Dave McGeady, Ireland (2010)
Dave McGeady, Class of 2010
“I really do think that it’s been of huge benefit to work alongside Israelis and learn from them. They’re really great at getting things done – if they want something to happen, they just go and make it happen.”
Hometown: Dublin, Ireland
Current job title and place of work: CEO & Founder, Wyldsson Elite Nutrition
Why did you decide to pursue an MBA?
Building a start-up is something that I’ve always wanted to do, and I felt that the odds of making a success of it would be much higher with the sort of skills and experiences that you can get from doing an MBA. But also on a personal level, I also knew that it would be a really great experience and a lot of fun!
What aspects of your IMBA experience, looking back now, do you really value?
I really enjoyed a lot of the classes that I took. I also took part in some MBA student competitions, which I really enjoyed. With one of them, we got to go to the UN headquarters in New York and make a presentation about our project – that was brilliant. For another project we managed to interview some of the leading figures in IT from India (long story!), but anyway this gave us a huge edge and helped us win the competition. The ability and confidence to approach people and convince them to share some of their time and expertise with you is a very useful skill.
How did the program help you position yourself for your current professional role?
About 18 months ago I started working on a start-up. I wouldn’t really have been able to do this had I not done the Sofaer program. It certainly gave me a lot of confidence, as well as a bunch of skills and experience which I’d like to think I’ve put to very good use.
Did you change through the course of the program? If so, in what way?
Definitely. I really began to focus in on marketing during the program – it’s now something that I’m really passionate about. I also think the program gave me a lot of confidence – and you certainly need that when you’re trying to build a startup!
How did studying in Tel Aviv and/ or Israel impact your studies?
I was reading an article about the start-up scene in The Economist when I first thought about Israel as a place to do an MBA. I wanted to check it out for myself, and to see what it is that gives them that edge. And I really do think that it’s been of huge benefit to work alongside Israelis and learn from them. They’re really great at getting things done – if they want something to happen, they just go and make it happen. I really admire that sort of determination, and it’s something that I’ve tried to emulate.
How did studying with students from all over the world influence your studies?
I spent a lot of time working with an Israeli American classmate and a classmate from India. Both come from completely different backgrounds and it was really interesting to observe their different working styles in action. One was charming and emotionally intelligent, and the other was direct and very analytical. They have very different working styles, but both are extremely effective and very good at getting results.
To date, the Sofaer IMBA has an alumni community of more than 250 located all over the world engaged in a diverse range of professional pursuits, including entreprenurship. We’re proud to introduce you to a few of them through our Alumni Spotlight series. To learn more about the careers of our alumni post-program, we invite you to reference our IMBA Career Statistics.
