Professional Master: How to contribute to strategy design and implementation
Two students of the Professional Master's in Administration at the São Paulo School of Business Administration (FGV EAESP), Paulo Rezende and Guilherme Rossi, share how their academic research within the program directly impacted their careers and brought practical improvements to companies. These accounts show how the professional master's degree goes beyond theory, applying scientific knowledge to business reality.
Paulo Rezende: Transforming Strategies and Communicating Results
With over 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, Paulo Rezende has built a successful career, holding senior leadership positions, including the presidency of operations in Mexico and Latin America. His career has always been marked by the observation of a recurring problem: the difficulty in correctly communicating sales strategies to teams.
“I realized that in all the companies I worked for, there were flaws in communicating the strategy and transmitting clear messages to the sales teams,” says Paulo. “I started creating processes to ensure that the message was conveyed correctly and understood, which directly impacted the results.”
The FGV master’s degree allowed Paulo to transform his experience into in-depth research. His work analyzed communication bottlenecks between marketing and sales teams, revealing internal conflicts and contradictions in the messages conveyed. “Measuring the sales teams’ knowledge of the products, combined with specific interventions, showed the need to create a formal process to ensure message consistency,” he explains.
Paulo also highlights the importance of combining theory and practice. "In the master's degree, we balance these two elements, which enriches learning and brings real results to the market," he says. His dissertation was presented at an international conference and is being prepared for publication in scientific journals.
Guilherme Rossi: Research that builds career and value for the company
Guilherme Rossi, an electrical engineer and strategic account manager, also found in FGV’s Professional Master’s the opportunity to align his professional trajectory with academic development. “I got to the master’s degree at a time when my career was changing from strategy execution to strategy development,” he says.
The action research that Guilherme developed during his master's degree was fundamental to his work at the company. “I was involved in the research, not only as a researcher, but as an agent of change. That made all the difference,” he says. The impact was so great that, during his master's degree, he received two promotions, largely due to the improvements implemented at the company based on the results of his dissertation.
“I chose a topic that would really have an impact on my organization, and I was noticed for it. The dissertation brought academic contributions, but it also generated practical changes that were perceived as positive by everyone involved,” says Guilherme. He also emphasizes the value of academic theory: “Now I know where to look for reliable information that is applicable to my reality. The concept of a manager-scientist works 100%.”
International experiences and expanding horizons
Both Paulo and Guilherme had the opportunity to participate in weeks of immersion at world-renowned institutions such as Yale and Berkeley in the United States, and EGADE in Mexico, part of the international consortium Global Network for Advanced Management (GNAM), of which FGV is a member. The international experiences brought a new perspective to the students. "The diversity of thoughts and approaches to problems, whether in the academic or business environment, was extremely enriching," says Paulo.
Guilherme, initially resistant to the idea of more experiences in the US because he had already worked in that environment, ended up surrendering to the quality of the programs. "I couldn't resist the opportunity to study at Yale and Berkeley, and it was one of the best experiences I've ever had," he recalls enthusiastically.
Practical impact on the market
Paulo and Guilherme’s accounts reinforce the essence of the Professional Master’s in Administration at FGV EAESP: a training that combines theory and practice, directly impacting companies and students’ careers. For those who wish to advance in their professional careers, the master’s degree offers not only academic knowledge, but the opportunity to apply this knowledge in a tangible and transformative way.
To learn more about the Professional Master's in Administration , click here .
To access Paulo Rezende’s dissertation, “ Impact of training and communication on the execution of the strategy by the sales team: case study in a pharmaceutical company ”, click here .
To access Guilherme Rossi’s dissertation, “Improving a customer engagement program: action research in strategy implementation” , click here .
