Benefits of Studying an MBA or EMBA, According to a Fintech Expert

Nunzio Quacquarelli, CEO of QS Quacquarelli Symonds interviewed Laura McCracken, Global EVP of Financial Institutions at Wirecard about her career journey at the QS World Tour 2019.

Laura is an advocate for lifelong learning and thinks you should “never get off that learning curve”.

She began her career in finance and accounting. She joined KPMG and decided she wasn’t an auditor, then went into investment banking and felt she wasn’t an investment banker.

Laura credits American Express as where she found her home and grew up, but after 10 years at the company, she wanted to retool herself. To achieve this, she picked London Business School and Columbia Business School’s joint Global EMBA.

The global program was right for her – she had a global job travelling around 25 countries – and she liked that she could keep her job at American Express while taking block week sessions for her studies.

Her Global EMBA broadened her horizons, showing her there were more opportunities out there. She then worked at Amazon for four years; Facebook for a few more; then was drafted by Wirecard to help them pull together a global business focussing on payments in FinTech.

But why is an MBA or EMBA important to further your career? Laura says, “I think it’s about bringing together knowledge and emotional intelligence.

“If you want to go into leadership, I’m finding a lot of tech companies need someone with a broader perspective and with more emotional intelligence.

“The Global EMBA developed my viewpoint of the world and it enabled me to be a better leader.”

She believes in lifelong learning, but before choosing an MBA or EMBA she says you need to figure out where your career is going. A full-time MBA may be more feasible in your late twenties while figuring out if it’s the right time, or what you want to do. But for career switchers, or those looking to take on more leadership in their chosen profession, a Global EMBA may be the way to go.