London Business School Alumnus is a BP Future Leader

Although the academic experience and the wide array of courses and electives were excellent, my lasting memories are from outside the classroom.

The Global Business Experience took me to Johannesburg where groups of students worked with small businesses in the Alexandra Township to help them transform and grow. The ‘Managing the Entrepreneurial Business’ elective took me to Athens where I worked with a local start-up in the healthcare industry. The annual MBA Sports Tournament (MBAT) took us to Paris where LBS took home the champions trophy after a resounding win in dodgeball. We also heard from speakers such as explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes and rugby legend Sean Fitzpatrick.

All these memories combined to create a rich and diverse MBA experience that I think is unique to LBS.

The recruiting team from BP’s Future Leaders Program (FLP) presented at LBS during the annual recruiting season. FLP was still new but the team presented a unique career opportunity, offering international assignments and the ability to quickly progress in the company across a variety of different roles.

I joined BP via FLP in 2013 as part of the second annual intake into the program. I’ve been very fortunate during my time at BP in that I’ve been able to work across different business units in a number of roles.

My first role was based in Melbourne in BP’s fuels business where I spent two years leading various engineering and construction projects on BP’s midstream assets. I learnt a lot about leading large, complex projects within BP and the importance of managing risk and keeping a clear focus on safety.

My second role was in Amsterdam where I spent six months supporting the divestment of a large asset, while also leading commercial and engineering projects to ensure the sale went through in a quick and compliant manner.

My final role on the program was in the UK, where I spent two years working in BP’s lubricants business leading commercial transformation projects across Europe and Africa.

The FLP is a very strong and high-performing community within BP. Over the past five years at BP I’ve lived in three different countries and worked in four different parts of the business. It’s really amazing to reflect on the opportunities I’ve had as part of the program.

The role of our team is to identify material opportunities in electrification and new mobility services. As disruption in these areas sweeps the market, my role is to lead projects that support BP’s strategy and future growth in these areas.

Within the mobility services area we’re looking at how emerging trends in areas such as on-demand mobility, last mile logistics and fleet management could provide new opportunities for our business.

We’re also looking at partnerships with other corporates, strategic venturing with start-ups and experimenting with new business models. The experimentation element is very exciting as we’re looking to run pilots and proof concepts with start-ups as we build knowledge and a deeper understanding of these new markets.

It’s crucial to understand what kind of company you want to join and how the values of that company sit with your own. Large multinationals like BP are very different from small start-ups, prospective new joiners need to be ready for some of the rigor and heavy processes that can come with it. However, the global nature of these businesses can present fantastic career development opportunities with the ability to quickly progress and grow.

I would suggest you take advantage of the interview process. When you go into an interview you are also interviewing the company, so it’s a good opportunity to get an idea of how the company functions and if it’s a good fit for you.