I am passionate about business. I’ve been passionate about business ever since I was a child watching my father run the family real estate business. I started working as soon as I was old enough. To be sure, I got my first job at the age of 14 working in door-to-door sales. Before I went on to college, I worked for a time in telesales, then on a kiwi farm and finally in customer service. The unifying theme to my early work was that they all focused on some aspect of doing business.
My passion for business did not end in college. Although I majored in engineering, I experienced a different side to doing business through the three positions I held in college and the work I did in those positions on social issues. As vice-president of the Arab Academy of Science and Technology (AAST) student council, I worked with other council members in developing and managing the student government budget. As president of the “For a Better Egypt” project, I led a team of students from three different universities in an effort to enhance the quality of education throughout Egypt. Finally, as the leader of AIESEC AAST Marketing team, I worked with an incredibly diverse and passionate group of students, volunteers and professionals to advertise and market AISEC AAST events and manage AIESEC AAST media relations. In each position and with each activity, I learned that business is not just about making money but can also be about positively impact people’s lives. I learned that business-skills need not only be employed to make a profit but may also be used in the service of the community. Furthermore, the many interactions I had with the people I met through these activities has inspired and motivated to continue my quest to impact society by establishing my own foundation that will assist others to driving our society to a better place.Despite the many valuable experiences I had in college, after graduation, I knew there was still much more to learn. I wanted to explore the world of business a bit further and decided to find the best mentors possible to help and guide me on my quest. First, I entered my name as a candidate for the position of Director of Business Development for AIESEC Egypt. After an intense election process I was elected to the position in 2011, the same year of the Egyptian Revolution. The revolution had a tremendous impact on business in the country, making it hard for me to develop and maintain any new corporate or non-corporate partners. I was, however, able to realize some success. For instance, I achieved a 180% sales improvement over the year prior to the revolution. Moreover, I helped organize a number conferences representing youth throughout the country as well as contributed to regional AIESEC business development goals in the Middle East and North Africa. As important, I was also able to meet and make many friends from all over the world.After working with AIESEC, I returned home to work in the family business. While I learned much from my fathers and brothers in how to sustain and grow a business, I soon realized that there was limited opportunity in my work to have to social impact that I learned to love in college. I did not feel my ultimate calling was just to expand the business. Although my father was quite pleased with my development and felt that my work in AIESEC play a major role in my development, I eventually decided to leave the family business. I wanted to learn about how to use business not just to add value to the family firm but to society as a whole.
The next stop on my quest was as a member of the qualitative team at the Cairo office of TNS. I chose them because they are the leading marketing research company for the Middle East and North Africa. After learning all I could from TNS, I had the fortune to work with Proctor & Gamble. Both of these opportunities were eye-opening experiences for me. First, these were the first chances I had to work in a formal corporate environment. Second, I was able to learn a variety of skills from the fundamentals of marketing and how to focus on the consumer by taking their needs and psychological factors into consideration at TNS to end-to-end supply chain management at Proctor & Gamble. Third, both companies had a serious impression on me in their dedication and efforts at corporate and social responsibility.
I am now ready for the next phase in my quest and I am very excited to do so. From door-to-door sales to supply chain management; from working in one of the biggest your organizations in the world to working at a Fortune 500 company with one of the best corporate schools in the world, I want to take my quest to the next level by attending the best business school in the world.I believe that in joining the Harvard MBA program I will be able to increase my general and professional knowledge by integrating my work and life experience with the business theory, managerial skills, and leadership abilities that a Harvard classroom offers. Indeed, I wish to go to Harvard because of its global reputation in providing its graduates with the needed skills, abilities and networks to build an empire that has a positive impact. I picture my empire to include: businesses in Middle East and Africa that consistently provide new jobs to people in need of work; a foundation that enhances child education in Egypt; a sporting foundation that will help to significantly increase the numbers of Egyptian Olympic medal holders; and a network that I could personally contribute to unleashing their full potential.Additionally, I believe that my inclusion in the class of 2017 will not only be a great benefit to myself, but will also contribute to the diversity and intellectual depth of the class itself. First, my experience working in the Egypt has given me a deep awareness of business and markets in the Middle East. Accordingly, I am willing and able to contribute my knowledge and be an information resource so that my classmates can learn through my experience. I can also contribute to the comparative understanding of transnational business environments as I get to know more about other markets as well. Finally, my graduation from Harvard will not end my connection to the school. I will dedicate myself to being an exceptional Harvard alumni by achieving the greatest of goals and becoming a great ambassador for the school.
Reference List
AIESEC, 2014. About Us. [online] Available at: < www.aiesecus.org/about/>[Accessed 25 December 2014].
