Interview with Agnes - Master's Programmes

"Being a management consultant is a very fun profession, where you get the opportunity to meet different people and companies, which I find very exciting."

Was there a specific course that you found particularly enjoyable or that you have benefited from in your professional life?
During the first year, we did a course together with CGI (consulting company in IT and business operations), where they presented a challenge where we worked in groups on a solution based on their methods and guidance. This course was very fun, rewarding and was good preparation for my current profession as a management consultant. During the course, we received good support from CGI, and it was interesting to hear how they reasoned about challenges and various proposed solutions.

Do you have tips on courses and experiences for future professional life to think about during the course of the education?
I wrote my master's thesis together with a company, which I experienced as rewarding and good insight into real challenges, while at the same time you got a good insight into how the education can be applied to business problems. So, if you have the opportunity, I would really recommend writing your master's thesis together with a company. I would also recommend supplementing the education with a project through either Student Union or a job. I was both involved in the Student Union and had a job on the side during my studies, which was very rewarding. It provided a good complement to the academic education which I have greatly benefited from later in my working life, for example my ability to run projects developed when I was involved in Handelsspexet.

What is the best thing about being a student in Gothenburg?
It is the mix between big city and student life. The School of Business, Economics and Law has a good and rewarding student life that provides additional knowledge and skills that complement the education in a good way, while at the same time you have the big city feeling and the pulse of Gothenburg. Then there are few places that beat Gothenburg during the warm months!

What advantages do you see in having studied your master's degree?
We had very good professors who gave good examples from real life linked to academic theories. We also had interesting guest lecturers during the education, who gave a greater understanding of working life and how the education can be applied in reality. There were good opportunities throughout the study period to adapt the program through own choice of courses, which gave a good opportunity to tailor the education.

What was the best thing about the program?
I think the best thing about the program was the balance and focus between academia and real business problems in group work. The methodology was very developing with a good balance between academic focus and real challenges for organizations, which has given me a good foundation and tools for working life. The group work was very rewarding, and it was fun to take on real challenges together with others. We had good guidance from professors, and I found the program to be very developing.

What kind of job do you have right now?
I work as a management consultant at Vink, a boutique management consultancy with a focus on strategic and digital transformation. As a management consultant, you work on various projects and different lengths, it can be anything from a few weeks to longer programs that span several years. I work with various assignments, examples of previous assignments are analysis of current price strategy, implementation of new system support and public procurement. An example of a previous project is a growth company with “growing pains”, but where the internal structures had not developed at the same pace as the growth. Among other things, our team worked on improving the sales team's processes, securing delivery capabilities and clarifying key activities. In the next phase, a new control model and KPIs were developed. We were later trusted to lead strategy work for the company, which includes choosing the path required to ensure the company's ability to face the increased competition of the future.

Do you have any advice for those who are considering reading the program?
My advice is to think about what you want to work with after you have received your degree. Read about what people who have completed the various educations are working with today, it provides a good guide to choosing a master education. And also, to talk to alumni or currently enrolled students at the program to gain a greater understanding.

Agnes Knutsson from Linköping studied the Bachelor's Programme in Business and Economics and has a Bachelor's degree in Financial Economics. She wanted to add a focus on practical business problems and working with cases and chose to continue her studies on the Master's programme Innovation and Industrial Management.