When Tugay joined the GEMBA programme at RSM, he expected to sharpen his business skills, and he has. But what he didn’t anticipate was the depth of personal growth the experience would demand. When discussing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, Tugay speaks candidly about his personal connection to SDG #1 – No Poverty: “I was born and raised in the Netherlands, and that makes me privileged. But my ancestors weren’t. One grandfather was from Italy, the other from Turkey, and both grew up in poverty. I carry their legacy with me. I have a deep desire to break the cycle and help build a world where everyone has a fair chance at a better life.” This was just one of many powerful reflections Tugay shares - including his belief in leading by creating a safe environment. 🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear more from Tugay and the leadership insights he’s gained along the way.

With a degree in Chemical Engineering and over 15 years of experience in the Oil, Gas & Chemical industry across Europe, Australia, and the Middle East, Zaher Charaf joined the Executive MBA programme in January 2025. In this episode, we dive into how he found his way into this field, what led him to pursue an MBA, and how the programme is shaping his perspective on his career path. 🎧 Listen to the full interview here! #ExecutiveMBA #RSM #CareerJourney #LeadershipDevelopment #LifelongLearning #QualityEducation

In this episode I dove into the MBA journey of two of our FTMBA Class of ’26 students, Yen Pham and Pascal Chabaneix. With different stories about their personal and professional backgrounds, thoughts and insights on leadership, turning points in their lives and the whole decision making process to do an MBA, this podcast is full of inspiring stories and nuggets of wisdom you must hear!

‘Transformation is not optional in this programme. Especially because of the Strategic Leadership Development course.’ – Shreyas Kapse (GEMBA ’25) When asked about key take-aways of the Global Experiential Learning modules, Shreyas shared: ‘The GELS’s are truly the experiential part of the learning. It is the most pragmatic kind of learning that you can expect.’ Listen to the full episode to learn more about his journey, his experiences and some examples of the Global Experiential Learning trips.

Nejla joined the Executive MBA Class of ’26. When asked about the SDG’s, she shares: ‘#4 is about Quality education, #7 is about affordable energy and #10 is about reducing inequality. Those three each have the targets and indicators that are incredibly ambitious but I think that’s what we need. Those three really move the needle to be able to unlock exponential progress on the others.’ Listen to the full interview to learn about Nejla’s personal and professional journey and advice

Catarina Lopes Pereira joined the Executive MBA Class of 2026. With extensive experience in expert roles, Catarina decided to do an Executive MBA to broaden her horizon further. ‘I think that doing an MBA at RSM can help me with taking on more strategic roles with more impact and enhancing my leadership skills,’ she shares. Listen to the full interview to hear about Catarina’s journey, experiences and pieces of advice!

When joining the Full-time MBA Class of 2026 here at RSM, Sarah Humphries did have some expectations but also knew her expectations would be a bit different. ‘I knew that with my creative background, I would be looking for something different from the institution that I was joining. And I wanted to join an institution where I would not have to apologise for my design background,’ says Sarah Humphries. Listen to the full interview to hear more about Sarah’s Full-time MBA journey!

In this episode Ikram Mataich (GEMBA Class of 2026) shares how she is experiencing her Global Executive MBA journey here at RSM, the importance of having people around that support you, and the importance of believing in yourself and your leadership skills. ‘I would say that you have to find the courage to apply. Have that confidence in yourself.’ Listen to the full interview to hear about her GEMBA journey!

In this podcast Amina Daniels (FTMBA ’26) shares her story about overcoming obstacles, her journey towards an MBA here at Rotterdam School of Management, and how she is experiencing the Full-time MBA programme so far. ‘It’s not enough to open a business. You need policy to really have a greater impact on communities,’ Amina said. Listen to the full interview, to learn more about the value of an MBA and advice coming from a student that is in the midst of her MBA journey.

In this podcast Meghan McKinnon, one of RSM’s Career Development Managers, shares how the career center helps guide and coach our current students during their MBA journey. ‘We focus on four primary areas, so the first one is self-awareness. That’s knowing who you are, that’s knowing where your skill-sets lie, where your strengths are, what you really enjoy doing. And often times as we just go through our career, we don’t really step back and think about these things and evaluate them. So we do spend quite a lot of time on that.’ Listen to the full podcast to learn more about how our career center is there for our students, as soon as they embark on their MBA journey. The topics in this podcast are: - Coaching and positioning yourself in the job-market - Coaching every individual student, regardless of their journey - How does the Career Center offer support and coaching? - The skills every MBA candidate needs - A word of advice

In this podcast we dive into the collaboration between our MBA Careers team and companies such as FrieslandCampina and AkzoNobel. This particular collaboration started in 2016 with Dirk van de Heijden. At that time he was working with FrieslandCampina after which he transitioned to AkzoNobel. In this podcast we discuss several topics, such as how our MBA students are being prepared for the corporate world, what competencies our MBA students excel in due to the MBA programmes and of course the journey ahead in terms of collaborations. ‘You need solution thinking, or improvement thinking. And what I really like with RSM, and again it’s cooked into your programme, is that data-driven solution thinking across disciplines, to have an open radar. Not to be blindfolded for your tech-way of looking at things.’ Dirk van der Heijden (Head of Application Delivery at AkzoNobel) Listen to the full podcast here!

