Name: Ryall Stroud
Program/major: Corporate Residency MBA
Career aspirations: I am in the second year of the program, specializing in finance. I am very interested in public market finance and hope to work in equity research or investment management.
Why were you interested in taking this course, Doing Business in Emerging Markets?
I was interested because of the incredible opportunity to expand my knowledge on emerging markets, particularly in Latin America. In the MBA program we spend relatively little time on international countries and markets, even though many of these nations are expected to significantly outpace worldwide economic growth. By taking a course specifically on two countries and then visiting those countries at the end of the term, it provides a unique opportunity to truly immerse oneself in their respective cultures and see how business there operates.
What do you expect to learn from your visit to Chile and Argentina?
I expect to learn more about traditions and customs and how they impact typical businesses. I also hope to learn what drives the respective economies and what factors are observed as limitations in each country.
How do you think this experience will impact your future career?
I think this experience has the potential to have a significant impact on my career. As one who hopes to be researching or investing in companies, knowledge of how business is conducted in Latin American countries will be invaluable if I am ever put in a position to assess emerging markets. As well, I believe this course will open my eyes to new ways of thinking and a different perspective of how the world is viewed/understood.