Speaking Of | Upper Canada College

This engaging series explores thought-provoking topics led by experts and moderated by community members of the College.

MBA: Is it Worth the Pursuit?
with Fabio Savoldelli ’80, Will Deng ’00 and Omar Kanji ’09 with moderator Anant Nambiar ’87

Fabio Savoldelli ’80, president of the New York Branch Committee, and Principal Sam McKinney invite you to a special event where our community can participate live or virtually in our Speaking Of series.

Our four panellists will delve into an exploration of the MBA journey. Since the late 1800s, the MBA program has endured as a hallmark of leadership and success in the business world — with the promise of mastering skills like influence and empathy, and building business strategies like no other. Is it a worthwhile pursuit? Does having an MBA help make a career pivot easy? Will it accelerate the pace of one’s professional development and expand and diversify a professional network? Join us to gain insights from our panellists, who will be sharing and discussing the advantages and obstacles encountered throughout their experiences.

Thursday, April 11, 2024
The Beekman Hotel
123 Nassau St., New York, N.Y.

Speaking Of | MBA: Is it Worth the Pursuit?

6:30 p.m. EST
Panel discussion and Q-and-A
(Virtual attendees will receive a Zoom link with registration confirmation)

7:30 p.m.
In-person branch reception

List of 4 items.

Moderator: Anant Nambiar ’87

Anant is a graduate of Waterloo Systems Design Engineering and the Laurier MBA program. He moved to New York in 1996 with American Express and spent more than 25 years in the payments and financial services industry. He holds 12 U.S. patents, retired in 2021 and currently advises CEOs of fintechs around the globe. He was recently elected to the Town of Mamaroneck Council. He lives in Larchmont, N.Y. with his wife, Hema and has three adult children who all have graduated college and are contemplating MBA degrees themselves.
Fabio Savoldelli ’80

Fabio is an adjunct professor of finance at Columbia University where he has been teaching a hedge fund course in the MBA and EMBA program for more than 15 years. Previously, he was chief investment officer for Optima Fund Management. An industry veteran, Fabio was managing director and chief investment officer at Merrill Lynch Investment Managers Alternative Strategies, CIO for the Americas at the Chase Manhattan Private Bank and deputy CIO and head of fixed income and foreign exchange at Swiss Bank Corp. Fabio received a DBS from the London School of Economics and a BA in economics from the University of Windsor.
Will Deng ’00

Will is currently the head of corporate strategy at the National Football League where he is responsible for driving the league’s long-range plan as well as key growth initiatives. Prior to taking on this role in 2023, he spent eight years in the NFL’s Media Strategy & Business Development group, leading various media partnerships. Will has a background in finance and strategy, having also worked at Goldman Sachs, Interbrand, and the Clinton Foundation. He holds a BS in economics from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Omar Kanji ’09

Omar is an investor at Dragonfly. Previously, he was an investor at Brookfield and AKFED, and an investment banker at National Bank of Canada. He holds a B.Sc. from Cornell University, an MBA from Harvard Business School and is a CFA Charterholder.