You need to clearly answer all SIX parts of this question, but the areas that will differentiate you from others are “major responsibilities” and “results achieved”. In articulating the results achieved, try to show the impact with the help of numbers. However, major accomplishments that are qualitative in nature, such as delegating critical jobs to juniors, mentoring them to bring them up to speed or obtaining a buy-in from clients after an intense negotiation, shouldn't be omitted. Focus on responsibilities that are much above and beyond what is typically expected of someone at your level. Don’t just give a laundry list of items of average or minor significance.
This question helps INSEAD to understand your position in the hierarchy of your organization. It also helps them to compare you with other applicants who have identical work experience in your industry/sector.
Keep in mind that INSEAD has provided 200 words for this straight forward question. So they want to understand the leadership role in your next job in detail. Just as in INSEAD job essay #1, you need to explain the nature of your work, major responsibilities that you will shoulder, number of people that might report to you and the portfolio that you would manage in terms of budget, number of clients or market territory.
This essay, along with job essay number # 1, will give INSEAD a complete picture of your current leadership profile and your career trajectory.
The admissions team is less interested in knowing about your career trajectory with all the minute details of each job role, designation and key responsibilities than they are in knowing about how you evolved as a leader over these many years. They want to understand how you have grown as a leader, developed your management skills and refined your leadership personality. Hence, articulate all the twists and turns in your path and show them clearly what influenced you to make those career choices. Ideally, all the turns on the road would fit nicely into a logical theme. Even if you had to take some detours due to some unexpected reasons such as a layoff or a transfer to a new location in a different job role, explain how you navigated your way back to the main course. Try to dig deeper and show them your true motivations. So far as it is possible, show that you chose your career proactively, not passively.
In just 100 words, you need to cover a lot of ground. Hence, be specific about your career goals. You shouldn’t explain ‘Why Insead’ or ‘Why MBA now’. Those aren’t asked, and you mustn’t waste even a single word on those subjects. Instead, focus on your immediate post-INSEAD goal and the long term goal of your career. Thereafter, explain what inspires you to accomplish those goals. In 100 words, it would be quite a tall order.
If you have been let go from your organization recently or you resigned for any reason (such as you have started your entrepreneurial venture), you need to attempt this essay.
In case, you have been let go, stop being defensive about your situation. You aren't alone as thousands of employees lose their jobs every year. The million dollar question is - how are you going to rebuild your life? What are you doing to sharpen your leadership skills? Have you started a side hustle? Are you planning to plunge into entrepreneurship? Are you taking some online courses from Harvard or Stanford? Do you want to learn a new language as post MBA you plan to migrate to a different country (it will also help in your INSEAD MBA application)? There are several things that you can do that will broaden your leadership horizon. In this essay, you need to narrate all such activities and explain INSEAD the values those activities are adding to your leadership competency.
Applicants need to project themselves as able leaders with significant personal strengths. As a candidate, your main challenge lies in how you are going to differentiate yourself from others. What makes you unique in your “applicant pool”?
If you have a stellar profile (such as 740+ GMAT, Consulting experience), INSEAD will be highly interested to hear your story. Known as the king of consulting among the B-schools, INSEAD creates more than a 1,000 MBAs every 10 months, of whom nearly half are regular consultants. But if you are an average Joe, you have quite a big task in your hands.
Usually applicants select three strengths and two weaknesses. Meticulously evaluate your profile and decide which two or three strengths would be best for you to talk about in order to differentiate yourself from the other applicants in your pool. What sets you apart from other candidates having similar profile? Think carefully, decide and write.
The bigger hurdle is writing about your weakness. There is a general tendency to play it safe, so that one’s chances of admission don’t get jeopardized. In playing it too safe, applicants may end up writing boring essays. Basically, what INSEAD is looking for is self-awareness, and therefore a certain degree of candor would be perfectly in place. After all, as human beings we all have our shortcomings, and it is through overcoming these shortcomings that we develop our character and will power. Accordingly, when we discuss our weaknesses, it is required to mention the various measures that we have taken to turn them into strengths. That would add some real punch to your essay.
The easiest component is writing about the main factors that have shaped your personal development. Just reflect on your life and think about how you have developed as a leader. Explain the factors (hopefully they are few as the word limit is 500) with short examples.
Read some of the sample essays that I have helped my clients create for their successful B-school applications. All of them have been written and rewritten multiple times to project their differentiation. Read both the finalized essays and the basic write-ups given by the clients in order to understand the huge difference between the two. A meticulous review will help you to realize how much discussions and modifications were done to create the final pieces. Please don’t copy the ideas. I don’t mind if you do. But the chances are, they won’t suit your profile and it will jeopardize whatever odds you now have for INSEAD.
