Alumni profile
Peter
Sutcliffe, Part-time MBA
Peter Sutcliffe, Operations Manager for UK-based textile converter Prestigious Textiles Ltd which buys materials from the Far East and Europe and sells them to more than 80 countries worldwide, believes his Part Time Executive MBA allowed him to transfer skills across industries and change career direction.
"Being from Bradford I was quite proud to find out that we had a top business school in the locality. I was also impressed by the international dimension and the opportunity to take some subjects abroad," explained 45-year-old Peter, who graduated in 2005.
"My main career highlight since graduation is having the opportunity to work freelance as an operations improvement consultant in Saudi Arabia.
"From the programme I achieved the ability to sit alongside any functional management team (Finance, Marketing, Operations etc) and have a valued input into their strategy.
"My experiences at Bradford gave me the confidence to transfer skills across industries; I have moved from food into textiles and now find myself dealing more and more with international logistics. With my understanding of the commercial business environment, I find it second nature to be able to align functional strategies with overall business intent.
"The programme has whetted my appetite for further study; I took the Global Supply Chain module in Mainz which has encouraged me to take a further MSc in the subject which I am currently studying at Cranfield. I have also doubled my salary from when I began the course until now.
"I no longer work for the employers that sponsored the programme, however during my studies I was responsible for business strategy and we were able to develop the business in preparation for a sale which has now been completed. My current employers involve me extensively on a global scale with their partner businesses to improve customer service, internal processes and strategic direction.
"For those candidates thinking about the programme I would like to say, use the time on this course well to ensure you maximise your own benefits from the experience, don't just see it as a qualification. Have self confidence once you have graduated because you will be armed with some valuable and still pretty unique skills. Set yourself a financial target three and five years from graduation and have the confidence to stick to it, if you prove your worth to an employer he or she will ask you what that is," Peter asserted.