Reflecting on a year in Dubai

Dubai, September 2009: the 3^rd cohort of the Cass EMBA in Dubai bustling together in the exclusive lounge at the 1^st floor of the Dubai International Financial Centre’s building 2. All were looking rather dashing in formal attire, chatting attentively and politely to the person closest, happily unaware of the 18 months that lie ahead. 

Fast forward those 18 months, and meet the 3^rd cohort - there at that 1^st floor – a tight knit group of people from all walks of life, joking, discussing – no formal attire in sight (some even in shorts) and all proud, happy and very relaxed. Being accustomed to the uniqueness, quality and luxury of Dubai, Cass has not let anyone down. It has been a unique, personalized and very intense experience with grueling but inspiring lectures (forgetting QM, anyone?), performance of arts (economics coursework presentations, flooring everyone with laughter), competitions (remember who won Markstrat?) and enough laughter and fun to fill a much longer article than this one.

What 3^rd cohort might not realize is that they are unique! Well, most cohorts are unique, but this is not any run of the mill cohort – close to 40% of the students are budding entrepreneurs with fascinating, exciting and potentially high impacting business ideas for this region! It might be a reflection of the Middle East – entrepreneurship has always been a natural, and mostly necessary, means to support families and the close community - it might be Cass’ emerging markets focus, the strategy teachings and the entrepreneurship and innovation focus, all supplying a framework for the students; or simply that this cohort has the right entrepreneurial DNA to build unique businesses! 

No doubt, that even if a few high profile entrepreneurial success stories have come out of this region, many more are needed to showcase that this region is full of well educated, incredibly focused, extremely creative and highly inspiring leaders. I bet you that you will meet some of the Cass Dubai, 3^rd cohort in future breaking news stories of entrepreneurial success, and I will be forever proud to have been sitting next to them at Cass Business School!  

Bettina Frimann Larsen