Anna Schebsdat On Why Executive Education Is Paramount For Modern-Day Business Leaders

With 14 years of international career experience spanning across Dubai, London and Moscow, executive education advocate Anna Schebsdat believes strongly in the power of continued learning for individuals looking to refine their professional skillsets

Currently working for one of the world’s top business schools as part of City, University of London Anna Schebsdat is a member of Columbia Business School’s UAE Alumni Chapter where she serves as president, while also being a board member on Columbia Alumni Association UAE; and advisor for Abu Dhabi Arts Society (ADAS). 

Ivy League educated and multilingual, she chats with Bazaar about the importance of executive education and the three factors anyone should take into account before enrolling in a programme.

Harper’s Bazaar Arabia (HBA): Why did you decide to embark on this career path? Why higher education?

Anna Schebsdat (AS): My passion and expertise lies in global education management, to which I dedicated the past 10 years. Education and a continuous focus on professional learning are the causes I lend my voice to. It has given me a sense of purpose throughout the past ten years of my career.

The education sector plays a crucial role in the economic recovery – which we are going through now – especially when it comes to reskilling and upskilling one’s self.

I thoroughly enjoy advising, guiding, and bringing empowerment to executives when it comes to the refining of their skillsets and, eventually, seeing people blossom both personally and professionally. Their thanks is the biggest compliment.

I love to support individuals’ aspirations to learn, and I love witnessing the difference it makes. It gives me a sense of self-fulfillment to talk to senior executives from all industries and cultures on weekly basis, and to discuss their educational paths and goals.

HBA: How do you think the current on-going pandemic will impact the education sector and the way we learn? How do you see the industry adapting/changing in years to come?

AS: What excites me in the education sector within the Middle East is the enthusiasm, willingness, and drive for education, along with the enthusiasm to adopting e-learning and strive for educational excellence – both from professionals and the government.

I enjoy reading on regional developments and speaking with executives on their educational paths as a daily part of my role.

In my current role for one of the leading business schools, I am overseeing recruitment for the globally ranked Executive MBA programme, covering the MENA region. I am delighted about successful cycle heading the curve this year despite the challenging circumstances.

Our Dubai Centre has been rated five-stars in the latest Higher Education Classification rankings, demonstrating the highest level of excellence. I am glad that we are part of the advancements that are currently happening in the higher education market within the UAE.

What Has Been A Defining Career Moment Thus Far?

Throughout my entire past 14 years – from embarking on an international career by moving to different countries to being part of challenging projects from scratch and building success stories – one of them has to be opening and building the Middle East’s office.

It was the brand’s first international expansion and, at the age of 28, I was working within executive education industry for the world’s top schools such as MIT, Wharton and Harvard. In the meantime, I took on an additional challenge and graduated from the Executive Programme in Management at Columbia Business School in New York.

HBA: Any advice for individuals considering an executive education programme?

AS: One should definitely look at the three aspects: the brand of the school, the network it provides and the aspects related to learning. All three are reasons why one would pursue executive education.

The goal is to learn new skills from both professors and classmates, network for future opportunities and, of course, do it with one of the top brands in education.

One should see such programmes as a transformational journey, both personally and professionally. Such a journey can also open your mind to a completely new way of thinking and even different career paths.

HBA: What sort of advice would you give to others who are interested in pursuing a career path similar to yours?

AS: No matter which path you take, the harder you work, the luckier you get. You need to get out of the comfort zone if you want to pursue an international career and for that you need self-confidence.

Success is the result of hard, passionate work; honing your soft and hard skills; and being courageous. Always have high standards and do not accept anything less –this also pertains to the work you do and achieving your own personal goals.  

I am also motivated by being privileged to contribute to what I advocate for and curious about which new doors are yet to open up within my field.

Connect with Anna on LinkedIn.

Images supplied. 

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