Saudamini Dubey
Executive MBA in Dubai (1998).
Saudamini studied for her MBA on our Dubai and Bradford campuses and also participated in an exchange programme in the Netherlands. She has since built an impressive career in digital transformation, working at GlaxoSmithKline, IBM and Accenture. She is now Digital Transformation Partner and Innovation Lead Partner at Deloitte.
This is her story.
I wasn’t someone who knew exactly what they wanted to do from an early age. My passion for people and technology grew over time. Passion can take you a long way, even when the path ahead isn’t completely clear.
Where my journey began
"I moved to Dubai when I was quite young and it has been home for many years. My roots are in India and it's always humbling to go back and spend time with my grandparents. Those early years made a deep impression on me and the memories have stayed with me ever since.
My parents were very supportive. They encouraged me to follow my passion but also to take responsibility for it. From a young age, my siblings and I were accountable for the decisions we made. Sometimes those decisions worked out and sometimes they didn’t, but they taught us resilience and perspective."
Discovering my direction
"When I joined GlaxoSmithKline after university, I realised how keen I was to work with people."
"The human-centric approach and focus on service had always been close to my heart. At GlaxoSmithKline, I was also able to bring in my love for technology and see its multiplier effect: how it can enable people and amplify what they do. That really set the pace for me."
University of Bradford was one of the first UK universities in Dubai and one of the most recognised. I wanted to work and study at the same time, for me that was the best of both worlds.
My time at the University of Bradford
"I had a lot of access to senior colleagues and leadership who offered excellent guidance."
"The fact that professors, including the former Director of the Management Centre Professor David Weir, would teach in Dubai made the course stand out."
“The course gave me the chance to be on campus and interact with students from different nationalities. I also had the opportunity to study technology at Utrecht University as part of the MBA exchange programme.”
"What stayed with me was how the projects gave a very pragmatic view of the world, as well as the friendships I forged. Even today, I’m still in touch with the MBA network."
A Career built on learning
"I spent 14 years at IBM, where you’re pushed to grow and work across different teams. I admired how the spirit of learning and deep tech knowledge stayed embedded in the culture. It showed me the importance of embracing the pace of change and staying curious in my interactions with colleagues."
"I like that things keep changing and evolving in tech. I've been in consulting for a long time, but I’m naturally curious. I’m still learning - I just started learning vibe coding, for example."
"I’ve always made it a point to give back and pay it forward. Many leaders across organisations trusted me, just as Bradford did. When you receive that trust and responsibility, you want to help others grow and learn."
Advice for future students
"My advice to the next generation would be to embrace change and be curious."
"There’s no point burying our heads in the sand and hoping that technology will slow down or that the AI bubble will burst. We need people who can work with technology to augment human capability and create meaningful impact. If we can embrace change and use technology responsibly, we can improve lives."
"We need more autodidacts and universities can adapt to support this. I’m pleased to see the work being done at Bradford around entrepreneurship in this area."
The next generation are digital natives, so they’ll take to this evolving landscape naturally.
What Bradford means to me
"I'm very proud of the University of Bradford."
"It set me on a path of learning and helped me find my passion at a time when I needed that direction the most."
"It’s a place of learning, and I’m grateful for the mentorship I received. My graduation also gave me a special moment to share with my parents. It’s also a beacon of change."
"I’ve seen first-hand how Bradford continues to evolve over time."
