Thanks to generous support from the Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU), five MBA students attended an exchange program in Tel Aviv, Israel in June 2023. This was the first time Macquarie MBA students attended Doing Business in Israel (DBI) at Coller School of Management at Tel Aviv University. The exchange program introduces international MBA teams into Israel’s high-tech and entrepreneurship sectors. The five students were Anoush Bohosian, Brad Miller, Charmaine Manalang, Josh Greenwood and Ricardo de la Fuente. Here, Anoush shares highlights from the 9-day program.
Anoush Bohosian in Israel
The program truly immersed us into the Israeli mindset starting with lectures about the history, the Israeli-Arab conflict and where it stands today. We got to explore the ANU Jewish Museum, Old Jaffa, Shimon Peres Center for Peace and Innovation and also undertook an Israeli cooking class. We had a few business visits starting with Check Point Software Technologies Ltd where we learnt about cybersecurity trends around the globe that impacted businesses. We visited a Kibbutz and learnt about cutting-edge irrigation technology by Netafim. We also visited a social purpose-led business called Call Yachol - יכול כל where the founder Gil Winch has worked tirelessly creating a safe and truly inclusive business for people with disabilities.
We had daily lectures that dissected what it was like to be a Start-Up in Israel, from being an Israeli entrepreneur to big data analytics. We also had a lecture from an Air Force General Nir Barkan regarding the processes around continuous improvement in the Israeli Military. We had lectures by Israeli entrepreneurs about efficiency through AI and how to embrace failure and rise back up. We had two thought-provoking, immersive workshops, one on creativity and the other on negotiations.
We ended our program with a day trip to Old Jerusalem, where we saw the Western Wall, and went inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
A big thank you to the DBI team at Tel Aviv University - Coller School of Management who graciously welcomed and guided us on this journey. Thank you to Australian Friends of Tel Aviv University for sponsoring me and giving me this opportunity. Lastly, thank you to the rest of the student cohort for making this program an MBA highlight! I end this post with one word we learnt, Sababa! It means "it’s cool and/or great", and that indeed is the best way to describe this program!