Victoria Lugli, the current CX Finance & Operations Transformation & Automation Manager at Cisco, was leading functional workstreams for finance operations at a different large tech company when she first began her journey with MIT. At the time, she was overseeing a variety of complex objectives as three different companies attempted to merge together. Her ability to find harmony across different stakeholders and streamline processes had been vital to her success. However, she was looking for other ways to develop and maintain relevance in a rapidly changing world.
The start of the pandemic provided Victoria with an opportunity for self-reflection and self-improvement. She already had an MBA in Finance under her belt, but felt some knowledge gaps had materialized over the years. She kept seeing an ad for MIT Sloan Executive Education on her Instagram feed and it piqued her interest. She looked at executive programs at other institutions, but determined they didn’t compare. “Nothing has the level of profound technical reputation as MIT. At the end of the day, it’s about digital transformation. Nobody does that better than MIT.”
She identified the Organizational Design for Digital Transformation course as particularly beneficial for her role. “I didn’t want the pandemic to take over my narrative during those years. I wanted to take over my own life and I went for it. That course opened my mind to another world out there and down a path that I couldn’t imagine.”
One course is just the beginning
Victoria initially intended to take only one course. However, on the last day, a conversation with a classmate, with whom she remains connected, revealed that taking three more courses would earn her an Executive Certificate. “I thought ‘Okay, challenge accepted!’ I was focused on digital transformation—every company has to do it or they won’t survive much longer. That led to me earning my Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation.”
She has since earned an Executive Certificate in Management and Leadership and is now working towards an Advanced Certificate for Executives in Management, Innovation, and Technology (ACE). “What interested me about the ACE is that it feels like an executive level MBA. There’s a lot of current use cases and I’m putting the program together for myself. That’s what makes it so much more powerful.” Victoria also notes that one important distinction that sets an Executive Certificate apart is the ability to tailor the curriculum specifically to one's goals and needs. The variety of courses provides participants with the flexibility and autonomy to create an educational journey that addresses their individual challenges. There is no one size fits all; it's a bespoke experience.
Learning directly from thought leaders
Originally from Argentina, Victoria recalls attending her university back home and studying the frameworks and research from various MIT faculty in her classes. She is still in disbelief that over twenty years later, she has the opportunity to learn directly from the faculty she once only read about. “At the time, going to MIT felt so far-fetched. I can’t even say it was a dream come true, because I never even dreamt of this. It was a dream so big, I didn’t even dare.”
“I think I’m two to three levels above where I started. It’s set up my career to grow wherever I want to go... I don’t know yet where the future lies, but I’m a better and more grounded professional because of MIT Sloan Executive Education.”
Digital Business Strategy: Harnessing Our Digital Future, with Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee was one of the courses that made a big impression on Victoria. She also highlights being glued to lectures from Doug Ready and Roberto Fernandez during Implementing Enterprise-Wide Transformation. “The professors are all world class lecturers. The knowledge that they bring to the table— their consulting experience, their hands-on experience, which they seamlessly weave into the conversation—it’s amazing!”
Her favorite course so far (though she’ll admit it’s hard to play favorites) is Creating High Velocity Organizations with Steve Spear. While Steve utilized various case studies, it was his ability to apply the frameworks to struggles participants shared in the class and provide completely new insights. “That course was amazing. They don’t just give you theory on different use cases and how to solve them. They make you think and logically arrive at those conclusions by yourself so you internalize the learnings better. Anybody can give you information, but when they make you truly digest it and make it your own. That’s when you can really put it into practice.”
The power of networks
Aside from the thought leadership of various faculty, Victoria also stresses the thought leadership from other participants in the classroom. She advises if you take a course, to make connections and leave your industry bubble. “You hear from people in so many different industries and they bring so many different perspectives to the table. You learn different ways to think and about a second way to approach a problem you have. Then you discuss things further and you come up with a third approach.” Despite her courses being entirely online, she felt they were designed to facilitate quality discussions and networking. She’s still in contact with several classmates and relies on them for insights on future courses to take. (She plans on taking Negotiations of Executives at the urging of many).
Victoria has also shared her insights with colleagues at work, inspiring others to take courses and expand their own knowledge. “Learning is something I always try to promote and believe in. If we develop each other, it’s better for all of us.”
What’s next?
“I’m a different professional than I was before. Just thinking about how to tackle these large enterprise-wide projects after only eight courses, I think I’m two to three levels above where I started. It’s set up my career to grow wherever I want to go, whether it’s a corporate setting or setting up my own consulting practice. I don’t know yet where the future lies, but I’m a better and more grounded professional because of MIT Sloan Executive Education.”
Learn more about Executive Certificates.
Contributed by Elaine Santoyo Goldman