MBA Student Profile: Isobel Leaviss, Chicago Booth

Embarking on an Executive MBA is a big decision for any candidate to make, but for Isobel Leaviss there were three key reasons. The first was furthering her knowledge, then came building her confidence in senior management disciplines, and finally, career development. She speaks with Dawn Bournand about her EMBA experience.

A graduate of Chicago University – Chicago Booth EMBA, Isobel Leaviss is now putting her skills to the test as the Program Director for the London Olympic Legacy.
“My role is to oversee, co-ordinate and support the management of projects designed to deliver a successful and lasting legacy from the London Olympic Games after 2012,” Leaviss says. “This includes business planning for venues/facilities after the Games, redevelopment of sites for housing and commercial use, and ensuring there are projects to build positive connections between the Olympic Park and the surrounding communities, including promoting job opportunities for local people.”

It’s a position Leaviss, a mother of two, doesn’t believe she would have had the confidence to apply for if it wasn’t for her Executive MBA.
“Within two years of completing my EMBA, I applied for and secured a promotion whilst on my second maternity leave. I know that the EMBA gave me more confidence to seek a promotion at this time. My degree strengthened the breadth and depth of my knowledge in relevant management disciplines and it also demonstrated ongoing career commitment to my employer at a time when I had taken time out to have two children.”

Leaviss hadn’t planned to add children to the list of things to juggle while studying for her EMBA. “If I had known that I would have a baby during my EMBA before I started it, then I might have decided not to go ahead!” she says. “But I did, and the team at Chicago was extremely supportive. They offered me the options to defer for a while or continue as long as I felt able to keep up with the program and exams. I was able to stay in London for all of my classes once I was too pregnant to fly - so I missed a trip to Singapore and a second trip to Chicago - but it meant I could complete the course with my classmates. I was even able to listen in on some lectures online (immediately after my son was born!). I had a lot of support from my husband and from my parents who also helped make this possible and just about keep all the balls in the air!”

Gaining confidence and securing such a high profile promotion are just two of the benefits Leaviss has received since graduating with her EMBA in 2007. A third is the social network of colleagues she has kept in touch with since graduating. “Meeting such friendly and interesting classmates was one of the best parts of going through the program. I know that there is a brilliant network which will last for a long time to come.”

“The program also allowed me to refresh some knowledge and understanding from my first degree, such as economics. Also, underpinning my confidence in a wide range of different subjects which I had touched on during my career to date but had not studied formally, such as accounting, marketing, management/leadership.”

Would she encourage others to pursue an EMBA?
“Yes,” says Leaviss. “It’s exciting to learn again in a classroom setting and to learn from so many different people from a range of backgrounds, countries and career paths. There’s also the greatest advantage to having an Executive MBA degree as well – boosted confidence!”