This section describes some of the most critical instances I have experienced during my academic career. I also describe the skills and attributes developed in each case using the Graduate Attributes Matrix. Then, a resume on the impact that each case has had on my professional and personal development is presented.
The first critical incident presented reflects one of the most relevant characteristics of my person, my continuous challenge to the unknown. Through this activity, I decided to face aspects of knowledge, technique and collaboration that I did not know, but which, nevertheless, would be of great importance throughout my academic career. This incident allowed me to improve my subject specialization, investigative and reflective learner skills.
The second critical incident describes my first approach to formal business environments outside of Mexico. In this activity, I was looking not only to coordinate an interdisciplinary and multicultural team but also to develop communication mechanisms between team members, supervisors and clients. This incident allowed me to improve my resourcefulness and responsibility, effective communication and adaptation skills.
The final critical incident is a continuation of the consulting practice. I find these activities the most enriching in the field of innovation management since they allow me to keep informed about the latest technological, social and economic trends while presenting the opportunity to tackle relevant problems. This incident allowed me to improve my independent and critical thinking, confidence and collaboration skills.
This profile was based on the graduate framework of the University of Glasgow, if you want to review the Graduated Attributes Matrix, click here.
CAPSIM – Business simulation
For one of my masters’ courses —management of innovation, part of our evaluation was based on our performance during a business simulation, as well as our presentation of the results achieved in the form of an executive summary video. The simulation covered areas such as R&D, marketing, production, finance, total quality management, human resources and labour negotiations. The objective was to outperform the competing teams in aspect such as sales, profits and market capitalization. I was selected team leader, and I had the responsibility to organize our efforts within the simulation and in preparation for the presentation of our results.
One of the greatest advantages of our team was its wide range of skills, with experience in business, production and IT, this variety improved my subject specialist skills. However, due to the uncertainty on the mechanics of the simulation, one of my main decisions was to motivate my team to practice constantly in the simulation, this situation supported my investigative skills. Moreover, I decided to start the video production from the very first rounds, with the aim of capturing our performance, learning and growth, which turn out to be a key practice for my reflective learner skill. Finally, In a team effort, we develop several possible strategies, ready to be used in response to the performance of our colleagues and the situations encountered during the simulation.
If you would like to know more about CAPSIM simulations, click here.
Graduate attributes developed
Impact on studies and employability
Identifying and leveraging my leadership style has been very important in my studies since it has allowed me to face challenging projects and collaborate with colleagues of different specialities and cultures without major problems. Similarly, the improvement of my investigative and reflective learning skills have been very useful to begin my research project, since much of the required knowledge is scattered or hidden. Finally, the subject specialist skill has been of great value in my academic career, since it has allowed me to propose an innovative line of research, with a deep intercombination of technological and managerial knowledge
On the other hand, employees value a high subject specialization, particularly in technological aspects and their strategic management. In addition, my improved investigative and reflective learning skills enable me to tackle the complex and uncertain tasks that are increasingly present in the labour market. I believe that these skills provide me with a competitive advantage by contributing to my capacity for collaboration, leadership and confidence, and that my potential employers or partners will appreciate these characteristics.
DMEM – Industrial project
During my master’s studies, I was part of an intercultural team responsible for helping a technology startup. On that occasion, we were presented with a variety of challenges from the company, from business and marketing strategies, to improvements in the design and functionality of their product. This was a challenging project, with strict timeframes and a continuous need to prove we could achieve the goals set.
To deal with this, I was appointed to lead the team. I divided the project into knowledge areas, and then assign ownership of these areas and specific tasks to each team member, according to their experience and motivation, this proved to be a resourceful strategy. I coordinated brainstorming sessions, through which the team proposed manageable milestones, consequently widening my adaptation skills. Finally, I organized regular team meetings throughout the project to address emerging problems and coordinate our activities more efficiently, this activity improve my effective communications skills.