When asked why he decided to do a Full-time MBA here at RSM, Damilola Arogundade (FTMBA class of ’25) shared: ‘RSM seemed like a place that aligned with my values. I knew a couple of RSM alumni, one of them particularly had come to Nigeria to work. And I had met him and we hit it off, like a solid friendship. And I liked the values that he embodied and the company where he worked.’ In this podcast episode, Damilola speaks about his FTMBA journey, how he experiences being here in the Netherlands compared to Nigeria. He also shares more about the problem he discovered here in Rotterdam, and how the Impact Experience was a great opportunity to look for solutions to resolve this. Listen to the full episode to learn more about him, his journey and his advice on pursuing an MBA.

In this podcast Andrea Bergamini, who has joined the Global Executive MBA Class of ‘26, shares how he is experiencing his GEMBA journey. Andrea is currently Vice President, Global Infrastructure and Chief Information Security Officer at Orbia. He has lived in several European countries and is currently living in Amsterdam. He shares how he balances work, studying and family life. Andrea is married and has 2 kids, a 7-year-old and a 7… month old. In this episode we discuss his EMBA journey, as well as his passion for astrophotography and why he runs a remote observatory hosted in sunny Spain. For advice on balancing work, life and studying and whether to do a GEMBA or not, listen to this insightful podcast episode, about Andrea's personal journey towards and during the GEMBA.

In this podcast Monika Juodpusiene shares what her GEMBA journey is like, as well as her decision making process and her encounters with women in different industries that lack confidence. ‘I separated myself first from the social circle that influences you or brings out a lack of self confidence. It was one of the hardest steps; applying,’ she shares. ‘Is it really for me? Do I have what it takes? I’m not in the corporate world. Is it only for corporate people? And I think that’s the biggest misconception. Especially the (Global) Executive MBA is for anyone who wants to become a better leader. And we need better leaders in every field.’ Monika Juodpusiene (Global Executive MBA class of ’25) Listen to the full podcast, to learn more about her journey both towards and during the GEMBA, her perspective on the need of better leaders and advice for women listening to this podcast. ‘I say to you, go for it.’

The first SDG that comes to mind is quality education,’ says Serge Duarte Pinto. Serge joined the Global Executive MBA Class of ’25 in September last year. ‘As a scientist I have always been close to the education system and now I am the father of two children and I also look at it from another angle,’ he shares when asked about the Sustainable Development Goals. In this podcast we discuss his GEMBA journey, how he experiences the Strategic Leadership Development course that runs throughout the whole programme and what his advice is, if you want to do an MBA.

In this insightful episode, we delve deep into the world of the Global Executive MBA (GEMBA) programme, where some key questions that highlight its unique offerings and advantages are answered by the Academic Director of the programme, Hans van Oosterhout. If you're considering furthering your education and you're curious about our Global Executive MBA, this episode is a must-listen!

In this episode our Global Executive MBA students, Vivian Faceto, Lorenzo Salvatori and Kevin Jansen, reflect on their GEMBA journey. How do they feel about graduating soon? What have they implemented already? And are they connected with our alumni network already? All these questions and more are answered here. Listen to the full episode to hear what they have to say about the GEMBA journey here at Rotterdam School of Management!

With a background in Geoscience, Euphrasia Wong decided to pursue her Executive MBA here at RSM and joined the Executive MBA class of ’25. In today’s podcast we dive into her background, what motivated her to pursue an MBA and what her overall experience has been like these past few months. ‘I have enjoyed a technical career over the last thirteen years, specialising in Geochemistry. I wanted to pursue a study that can broaden and complement my technical skills. I also aspire to pivot from a technical to a managerial and eventually a leadership role,’ she shares. When speaking about the Sustainable Development Goals, Euphrasia emphasises the importance of SDG 7: Affordable and clean energy. ‘Energy is all around us and is what fuels our lives. We don’t even have to think twice about switching the lights on or turning the heating on during winter. Reality is that this is a privilege which some don’t have, be it access to affordable energy or sustaining energy at all.’ Listen to the full interview, to learn about the best way of learning, balancing work and study and Euphrasia's advise on doing an Executive MBA.

In this podcast we dive into the story of Moustafa Youssef, one of our current Executive MBA students, class of ‘25. Moustafa grew up in Dubai, where his career was centered around civil engineering, project management and strategic planning and development. He joined the Executive MBA to explore different career opportunities and to broaden his horizon. ‘I’m driven by three things. I'm driven by passion, responsibility and curiosity. My passion for management, team leading and being a better leader and my responsibility towards the world, the place where I live and how to make it better, motivated me to do an Executive MBA,' Moustafa shares. Listen to the podcast to learn more about the EMBA journey so far and Moustafa's advice for those considering doing an EMBA.

In this podcast I spoke with Seraphine Nathania about the start of her Full-time MBA journey. Seraphine specialises in risk internal auditing and decided to do an MBA here are RSM. Even though her Full-time MBA journey just started in January 2024, we asked her about her decision making process and her journey so far. We also asked her if she had any prior expectations of doing an MBA. ‘I did not expect the MBA to be an easy and smooth journey. I believe that it must be challenging. But at the same time I also believe that it will be a rewarding experience,’ Seraphine shared. Listen to the podcast, to learn more about her decision making process and how her journey has been so far.