Before the class started 2 Tuesdays ago, I was feeling nervous and giddy…”Is it going to be a tough week?” “What if I can’t keep up?” “What if I don’t understand anything?” “Did I prepare enough for the sessions?” “Who are my classmates?” “What’s the professor like?” “Are they nice people?” These were the questions running through my head as I set up the ring light a few minutes before I joined the Zoom call.
As I joined the Zoom call, I saw many faces that I have not seen before..there are a total of 53 students in our class. Some were fortunate enough to travel to Oxford itself, but most were joining remotely.
The introduction given by the Program Director was very inspiring. We were told that we will be taught by professors who are essentially the guru of their subject, and of course reiterating that the “Oxford experience” is a unique and special one. We were reminded of how lucky we are to be in the program where admission is very competitive. I felt a great sense of pride knowing that I was one of the selected few in this year’s postgrad course. I’m the only one from the Philippines and also the lone one who lives in Switzerland in my class. My classmates are from all over- US, UK, China, Mongolia, Dubai, Lebanon, Sweden, Singapore, and various parts of Africa. They are strategy and innovation executives, CEOs, business owners, management consultants and leaders from various industries: Banking, Oil & Gas, Pharmaceuticals, Food industry, Public Sector, etc. The mix is definitely diverse.
For 5 straight days, classes started at 1pm and ended at 8pm (except on the last day, Saturday, which ended earlier at 5:30pm) with 2 breaks in between.
I got into my newfound daily routine quite quickly:
7:00/7:30- 8:00 wake up and breastfeed Tala (my 14-month old daughter)
8:00-8:30 feed Tala breakfast (she eats very well)
If Tala goes to daycare:
8:30-11:00 catch-up on readings, do a bit of chores
If Tala stays at home:
8:30-11:00 playtime, bath-time for my little one, catch-up on readings if she takes a nap
11:00-12:00 Cook dinner
12:00-12:30 Eat lunch – if Tala stays at home, the babysitter arrives during this time
12:30-13:00 Last minute preparations
13:00-14:30 In zoom class
14:30-15:30 bio break, snack, and try to breastfeed Tala if she’s at home. If not, then more catch-up on readings.
15:30-17:30 In zoom class
17:30-18:00 bio break, try to breastfeed Tala
18:00-19:30 In zoom class
19:30-20:00 After class informal discussion and virtual drinks
20:00-21:00 Eat dinner
21:00-22:30 Tuck Tala in bed, discuss some business topics with hubby (I needed an actual company to be my personal case for the class, so I can apply learnings to a real business. I chose my hubby’s startup)
22:30-00:00 Read materials for next day’s session
00:00-7:00 Sleep
Now, if you think I managed to stick to the schedule above, you must be crazy. Apart from the actual times that I’m locked in my home office (conveniently situated in the attic) for the zoom classes, the rest are very much fluid. 7 straight hours of sleep? Yeah right…
The first module was all about Strategy. I found the topic very interesting and also enlightening. Throughout my career until I became an author, I was mostly on the implementation side of strategy. So it’s good to get the insights on strategy formulation and learn the various frameworks that can be used to assess the different factors that make up and impact strategy.
The learning approach is composed of 3 things: the recommended (which are actually required) readings which tackle most of the theory and illustrations of the concepts, the lectures where the instructor runs through the theory and provides insights on the topic based on the theory and the readings, and the breakout sessions so we can apply the theory on our personal case, then the presentation of the personal case to the class for feedback.
Since most of us were not in Oxford, the breakout sessions were pretty much the time to meet each other and learn about our professional backgrounds and personal cases. Most have their current employer as their personal case. I’m the odd- I mean, interesting (wink, wink) one coming with my husband’s startup as her personal case.
I felt a little insecure on day 1 after hearing the presentations from the breakout sessions. Each presenter seem to know A LOT about the company they selected for their personal case.
I didn’t initially.
I eventually caught up by having those after dinner discussions with my husband. I found it amusing (and romantic) because I never had such deep conversations with him about his company strategy. I had a couple of “I see…” and “That’s why!” moments. I now have a better understanding of why he’s running his company the way he does.
Another realization about startup companies is the fact that they normally know their strategy upfront and then they progressively build on the resources and capabilities required.
And yeah, I also understand now what the Tesla top down product strategy approach means. My husband must be so proud.
So on the last day of our module, Saturday, at 1730 on the dot, the Module 1 lectures of my postgrad course was completed.
I can’t believe the week went by so fast.
My eyes were tired from the 7-hr a day Zoom sessions and the various readings, my brain is overloaded with everything I learned, and my voice is slightly scratchy from too much talking during the breakout sessions. But guess what- I’m smiling like a young school girl who was noticed by her crush – there’s an inner happiness flowing within me.
This is my Oxford natural high. I can’t wait for the next module. But first, study groups to prepare for the course assessment on February!!!
