Meet Ashwin

Obsessive Learner

Technologist / Lifelong learner / Cloud, Data, API / Engineering Leader / Traveler / Habitual reader

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Journaling my EMBA Journey with Quantic

September 4, 2020 by Ashwin Leave a Comment

The quest started two years ago.

I was doing quite well at work. I was working with interesting technologies and great developers. But I knew something was missing when getting to bigger scheme of things. I realised, it is not just enough to make things work in a business – it is equally essential to know how things work – to grow and lead. My quest for business education started right then.

I started exploring the options for high quality business education at reasonable cost. I was damn sure not to shell out thousands of dollars and get into debt.

In 2018, I signed up for HBX CoRE, which is currently rebranded as HBS Online CoRE. It is sort of a mini MBA from Harvard, taught by the same business school professors, using the popular case study method. I thoroughly enjoyed the 3 courses – financial accounting, economics and business analysis. It exposed me to internals of business and I wanted more.

In 2019, I applied and got into LEAD personal leadership program from Stanford GSB. I always had a great admiration for Stanford and didn’t think for a second before signing up. Though it costed much more than CoRE, it covered a gamut of leadership topics that are very appropriate for the stage of my career. I enjoyed all 8 courses over the year, with a special liking for “Power to Lead” by Jeffrey Pfeffer. I also expanded my professional network during this time.

I still felt incomplete without all the hard business skills. That’s when I came across the rebranded Quantic EMBA (I knew them from their Smartly days).

Here are the top 3 reasons why I decided to sign up and pursue my EMBA with them.

  • Microlearning model – I prefer byte-sized learning methods (I love Duolingo!) and this perfectly fits my schedule with an young family)
  • Truly global cohort – A big difference from the big university programs, is the diversity of learners in Quantic. In my batch for example, I can find learners from Alaska to Papua New Guinea and beyond. It’s just amazing
  • Cost effectiveness – The program is priced reasonably and I can gain all the skills plus a real degree, all at a fraction of an EMBA cost from a traditional university

I am starting my courses this weekend. I plan to document my journey through the EMBA program, one post every month. I hope I can keep this schedule 🙂

Wish me luck in my journey! If you need some inputs or suggestions about all the programs I did, feel free to drop me a note. Happy learning!

Filed Under: EMBA Journey, Learning Tagged With: business education, EMBA, leadership, learning, management, personal growth

The Art of Software Engineering Management

October 28, 2019 by Ashwin Leave a Comment

With the proliferation of IT services, engineering management is often treated akin to project management. But, it is a lot more than that. Being one of the top paid IT jobs, this role rests on 6 critical pillars. Read on to know more…

#1 – Core engineering concepts and practices

As an engineering manager, you are not expected to get your hands dirty every day.  However, consistent touch with the low level code is quite important.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Software Engineering Tagged With: engineering management, management, software engineering, system design, tech leadership, technology

Think like a Leader | Course Review

January 17, 2018 by Ashwin Leave a Comment

Think Like a Leader - Udemy course review

Starting 2017, I am obsessed with online courses.  In an attempt to improve my business acumen and management skills, I have been through a series of courses across Coursera, Udemy and edX.

This post is a review of the course Think like a leader by Brian Tracy, on Udemy. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Courses, Latest Post, Reviews Tagged With: brian tracy, course reviews, leadership, management, think like a leader, udemy, udemy reviews

How to design a Presentation that don’t doze your audience?

August 30, 2017 by Ashwin Leave a Comment

design_presentation_post_img

A statistic says that about 90% of presentations are either boring or useless or both!  Let me give you a quick tip on how to design an effective presentations without boring your audience to death.  Read on! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Last Five, Management, Presentations Tagged With: business, management, meetings, presentation

Being a Boss vs Being Bossy

December 8, 2016 by Ashwin Leave a Comment

Being a BossImagine getting to the office on a Monday morning.

You had a wonderful weekend and desperately wish it was a little longer!  While checking your emails and getting ready for the week, there is a call from your boss.  He is asking you to be in his cabin, right away.  You oblige.  In his cabin, you find few of your peers with a dreaded look.  You sense something is not right. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Leadership Tagged With: being a boss, leadership, management, managing people

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