Continuing her talk, Ellora takes us through her journey at ISB, and how she made the most of her MBA. Having already worked in an MNC (eBay), she decided she wanted to experience the startup life, and hence chose to get placed in Practo. Her time with eBay had equipped her with work experience, but her stint at Practo was nothing like before. This was her first stint at being a Product Manager, handling the medicine delivery and supply side of things. Having worked as a Developer gave her the advantage of a smooth work rapport with the other ‘Devs' in Practo. She calls this her ‘Get Out Of Jail Free Card'.
Speaking more in depth of Product Management, she says that the most important part of her responsibilities was ‘User Research'. A product manager's sole focus should be the user, and that included a lot of research, AB tests, understanding 3PL (Third Party Logistics) and Minimum Viable Product (MVP), etc. In the end, she talks of how the opportunity to work with ‘Booking.com' came her way and why she decided to seize it.
This is part 2 of Ellora Nath's full interview.
You can watch Part 1 here: Don't Do An MBA To Figure Out Your Future - Ellora Nath, Product Manager, Booking.com, ISB Alum
To watch Part 3, click here: What It's Like To Work As A Product Manager Abroad Ft. Ellora Nath, ISB Alum
This is a new series of talks that we are doing amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Despite the lockdowns and the curfews, we are making all the efforts to ensure that you keep getting insightful and relevant content. So sit back and make the most of your social distancing with this episode of ‘Konversations in Quarantine'!
Key Takeaways:
1. MBA puts you in a classroom with people from diverse backgrounds. These people will help you get perspective and in turn will help you work effectively with people from diverse backgrounds.
2. A few things you will have to develop during your MBA include the ability to hustle, time management, prioritisation, and clarity.
3. The top MNCs that come for placements require at least 3-4 years of work experience.
4. As a Product Manager, your sole focus is the user.
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