In this edition of Real Humans: MBA Students, we are at IMD, headquartered near Lake Geneva in Switzerland. A handful of new members of the MBA Class of 2025 share their stories and insights.
To start, a pharmacist by training, Rand Al Dabbagh spent nine years at Eli Lilly and came to IMD to step back from execution, deepen her holistic understanding of business, and evolve her leadership. Having lived in seven countries and led across the pharmaceutical value chain, she brings real-world healthcare experience, adaptability, and a strong interest in IMD’s leadership development and self-awareness journey. Next, an electrical engineer from São Paulo, Alexandre Vieira worked as a senior sales engineer in the satellite tech industry and chose IMD after a two-year application journey, attracted by its small cohort, intense one-year format, and leadership focus. He contributes over a decade of cross-industry exposure and a specialized perspective on connectivity and manufacturing, while aiming post-MBA to drive innovation in the industrial sector. We also hear from Fang Yuan, who brings 10 years of quality management experience across major manufacturing and chemical companies in China. He is using the IMD MBA to broaden his impact in operations and product management. Known in class for his humor and deep reflections on culture and leadership, Yuan adds on-the-ground manufacturing insight and a thoughtful, self-aware presence to IMD’s highly diverse cohort. Then, a reinsurance actuarial consultant from Johannesburg with experience at leading insurers and reinsurers, Kabelo Mathipa came to IMD seeking interpersonal growth and a truly international environment. Drawn by the program’s emphasis on personal development and AI, she’s active in DE&I and professional clubs and is now exploring a move into more strategic, possibly consulting-oriented, corporate roles. Finally, with a mathematical sciences background and three years as a tech consultant at Accenture UK, Lauren Samuelson chose IMD’s one-year, leadership-focused program in Europe to accelerate her career and gain a more applied business education. Valued by her classmates for her structured thinking and legendary baking, she’s passionate about leveraging her growth at IMD to drive positive impact in business and society.
Click through the following pages for more about their admissions journeys and related advice.
