Today, Doina Popa is the global vice president and head of revenue technology for UiPath, a global company with headquarters in New York, in the robotic process automation arena. But that’s not all. She also is the founder, managing director, and chief executive officer of InnoTrue, a consulting firm that helps organizations redefine their digital strategies using Salesforce technology and leveraging innovative techniques. Doina has dedicated herself to ensuring the growth and success of these companies. At the same time, she has worked tirelessly to boost her own skills with the help of MIT Sloan Executive Education, as the learnings acquired help her in achieving these professional goals.
“I’m in a very interesting position with both of these companies. The company where I am employed, UiPath, is the leader in robotic process automation. I’m both contributing to the development of the company, while also learning as much as I can about the technology and its applications. Then, with my own company, InnoTrue, I’m looking into developing more offerings in the future, providing more diversified digital transformation services and bringing in technology products that support customers.”, Doina explains. “MIT has been able to help me in both of those contexts. It has allowed me to learn for the company that employs me as well as learn more for the entrepreneurial path that I’m on.”
In fact, when Doina began her Executive Education journey in 2016, she was very strategic with her course selections, choosing classes that either provided her with a foundation of knowledge about topics she did not know well yet, or that allowed her to take a deep dive into subjects that she knew very well but she felt there is still more to be discovered and she was passionate about. By the end of 2020, she completed enough courses to secure two Executive Education certificates simultaneously: the Executive Certificate in Management and Leadership and the Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation.
Learning Comes First
When Doina registered for her first Executive Education courses, Understanding and Solving Complex Business Problems and Creating High Velocity Organizations, she actually had no plans to pursue a certificate. For her, it was all about the subject matter and the experience of traveling to the Cambridge campus for the in-person classes. She had recently transitioned in a leadership position at Salesforce, where she worked at the time as a senior principal success architect, and she wanted to hone her skills beyond the day-to-day professional experience. During the several days she spent in Boston, she made excellent connections with her classmates and instructors and accumulated more knowledge than she ever expected. That newfound wisdom was a great asset as she moved into new positions over the next couple of years, first as CTO for Capgemini and eventually as CIO for Barclays. And it was these leadership positions along her career path that encouraged Doina to look at MIT Executive Education’s strategy and innovation courses as well.
"Every class has brought different capabilities to me. Each one had a different focus, and each one served a different purpose in helping me fill any gaps of knowledge that I felt I had. The entire experience brought me a lot of value."
“I decided to take classes that were the most relevant to me at a certain point in time,” she explains. “Of course, having a certificate is great. But to me, the learning was more important. So I didn’t focus on getting a management and leadership certificate first and then a strategy and innovation certificate. I chose the classes that were the most interesting to me and made the most sense at the time. Achieving the certificates was really a bonus.”
Between 2016 and 2020, Doina seamlessly moved between the different tracks, taking such courses as Marketing Innovation, Machine Learning in Business, Organizational Design for Digital Transformation, and Applied Neuroscience: Unleashing Brain Power for You and Your People. In 2019, she opened the doors to InnoTrue; in 2020, she began her position at UiPath. With both of these pivotal moves, she has applied the information and practical knowledge she garnered from her Executive Education experience. “Every class has brought different capabilities to me,” she observes. “Each one had a different focus, and each one served a different purpose in helping me fill any gaps of knowledge that I felt I had. The entire experience brought me a lot of combined value.”
After completing both certificates, Doina currently is focused on achieving exceptional results for both her employer and for herself as an entrepreneur. She also hopes to return to MIT Sloan one day to advance her Executive Education even further. For now, though, she is grateful for her four-year journey with the institution. As she concludes, “It’s an all-in-one place to get what you need.”
Learn more about MIT Sloan Executive Certificates.