I just wish that INSEAD had given 500 words for this essay. With 400 words, you have a lot of ground to cover here.
Writing about an achievement of which you are most proud isn’t difficult. What is, however, super difficult is to come up with a story that is way different from those of other applicants in your pool. For instance, almost all the IT applicants write stories on the improvement of application software’s efficiency or the reduction of defects in software via a six sigma project. These stories are so similar that it is impossible to differentiate applicants. Rarely have I seen a story on people management from an IT applicant. A similar problem exists in all other applicant pools such as the UK finance pool or the Chinese manufacturing pool.
Talking about your failure is another soft spot. Your approach should be to select a story that will differentiate you from other applicants. Imagine the types of failure stories your peers will most possibly write and thereafter choose a story which will be different from theirs. This requires good imagination and is actually quite tough to do.
What you have learnt from these experiences (both success and failure) or impact on your relationship with others aren't difficult. It’s actually the easiest component in this essay. But figuring out the stories that will differentiate you from others – that’s difficult.
This essay throws a curveball to many applicants who are fundamentally Bill Gates type nerds or people who are obsessed with career success. If you are the sort who has been skipping meals, burning the midnight oil, and working weekends in office in order to ensure your promotion, this essay might present you a real challenge. What INSEAD really wants to know is how much leadership you have demonstrated in extra-curricular activities. They would also like you to provide solid evidence of your leadership in any non-profit organization or in activities such as sports, music, etc. (you can upload documents to the online application form).
INSEAD is tired of applicants who make up stories about their involvement in non profits engaged in removing poverty from Africa or illiteracy from India. In fact, they have started scrutinizing applicants’ profiles, CV, recommendations, social media profiles, LinkedIn, etc. to verify the claims of the self-styled “do-gooders”. In case you are a super successful professional or a 750 GMAT, math-science type wizard working in a Fortune 500 company or an outsourcing company in India / China / South East Asia (where you have to log 60 hours every week), refrain from writing imaginary stories.
However if, in actual fact, you do have noteworthy accomplishments to your credit, narrate it enthusiastically to INSEAD. They would love to hear your story.
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Common skills or strengths usually written by applicants belonging to these three largest pools are:
A. Indian IT + Chinese manufacturing professionals: Analytical, Hard work, Perseverance, Determination, Communication
B. European professionals in Finance and Consulting: Analytical, Communication, Building relationship with clients.
As these are the strengths written by hundreds of applicants in these three big application pools, it is easier for you to figure out what you need to write in order to differentiate yourself from the crowd. Pick different aspects of leadership given in the above list and explain it with suitable examples. For instance, if you are an Indian IT applicant, you don't need to talk about analytical skills as it is abundantly clear from your CV that you are an engineer and you work in an elite technology company; hence, you definitely possess excellent analytical skills. Without significant analytical skills, you can't crack the Joint Entrance Examination in India (or GAOKAO in China) and become an engineer in the first place. Moreover, global IT companies hire engineers by screening their analytical skills. As an engineer or analyst, you need to analyze complex IT software programs or multidimensional business issues. Hence, analytical skills are so obvious that you don’t need to highlight them much.
Instead, think meticulously on various other aspects of your leadership and write about those qualities in the Insead MBA Motivational essay # 1 and # 2.
When we say ‘leadership’, exactly what do we mean? Leadership is an umbrella term. The various aspects of leadership are:
This is not an exhaustive list as there are many other minute aspects of leadership as well. Just contemplate on the below questions:
These kinds of intrusive questions help you to explore your mind and identify your leadership skill-sets. If the answer of any of the above question is ‘YES’, then you need to talk about that strength in the INSEAD Motivational essay # 1 and # 2 with suitable examples. Not too many Indian IT applicants talk about marketing or sales skills; hence, it would be highly beneficial if you possess such skills.
Similarly, for European applicants working in the finance and consulting industry, analytical skills and building excellent relationships with clients are written by hundreds of applicants every year. In order to differentiate yourself from the crowd, you might pick some different aspects of leadership. You can talk about your ability to persuade senior managers and obtain buy-ins from clients. You might also talk about your creativity and write a suitable example of you providing an out-of-box solution to your global clients. So, put your thinking hat on and talk about various aspects of your leadership skills that are not usually spoken about by other applicants from your region and industry.
The GMAT score is an indication of your intellectual horsepower. It shows the INSEAD admission committee whether you have the necessary intellect to handle the intense course work in one of the best business schools in the world. However, not all is lost if your GMAT score is low despite multiple attempts. When you apply to any business school, you are basically applying to a senior leadership program. You are showcasing yourself as a young leader in the corporate world who has numerous leadership skills. You should project yourself as a young and ambitious leader who has numerous accomplishments. Those leadership episodes of your professional life written in various admissions essays must showcase your intellectual horsepower and analytical skills.
