"Everything is achievable as long as you set the right goals"

Alla Dynko represents the Class of 2013 and currently works as Business Development Manager at GlowByte Consulting

Alla Dynko

Current job: Business Development Manager at GlowByte Consulting

Prior education: Specialist degree in Linguistics and Intercultural Communication, Moscow State Open University 

Professional areas of interest: Entrepreneurship, Networking, IT industry, New Technologies

Languages proficient in: Russian, English, French, basic German and Spanish

Favorite destination: Brussels, a small European city with an excellent proximity to various touristic locations in Europe

Hobbies: Reading, drawing, fitness, snowboarding

 

Alla, after looking at your résumé, one can realize that you have had an excellent career so far with diverse responsibilities. Originally from Kamchatka, you were brought up and went to school in Yaroslavl, but then moved to Moscow in pursuit of better opportunities. In few years you have tremendously expanded your professional network and reached a management position. Could you share with us the secret of your success? Was the MIB degree part of it?

 I believe everything is achievable as long as you set the right goals, optimize your efforts and surround yourself by smart people. The companionship of smart people is one of the reasons I’m working for the IT industry at the moment. Urge to remain surrounded by smart people made me enroll in the MIB program at the Higher School of Economics. When I first came to Moscow I realized that in order to build a successful business career I had to acquire excellent networking skills. Therefore for few years I solely concentrated on building my professional network and acquiring relevant job experience. However as I started progressing in my career, I felt the urgent need to acquire an appropriate business degree. I looked for a master’s program that would be fully taught in English and alongside allow me combine work and study together. Another reason why I chose HSE MIB is due to its partnership with elite American graduate schools. Overall, HSE MIB program perfectly suited my objectives.

 

Alla, speaking about MIB program’s partnership with elite American graduate schools, you were among the students who were accepted for the 2014 exchange semester at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Please share your insights with us.

I was very thrilled to get the chance to study in the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, one of the best graduate schools in international affairs in the USA and the world. It was a unique opportunity for me to be exposed to a truly international community, meeting people from all over the world, exchanging with them ideas and making friends for life. I was very impressed by the variety of extracurricular activities offered such as guest lectures with former ambassadors and CEOs, book talks, socializing hours with a buffet, community service days. Such a diversity of academic and social events definitely taught me how to prioritize. Moreover, being a student at the Fletcher school (Tufts University) allowed me to cross-register in the Harvard Business School for an MBA course “Competing globally”. To me it was like a free MBA trial in Harvard!

 

Alla, soon you will be graduating with a master’s degree in International Business. How was this master’s experience overall?

I’m very content with the results I have achieved. The MIB degree gave me a bigger picture of the world and I got a fair understanding of how business processes are organized. Moreover, after studying in the USA I realize that graduate school requires a lot of responsibility and maturity. You invest your own time, money and efforts in order to get the desired degree. The HSE MIB program itself has a great potential as it keeps attracting industry experts and key players who either come to teach us on a regular basis or give us guest lectures. Also, most of the assignments are performed in teams and such group projects helped me tremendously in improving my team-building skills. While working for the business I realize how important it is to be able to put yourself in somebody else shoes.

 

Alla, are you a different person today after 2 years of studies at the MIB program?

Certainly! Prior to acquiring my MIB degree I used to work for the consulting industry in the Russian market. Today I switched the industry that I’m employed in and my job responsibilities have expanded to the international development of our company. That means I’m engaged on regular basis with our European and American partners, working on a global scale. In fact I’m very lucky to be able to directly apply the knowledge and skills I obtained at the HSE MIB program, as I am daily involved in the process of managing an international business. Ultimately, the confidence I gained with my MIB degree allows me to position myself appropriately among my colleagues and overall in the job market.