Consequently, we finished the project on time and our client, the technology startup, was very satisfied with our work, granting us a great feedback. Our presentation was very well received during the “Industry Day” –an event organized by the University of Strathclyde, with the presence of all the companies and teams participating. Finally, our team was awarded for best poster, resulting in a great all-around experience. This turned out to be a very enriching experience since I had the opportunity to face a real problem with visible consequences. In sum, this activity allowed me to improve my teamwork skills and my response to uncertain situations.
If you would like to know more about our client Xupo, click here.
Graduate attributes developed
Impact on studies and employability
This project was one of the most challenging during my master studies. Not only were we required to comply with our client’s requests and deliver measurable results, but we also had to coordinate our academic activities, meetings with our supervisor and the activities related to the project. The supervisory dynamic has had visible consequences in my current research since it has allowed me to improve the communication with my current supervisors. This experience has enabled me to improve my academic performance, maintaining order and efficiency in the way I face multiple activities.
Naturally, this activity has positively influenced my employability. Since the contact with industrial partners has improved my ability to communicate work plans and objectives effectively. It has also improved my ability to understand the needs of the clients and the process in which multilateral decisions are made.
Synergeticon – Innovation marketing
This was one of my last projects during my masters’ training. The activity was intended for a large and multidisciplinary team, with all the challenges that this represented; our task was to develop a marketing strategy for a new-to-the-market innovative product or service. Our team was assigned the company Synergeticon, which was developing an internet of things (IoT) solution for the aerospace industry. I was particularly involved in this project since I had the most experience in the development and analysis of technological solutions, which put me in a responsible position to assess the viability and relevance of our proposals throughout the project. This company was facing a very particular problem; they wanted to expand their business to other industries, but they did not know which industry represented the best option for them, and which product would be best suited to enter the new market.
Initially, our team had several communication problems, especially due to the numerous industries to evaluate. To deal with this problem, I recommended carrying out several brainstorming sessions until identifying and agreeing on the most relevant parameters to evaluate the industries’ potential. This activity pushed me to improve my collaboration skills, as it required a substantial amount of effort to include everybody’s opinion. Once the parameters were selected, the team split into subgroups, each one responsible for one potential industry. However, I maintained contact with all subgroups, to discuss the challenges and complications they were facing. This constant communication improved my confidence skills to understand the team position on every topic. After collecting the data and assessing the considered industries, the team reconvene to discuss the findings and then select the two more promising industries. Thanks to my involvement with each team, I was in charge of moderating the final discussion, this required a high level of independent and critical thinking skills. Finally, based on the insights acquired through in-depth research, our team proposed a series of potential products and services to enter each market.
At the end of our participation, our client expressed high satisfaction with the results obtained. Our proposals were based on extensive research using predefined parameters and conditions, which provided great objectivity and confidence to our client. And, although our client did not agree with all the products and services we proposed, the deep understanding of each industry needs was of great value, since coupled with the experience of our client, this information was very useful to approach the recommended industries, with positive commercial outcomes. This experience gave me the opportunity to develop important skills to conduct objective and rigorous investigations, besides allowing me to understand the functioning of innovative proposals in the technological industries
If you would like to know more about our client Synergeticon, click here.
Graduate attributes developed
Impact on studies and employability
This activity had a great impact on my academic career, as it reinforced my intention to continue studying the topic of innovation management and its impact on enterprises, society and economies. This experience increased the confidence I place in myself and in my work team, and reaffirmed my competency as an experienced collaborator. I believe this learning will be very useful for my doctoral studies since this activity requires a high critical and independent thinking skill in order to contribute to knowledge. On the other hand, much of the scientific development is achieved through collaborations, making very beneficial to develop this skill.
Alternatively, the experience acquired and the skills improved through this activity will positively impact the interest of future employers. As in the case of scientific research, business opportunities and continuous improvement require collaboration among interdisciplinary teams, making this skill highly relevant. On the other hand, independent and critical thinking is highly valuable for positions where complex-problem solving activities are present, which occurs very often in the consultancy and advisory services. Finally, a high level of confidence is important to withstand difficulties and setback encountered in any future job, making of this skill a valuable asset for a healthy professional career.
Carlos Carbajal 