by Koushik Reddy Koilakanda, MMS:FOB ’20
When I joined Fuqua, I was ready to explore. I had a background in engineering and worked at an education technology startup, but I wanted to learn more about finance and consulting. The MMS program gave me the opportunity to dive into those fields through hands-on experiences, like the Fuqua Client Consulting Practicum (FCCP), which taught me crucial skills that I use on the job in the education sector every day.
Leading the Way in Education
After graduating from MMS in 2020, I started working for a school system in India. It’s an exciting role where I can support schools in addressing their needs in academics, technology, marketing—you name it. Each school needs something different and I act as a liaison between those schools and the head office. I tackle something new each day by interacting with teachers and students to understand how we can better support learning.
I always knew I wanted to end up in the education sector, but opportunities to learn more about other areas of business are helping me succeed in this role. Once you step up to a managerial position, you have to understand how to be a tactful delegator and understand the power of working in teams. That’s one wonderful thing I learned at Fuqua, especially during my FCCP project.
Our FCCP team immediately had to pivot and worked together to tackle different areas of the problem. That skill directly translates to my role now because I’m using those same problem-solving skills to address schools’ needs every day.
Developing Real-World Problem-Solving Skills
FCCP was one of the most influential experiences I had because you are working to solve a real issue at a real company. My team and I had to work together and be resilient. During the first term, I was working very well with the client. Then after winter break, my client’s requirements changed, the data changed—everything changed. Our team immediately had to pivot and worked together to tackle different areas of the problem. That skill directly translates to my role now because I’m using those same problem-solving skills to address schools’ needs every day.
My advice to anyone looking to join the education industry: do it! What matters most is not how much you know about education, but how well you are working with different people. The most important thing I learned at Fuqua was how to bring together and lead a cross-functional team all working toward the same goal.
In a recent interview with Fuqua’s admissions team, I share more about the culture of working in education and what my future looks like as a leader in this industry. You can watch that conversation here: