21/11/2024
We caught up with a graduate from our groundbreaking Master in Customer Experience & Innovation.
“Andrew, our academic director, asked us to write a letter to ourselves at the beginning of the master,” Alberto told us. “We could only read it after we’d completed the course.”
Less than two years later, Alberto is a graduate from our Master in Customer Experience & Innovation 2023 and is thriving on AB inBev careers’ program for young managers. And much of that success can be traced back to his decision to study at IE Business School.
“I wrote some recommendations,” Alberto says of the letter. “Some objectives. Don’t be afraid of talking to professors or asking stupid questions. Play padel as much as you can—I definitely did enough of that. And another target was just, you know, to take on opportunities.”
Navigating challenges during the Master in Customer Experience & Innovation
With the ink dry and his aims outlined, Alberto got to work. The Master in Customer Experience & Innovation pushed him to create impactful, human-centered designs in CX across sectors, drawing from classes on enhancing consumer interactions to ultimately drive business value. Alberto knew from he’d signed up to a demanding program—but the workload surpassed expectations.
“It was intense. I realized you have almost 10 courses every two or three months, and for each course you have a group presentation and an individual task. You’re basically managing 10 courses in groups, which requires a lot of coordination and work. It was definitely more intense than I expected.” But Alberto rose to the challenge. “I said OK. Let’s try it.”
“There was an event with TedX Madrid which looked really interesting. I had no time. But I said, OK, just do it. I’ll be tired. I’ll do be doing a lot of work to catch up. But let’s try it.” “
How Alberto flourished during Europe’s best masters in innovation
Alberto kept a handle on the most demanding units—and found some unexpected benefits on the way.
“I loved the units on quantitative research, qualitative research and corporate innovation. And something unique to the program was the theater tools class with Ellen Buckland. Wherever you go, you need to cater your message to different audiences. That class teaches you how to present with confidence. To say, I’m prepared, I’m ready, and I know how to make the audience pay attention.”
Then Alberto went a step further; he utilized the diverse talent from one of the best masters in innovation to launch a podcast.
“We had the opportunity to talk with so many amazing professors and students. A classmate and I decided to leverage this—we said, OK, let’s generate some content. We started a podcast called Beyond the Experience. It was initially part of the CX Enthusiasts Club, which was founded by one of my classmates, Sonia. There were so many talented people around for these conversations. We even organized a session with our academic director. That connection with the faculty really, really surprised me.”
Working at AB inBev: careers advice after graduating from IE Business School
Alberto is part of the AB inBev careers program, supporting one of the biggest beer groups in the world whose portfolio include Corona, Stella Artois, Budweiser and Bud light. “I’m on one of four graduate programs. I’m a graduate management trainee. It’s a transversal role. You do anything from operations, logistic sales and project management to HR, marketing and trade. It’s a fascinating market. It seems simple from the outside, but as with most things, it becomes really, really intricate.”
What advice does Alberto have for those following in his footsteps?
“IE Business School’s network reaches around the world. My advice is to leverage those relationships. I’d also say to take an element of curiosity from the course. It’s all about asking questions: Why? Why not? What do you think of this? That’s a constant for me. And I wasn’t like that before the master. I now approach challenges by taking a step back and understanding where the client or customer fits in. This approach in a big corporate company is invaluable. I always bring CX to the center of the discussion.”
Finally, we asked Alberto about reading his letter.
“What surprised me in the letter? To be honest, how well the year went. I finished the master’s happy, and I stayed on a clear path.” Career progression, personal transformation and plenty of padel—success.