Your recommender should also have a very high opinion about your intellectual abilities. They should cherry-pick some of the best examples of your intellectual brilliance and write elaborately in their letter of recommendation.
Finally, a low GMAT score must be paired with a high GPA from your undergraduate studies. Both these scores in combination indicate your academic potential. As long as your GPA projects your academic brilliance, you don't need to spend sleepless nights over a low GMAT score. Moreover, you must not spend all your efforts on retaking the GMAT multiple times with the hope of making it 720+. If you have scored 680 after 2 or 3 attempts, then don't burn your calories anymore on GMAT.
Usually, applicants with only one to three years of professional experience don't have much exposure to leadership roles in their organization. It is understandable that they have just joined the corporate world in entry-level positions and they are not managing any team or don't have any direct reporting as of now. In such situations, how do applicants convince INSEAD about their leadership skills?
Leadership is an umbrella term. It has numerous aspects as shown in the above list. You are not in a position to set goals for your team or lead a team. That's fine. But, have you done any of the following:
Generally, MBA applicants confuse the meaning of the word ‘extracurricular’. The majority of the applicants believe that they need to have a high level of accomplishment in sports or music or they must have organized cultural programs or captained a sports team in their college or in their community. This is a myth. However, the biggest myth is - applicants must have worked in some non-profit to eradicate illiteracy or poverty from Asia or Africa or cleaned the sea beaches or have volunteered for the UN, Bill Gates Foundation or UNESCO etc.
If you are passionate about engaging in such activities, it's great. However, a significant majority of applicants, especially Indian IT applicants, are so tied up with their career that they don't find time for such activities. They need to study literally 12 hours a day to pass the Joint Entrance Examination in order to enroll in a prestigious engineering college. Thereafter, a significant majority obtained a job in elite IT companies in which they need to work almost 10 to 12 hours a day. On top of this hectic work schedule, they prepare for CAT examinations for admission to various IIMs in India or prepare for GMAT for US MBA programs. Consequently, there is little room left for organizing music festivals or engaging in sports activities or volunteering for nonprofits.
Numerous MBA applicants join a nonprofit organization just a few months before the round one deadline. They become very desperate to boost their extracurricular activities as they realize that business schools select candidates who have demonstrated leadership holistically, both inside and outside their office. This is a terribly wrong strategy for the applicants to adopt!
Extra-curricular are activities that you are passionate about outside your regular academic and professional jobs. During my B-School admission, I faced the same scenario as I was also an Indian IT Male applicant. However, studying human psychology has been my passion since childhood. It immensely helps me to understand my clients, colleagues, friends and family members. During my interview, I spoke elaborately about my passion to study human psychology and described the books I read on psychology. I was able to crack Darden.
So, whatever you are truly passionate about, you need to showcase how that activity enriches your life and sharpens your leadership skills. You need to connect the dot intelligently and narrate what you have learned from that activity, which ultimately makes you a better leader. You don't need to make up some nonprofit stories just to get admission to business schools.
Some of the extra-curricular activities that can be wonderfully connected to your leadership skills are:
INSEAD is the ‘Mecca’ for consulting. A significant number of students in any incoming class are already working as consultants in various firms. Nearly 50% of the graduates become management consultants in top notch firms. In 2021, Mckinsey hired 125 INSEAD graduates. BCG and Bain hired 67 and 48 Insead graduates respectively. So, if you aspire to be a consultant, Insead is your natural choice. However, the competition to get a coveted seat at Insead is intense. You need to differentiate yourself from the crowd and have excellent academic records along with a high GMAT score in order to crack the jackpot.
No general advice can be given on how you can differentiate yourself. It all depends on your profile. Contact me for personalized guidance.
Lack of experience outside your motherland is a serious stumbling block in your path to conquer the Insead admission battle. But this challenge can be managed if you can showcase that you have a keen interest in interacting with foreigners in professional or in your personal life.
In Motivational essay # 1, you can narrate your experiences of successfully working with teams that are based out of your home country. In particular, emphasize the fact that you have successfully built relationships with people of different nationalities. In such a scenario, you can say relationship building as one of your core skills and narrate your story.
In Motivational essay # 2, select a story that projects you as a person who is curious in nature. You have an immense intellectual curiosity to know things. This will show INSEAD that you don’t aspire to be a small frog in the pond; rather, you aspire to swim in the ocean. You have a global mindset; hence, you are applying to INSEAD.
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