‘To get ahead in this field, communication skills are crucial’

An alumnus of Apeejay School, Saket, Jitin Kohli, is a Strategy Insights and Planning Manager at ZS. Based in Delhi, he is a dynamic professional who believes that work once taken up, must be delivered in time. He is a man of his words and that’s an ethic he advocates to others. What more? He has thrived across the globe such as in countries like Germany, Switzerland, China, Thailand, Australia, Pakistan, Vietnam, and more. His educational background? Nothing short of spectacular! Know more about him, in the interview below. Edited excerpts:

Please walk us through your educational journey.

After my schooling in Apeejay Saket, I pursued a degree in Bachelor of Technology (B Tech) in Computer Engineering from Vellore Institute of Technology. Soon after, I started working at Deloitte India. During my 4-year stint, I focused on Digital Transformation.

After this, I completed a Management degree from Indian School of Business at Hyderabad. This was a double major in Strategy & Leadership and Marketing. Besides, I studied at St Gallen in Switzerland too, where I continued my major in Marketing along with a few more add-on courses based on Digital Transformation, Technology and Operations.

Why did you pick a career in Business Administration?

It was pretty clear to me since my school days. The same became evident when I was given a chance to play a role in the Prefectorial Board and the Organising Committee of the school. Taking decisions, managing people and knowing more about technology was my natural inclination. Moreover, my teachers recognised it much earlier than I did, so they gave me a platform to enhance my skills early on.

The pairing of an Engineering degree with an MBA is extremely popular. Does it make the new-age workforce?

Understanding the entire technical spectrum and then having the understanding to make crucial management decisions is quite logical. Like many others, after my engineering degree, I often pondered upon questions like why are we making this product? What’s the end goal? How will the client be benefitted? Then, I decided to opt for Business Administration. It helped me know the entire story. So, with this combination, I feel that an individual has the opportunity to understand both sides. Surely, it is an additional learning curve.

Any upcoming trends in your sector in 2023?

Consulting is a mega-domain. But my sense is that there is a lot of focus on working with manufacturing, supply chain, health care, payments and finance. These will provide a boost to us. Moreover, fin-tech is becoming really big, so consulting for it will be lucrative.   

You have worked across the globe. So, which country is the most successful in consultancy and why?

The United States has been a very strong market. A majority of the firms are based there. However, the developing world is not far behind. In my experience, the Asia-Pacific region is making strides and is up for changes. Since they are open to learning, they are set to take more than the established approaches.  

Tell us more about your Apeejay days.

My people-skills and confidence developed in the school. I am grateful that my teachers found me suitable for events such as debating, assemblies, skits etc. and I won many awards in these activities too. Apeejay Saket is a school where everyone knows everyone. And, even those teachers who never taught me, pushed me to try new things. Today, I am one of the youngest in my team but I don’t feel intimidated by my seniors at all. I simply credit it to my school!