geography, position, and industry. I’m currently doing sales & account management for an ecommerce company. My daily job requires me to interact with different profiles within the tech industry from different countries, from mid-level managers to C-level executives of unicorn scale-ups, to co-founders who are Y Combinator alumni. Trying to negotiate agreements and close deals in an ever-changing environment requires a high level of empathy. It is not the same sitting with a CMO who is managing a budget from a unicorn company and doing the same with a founder.
To adapt quickly is something that I learn during the program and that has helped me a lot afterwards. When I joined my current company, the central bank interest rates were still zero. Every week you’ll hear dozens of companies that were not even profitable got funded and received millions of euro in venture capital. Just a few months later the economy started to slow down and massive layoffs started to happen, and we’re still seeing them. So being able to navigate these rapid changing environments and still having to hit your target goal is tough.
“The GMBA helped me make a triple
jump in my career.”
What is your best memory of the program?
Alejandro A.:The business simulator competition. We were working in teams to see who was able to have the best performing company considering a series of inputs on a simulation program. I think everybody enjoyed this activity a lot. You get to know your classmates even better when there is a competitive environment, which is fun.
Your advice to future applicants?
Alejandro A.: Stay curious. You can learn a lot just by listening to other students’ experiences and getting to understand different perspectives.
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