Innovation and Growth at BBS: An Interview with Oliver McCallan, Alumnus of the Master in Finance and Fintech
23 July 2024Oliver McCallan, now Strategic FP&A at Binance, shares his journey through the Professional Master in Finance and Fintech at BBS in an in-depth interview. He explores the motivations behind choosing this program in the vibrant city of Bologna, the skills he acquired, and his advice for future students. This is a thoughtful reflection on growth and the value of creative thinking to make a difference in a job market increasingly focused on innovation.
What motivated you to choose the Master in Finance and Fintech at Bologna Business School, and why was this program particularly appealing?
Having worked for two years in financial consulting, I had a solid grasp of traditional concepts, but I felt like I was missing out on all the innovations I was reading about daily. I wanted to enhance the technical side of my professional repertoire and increase my career opportunities. Many of the courses offered by the program immediately caught my eye in terms of skills, but some in particular – like Blockchain Finance, Digital Economics, and Machine Learning – gave me a sense of how up-to-date and modern the School’s approach was. It promised to live up to its reputation as an innovative and relevant business school. The same goes for the faculty: it quickly became clear to me that the mix of eminent professors and lecturers who had founded companies or were part of the boards of leading companies in Italy and abroad could offer a high level of expertise. Finally, Bologna: a great cultural and gastronomic tradition, fascinating history and architecture, a central role in the Italian entrepreneurial and commercial scene, and a truly privileged geographical position.
How did the Master in Finance and Fintech at BBS prepare you for your current role at Binance, and what aspect of the program helped you the most in your job?
The Master allowed me to incorporate greater creativity into my approach to work and improved my ability to absorb a lot of knowledge in a short time. This latter aspect is crucial because things move incredibly fast in the world of blockchain and fintech. Creative thinking also helps me a lot in my current role because high-performance fintech companies expect you to provide more than just the correct answer: you need to be able to dig deeper, go beyond. Additionally, when you are performing a task, you should already be thinking about how to do it better next time: if you can’t imagine it, then you are not working in the right way. The program encourages this through project work with real case studies, where you work in teams but develop your own personal approach.
Regarding collaborative projects and interactions with colleagues: how important were they and how did they influence your professional growth?
I had classmates with backgrounds ranging from finance to computer science to various business disciplines like marketing and management. This turned out to be an advantage for me because it helped me learn to approach different tasks with a completely different perspective than I had before. When you study in such a diverse environment, you really learn to communicate effectively. You can’t overcomplicate your words or explanations, and you need to be able to listen to what your teammates are saying. I have always wanted to work with international teams, and having this skill is a real prerequisite for becoming a useful team member working with people from all over the world.
What advice would you give to a student considering the Master in Finance and Fintech at Bologna Business School?
It’s a cliché, but you really get out what you put in. If you come here with an open and proactive attitude, then the number of paths, skills, and experiences you can benefit from is truly numerous. You have the usual learning process in the classroom, but if you collaborate and reach out to fellow students and your professors, that learning experience is multiplied tenfold. I’d also say don’t be discouraged if you don’t have a lot of experience in either finance or technology. Firstly, there are introductory courses that provide a good level of foundational knowledge, and secondly, you largely have the ability to make your answers and approaches to assignments as complex or straightforward as you think they need to be. Additionally, there are classmates who do have experience in these areas, so you can learn a lot just by talking to them. Future students should also take advantage of all the resources available in the program – the high quality of the professors’ knowledge, the School’s strong industry connections, the proactive Career Service, the company visits, and the talks with industry leaders.
It’s easy to focus solely on scoring high on exams, but I see this almost as a waste because BBS is about much more than just academic success. It took me some time to realize, but if the value of the skills you gain here through classes is high, the value of the knowledge you can obtain through the people you meet during the program is probably even higher.
