New skills, new career
Since graduating in 2021, Zoë has started her own consulting and facilitating business called The ChangIN Room. The business takes a human-centred approach to increase employee engagement and job fulfilment to help reduce wasted human potential in the workplace.
Moving from the safety of a salary was a huge leap of faith for Zoë, but it’s proved worthwhile.
“I’m pretty risk-adverse so this was a big move, but the pandemic forced me, like many others, to question where I was at and prioritise what’s important in life.
“And having the creative freedom to develop my own ideas has always been a key driving force that I could no longer ignore.
“I’m still in the early stages growing the business and it’s relentlessly demanding – it requires you to constantly step out of your comfort zone. It’s hard but I am grateful to have this opportunity to pursue my interests.”
Making the right study choices
The mother-of-two chose to study the MBA at RMIT because of its mix of technology, innovation, design thinking and leadership. The flexibility of studying online also made it compatible with work and family life, and at the time, pandemic lockdowns.
“I chose RMIT’s MBA program because I’m really interested in technology and innovation and wanted to learn skills and knowledge that are practical and relevant for the modern world,” she said.
“Studying during the lockdowns was good, bad and a bit challenging. Good in the sense that it kept me focused, productive and connected to the outside world, plus learning online meant there wasn’t any disruption.”
Geared for the future of business
The MBA helps students build real-world business skills and tools them with creative ways to solve problems.
Zoë said it strengthened her innovation mindset and design thinking skills that helped her identify a gap in the market, which she used to create her business.
She said it also inspired to take on challenges she previously would have backed away from.
“It’s the ability to consistently push through the hard stuff to complete what is required,” she said.
“I remember receiving demanding assignments – all 36 of them – and sometimes not knowing how I would possibly get through them, but each time I did and managed to deliver them at the highest quality and validate my concepts.
“Now when I’m working on the business I have the confidence and resilience to know that I can take the same approach to tackling the tough stuff.”
Returning to study isn’t a decision to make lightly because as Zoë said, it takes a sizable investment of time, money and energy. She advised others to consider it thoroughly and to also ensure there is a support network to help manage the juggle.
Ultimately it paid off for Zoë, who said the MBA guided her to make the right choice for her career future.
“Returning to study can be a great choice if you are looking for something new or to help you move out of stagnation,” she said.
“I particularly enjoyed the MBA course content as it enabled me to explore all different aspects of the business world, past, present and future, to help me decide what area I wanted to focus on.”
Story: Kate Jones
