MBA Alumni Profile: Jorge Dos Santos Neves, ESCP Europe

 Jorge Dos Santos Neves’ Executive MBA experience made such an impact on him that he’d definitely love to do it again. "When I look back to this experience, so many positive memories come to mind," the French CFO says.

Dos Santos Neves describes the Executive MBA as "an asset for all your life". But, if he had to choose of the many benefits the program delivers, one would be the human experience. "We’ve been sharing 18 tough months of our lives with classmates we had never seen before and top professors and professionals. This is definitely an adventure by itself in your life. You are definitely pushed out of your comfort zone, activating areas of your brain that are usually asleep in our day-to-day professional lives."

Another benefit is what Dos Santos Neves refers to as ‘X-ray glasses’. "The Executive MBA gave me tools and knowledge to very quickly feel what is right or wrong in an organization or a business case. It’s regularly helped me identifying the key success factors to turn around a difficult situation."

Deciding factors

Dos Santos Neves came to the business school classroom with a background in finance. "I only had experience of one large company at that time, and I wanted my eyes to be opened to a broader world," he recalls of his decision to pursue an Executive MBA. "I was looking for a better understanding of hard topics such as strategy, marketing and organization. The good surprise was to discover plenty of fundamental, useful knowledge in the soft skill area as well: negotiation, B2B relationships and organizational behavior."

Prior to his EMBA, Dos Santos Neves worked as a business controller; post-EMBA he’s a CFO – evidence that the EMBA has had an impact on his successful career. "It [EMBA] gives you a common language," Dos Santos Neves says. "Let’s be honest, most of the top