Career Goals Essay: What are your immediate career goals after graduation and your

mid-term career goal 5-10 years after graduation? How will the IESE MBA program
help you achieve them?” (word limit 300 max)

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Final
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My immediate career goals include exploring product strategy roles in fintech firms like
Revolut/Wise/Stripe. Given their European presence, I believe these roles will help me build
in and for different markets. In 5-10 years of my graduation, I hope to return to my own
venture, a product studio to scale financial tools. This will build on my experience of solving
‘Process-Product-People’ challenges in financial services. Through this venture, I aim to
propel my mission to drive economic access across the globe.

In the past, I have built solutions that have impacted close to 10M users and generated $2M
in revenue. With this experience, I ventured into entrepreneurship to address gaps in risk
tooling infrastructure. Although the venture faced compliance and data sensitivity issues, we
pivoted it to a product studio that is seeing early traction with $30K ARR.

I need to strengthen the 'People' aspect of my approach by honing my team-building skills

Conversations during the Virtual Open Day with Prof Kandarp Mehta in particular have been
interesting to understand IESE’s case-based methodology. I’m eager to collaborate with
classmates from different backgrounds and learn about their 'Process-Product-People'
approach. Professor Anneloes Raes’ course ‘Managing People in Organizations’ will
enhance my ability to lead cross-border teams and scale globally. I believe that my
entrepreneurial abilities will be sharpened at The Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center
led by Professor Mª Julia Prats and the Summer Entrepreneurship Experience.

At IESE, I see more than ‘a way to learn’, I see my ‘mark to make’ in fintech innovation, and
ultimately, ‘a world to change’ by democratising financial access.

Optional Essay
What would you like to highlight about yourself or your journey which may have not
been captured in your application? (word limit 300 max)

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One thread that weaves through my life is the influence of my mother.

At the age of five, my parents separated, leaving my mother as the sole caretaker to
my sister and me. To counter financial strain, she started her tutoring academy to
support the family. Seeing her have a positive outlook, despite fire-fighting every day,
has shaped the core tenets of my leadership style which are perseverance and
empathy. When my startup faced regulatory hurdles, I drew on this resilience,
pivoting the business into a product studio within six months.

My passion for fintech comes from my mother’s struggles to access basic financial
services like credit due to a lack of credit history. This lack of financial literacy
coupled with outdated financial systems leaves millions, like my mother,
underserved.

Determined to be a force of change, I led initiatives for our college’s

After graduation, I pursued a career in fintech and even cleared the CFA-Level 1
examination to deepen my knowledge of financial markets. I do pro-bono
volunteering with Sahamati, an RBI-backed initiative aimed at transforming India’s
digital financial infrastructure. Leading key projects, I have contributed to providing
financial access to over 1B+ Indians, helping bridge the gap between legacy banking
systems.

I’ll bring dual strengths to IESE: a fintech innovator’s mindset and entrepreneurial
resilience. I plan to share my ‘People-Process-Product’ experiences by actively
contributing to the Fintech Club and organising career treks making me a strong
candidate for the IESE MBA.

Why do you deserve a scholarship?

Growing up, financial hardship was a constant reality for my family. My mother was the sole
breadwinner who built her career as a mathematics teacher. Despite limited resources, she
always prioritised a good education. She always says that one must never stop ‘Learning,
Unlearning & Relearning’. This has been a core tenet of my value-system.

As a mathematics teacher's son, I excelled in quant during school and came first in national
Olympiads. I continued this academic rigor and became the first-generation engineering
undergraduate in my family from BITS Pilani, a prestigious engineering college in India. As
part of my engineering thesis, I wrote three research papers which got published in
academic journals. I was a part of the Entrepreneurship Club where I led masterclasses on
financial literacy for underprivileged children. I also spearheaded initiatives to onboard local
shop owners onto digital payment systems during India’s demonetisation, directly impacting
the financial sustainability of small businesses in Pilani.
In my professional journey, I continued to aim high. At Goldman Sachs, I was the
highest-rated analyst in my team. In my next role at IDFC FIRST Bank, I received a
fast-tracked promotion and was the youngest senior product manager in the entire company.
At Klub, I was the founding product lead and worked directly with the leadership to scale the
company. I received the ABCD (Above and Beyond Call-of-Duty) award from the founders
for my exceptional work of building 0-to-1 products that were driving $2M revenue for the
firm. I identified an interesting problem to solve while working at Klub and took the
entrepreneurial plunge. While I’ve made significant progress, scaling the venture globally
has highlighted my gaps in technical knowledge and leadership. To address these areas, I
revisited my mother’s framework to ‘Learn, Unlearn & Relearn’ and I have decided to pursue
an MBA from IESE to gain a global perspective and develop the skills necessary to lead
cross-functional teams in new markets.

A scholarship would allow me to focus on my MBA studies without the financial burden that
could limit my opportunities for personal and professional development. I believe I’m a strong
candidate for the IESE Excellence Scholarship due to my professional achievements, and
my alignment with IESE’s values of integrity and innovation. In addition, the IESE
Entrepreneurship Scholarship aligns with my entrepreneurial journey where I have
demonstrated resilience in the face of challenges. Lastly, my experience in fintech positions
me well for the IESE Technology & Innovation Scholarship. I have a strong foundation in
digital transformation, having built risk and credit infrastructure for underserved markets.

With the support of these scholarships, I’m confident I can contribute meaningfully to the
IESE community and, in turn, advance my mission of building inclusive financial ecosystems
globally.