A glimpse into the NUS MBA Consulting Project with PwC
As part of the NUS MBA Consulting Project, our MBA students get the opportunity to explore some of the biggest questions faced by corporates and start-ups, and help find solutions to these problems.
Having been involved with our programme for five years and counting, Greg Unsworth, Digital Business and Risk Services Leader from PwC Singapore, sheds light on the thinking and processes behind our industry collaboration and what corporates are looking for in our NUS MBA participants.
What are some highlights of the collaboration?
PwC Singapore is one of the biggest names in professional services and part of the Big Four accounting firms. Getting such global recognition doesn’t come easy, and innovation and collaboration are two areas in which PwC has excelled.
The collaboration between PwC Singapore and NUS Business School is multi-faceted. PwC Singapore representatives make frequent appearances at NUS career fairs, and the two organizations recently collaborated on the PwC and NUS Asia Pacific sustainability report. In addition, the NUS MBA consulting project is an opportunity for students to work alongside PwC Singapore as they tackle emerging issues for businesses.
“I’ve been involved with the NUS MBA program for five years now and really working with the students on specific projects that are relevant and impactful for our business and our clients.”
Students are paired up with real-world PwC customers and work to solve an issue they are facing. Some examples of past topics include workforce trends and developments, the integration of new technologies, how to adapt to blockchain, and the evolving impact of regulations.
These topics are almost always from a forward-thinking perspective, dealing with current or future problems relevant to modern business.
Professional development and networking
It’s not just about putting new skills into practice. Students on the NUS MBA Consulting Project grow their networks and learn how to collaborate – essential skills throughout any career.
It is also a project that allows students to gain a better level of self-understanding. By working in a real-life environment that will throw up moments of stress and pressure, it allows students to understand what areas they need to work on personally as well as professionally.
Enjoying the consulting project experience
Having collaborated with NUS Business School for five years, Greg shares, “We want…the experience to be a good experience for the participants. We want them to be recommending it to others.”
While each student’s work will have an effect on the company assigned to them, the educational setting of the consulting project allows you to take risks, make mistakes, and explore new avenues.
As Greg says, “It really doesn’t matter if they don’t have deep expertise in a certain area. We’re looking for that enthusiasm [and] proactiveness.” One of the most common pieces of advice for future MBA students is to throw yourself into every opportunity.
A mutually beneficial collaboration
In working with the NUS MBA, PwC Singapore in return also receives concrete benefits from the students.
Greg says, “We sometimes get some interesting fresh insights, for one thing.” When dealing with disruptive new phenomena, it’s always useful for large institutions such as PwC to get a glimpse into how ordinary people are responding.
But, what is perhaps most interesting to students in the collaboration is the potential for win-win career opportunities. Greg attests, “We’re looking to identify talents as well that potentially could work for us in the future.”
By working shoulder-to-shoulder with PwC Singapore, students not only get the chance to meet industry leaders, but prove their potential post-graduation. It is often links forged through experiences like the NUS MBA Consulting Project that could be the springboard to a new career.
This article is an adapted version of the original article, “NUS-PwC Collaboration: A network-boosting consulting project” by MBAGRADSCHOOLS.
In our video series which focuses on the NUS MBA industry partners, we look at the huge role our corporate partners play in helping us develop high-calibre talents and future global business leaders, as well as in the exchange of invaluable expertise, insights and connections. Watch all the videos in this series here.
