Executive MBA alum Mehdi Ali reflects on his time at WBS, studying at The Shard and his career journey since graduating.

Can you tell us a bit about your background and what made you choose WBS?
Before embarking on my career in technology, I graduated from the University of West London and completed my Master's at King's College London, where I focused on Internet technologies, software development, and related technical principles. Throughout most of my career, I held hands-on technical roles, including technical support, data analytics, and specialised in digital operations and app development.

However, as I witnessed the rapid transformation of the industry, I found myself in a highly competitive and rapidly changing tech environment. I realised that working solely in technical roles didn’t provide me with a comprehensive understanding of the broader business needs and the various organisational elements involved in a digital transformation, particularly for large national publishers and global broadcasters.

The global scope of digital technology transformations necessitated a more structured knowledge base across various business domains, such as budgets, P&L for business units, strategy, product management and roadmaps, as well as culture and change management. To gain this knowledge, I joined WBS at The Shard, conveniently located just across the road from my office. I chose WBS for its unique brand identity and based on the positive feedback from colleagues who had previously graduated from there.

Can you describe your career path since graduating?
Since graduating from WBS, I have transitioned across companies and roles. I began as a Digital Platform Manager at News UK, a British newspaper publisher and subsidiary of the American media conglomerate News Corp, before moving on to lead various engineering functions at the Telegraph Media Group. More recently, I’ve been working with Salesforce, a leading customer relationship management software company, advising clients on AI and transformation within large-scale digital programmes as a Senior Program Architect.

Can you tell us about your current role?
In my current role at Salesforce, I serve as a strategic advisor, guiding enterprise customers on how to leverage the Salesforce platform for digital transformation and business process optimisation. This is a highly trusted position where we collaborate with clients to define architectural vision, implement solutions, and ensure customer success. Some of my specific responsibilities include leading architecture and implementation efforts, building strong relationships, and ensuring the delivery of scalable solutions.

What are some of the key achievements or milestones in your career so far?

Some highlights include:

• Leading on the implementation and release of The Sun and The Times Classic app versions
• Created and led an in-house team to develop 30+ customer-facing websites for News UK brand extensions; established The Telegraph Engineering Outreach program
• Headed the Telegraph Web team, responsible for redesigning telegraph.co.uk
• Led 24/7 digital operations teams across three countries
• Served as Lead Architect for large-scale Salesforce data consolidation project
• Transitioned from hands-on technical roles to leadership and architecture.

What are your future career goals or aspirations?

1. AI Expertise and Leadership: Focus on deepening my expertise in AI and machine learning, aiming to lead AI-driven innovation and digital transformation projects that drive business value and impact across industries.

2. Mentorship and Community Building: Aspire to mentor and develop the next generation of tech professionals, while actively building a strong community focused on AI, knowledge sharing, and continuous learning.

3. Entrepreneurial and Cross-Industry Experience: Explore opportunities to start a consultancy or business, leveraging right tech to solve the industry-specific challenges and fostering cross-industry collaboration to accelerate innovation.

What was it like studying at The Shard?
The best way to describe my time at The Shard was the opportunity to step back and gain a broader perspective—literally, as I could see my office building. It provided a chance to reflect on new learnings and re-learnings from a diverse cohort of individuals across various industries. This experience helped me develop a creative lens that I realised was missing in my career background. The location, being just a stone’s throw away from my office, made it incredibly convenient. It offered the benefits of being in the heart of the city while providing valuable academic opportunities.

There were many unique opportunities that contributed to my professional growth. In addition to the modules and structured learning, which helped me deepen my understanding of organisations, I had the chance to network and connect with experts in various fields. Immediately after graduating, I launched The Telegraph Engineering Outreach Program, which included initiatives like blogs, meet-ups, social media engagement, and recruitment events.

How did being in London influence your education and career aspirations?
The city’s dynamic environment, the proximity to major global companies and the overall ease of accessibility for various events.

Are there any specific skills or knowledge you gained from your time at WBS?
It’s hard to pinpoint just one specific area, as every module and class at WBS was packed with valuable new insights. However, one area that stood out was understanding organisational culture. This helped me identify how I could approach my existing role to ensure that our projects accounted for the change management aspects and challenges across different areas of the business. Additionally, the 'Art of Leadership' module sparked my interest, particularly through its creative use of William Shakespeare-style role plays.

How has being an alum of our business school benefited you and your career?
This is an area where I believe there is significant potential and value that can be realised by myself. To give back to the alumni community, I actively volunteered with the Warwick Technology Network from 2018 to 2022 and chaired two events. This experience allowed me to gain valuable insights and expand my professional network. Moving forward, I feel I could be even more proactive in engaging with alumni activities, focusing on more targeted networking that aligns with my career aspirations.

What are some of your most memorable experiences or highlights from your time at WBS?
One of my most memorable experiences was the international module, which felt like a mini MBA within the broader Executive MBA programme. Another highlight was working with a fellow student on the implementation of a voucher management portal as our own startup. I also greatly valued the learning experiences and stories shared by others from different companies, which enriched my perspective.

What advice would you give to current students?
The career advice, CV reviews, and face-to-face mock interviews offered by the WBS Careers Team are incredibly valuable services. I highly recommend making full use of these resources. The career advice helps you align your goals with industry trends, the CV reviews ensure you present yourself effectively to employers, and the mock interviews provide a realistic setting to refine your interview skills. These services were instrumental in helping me prepare for the next stage of my career and I encourage all students to take advantage of them.