Flying high at Amazon

Manisha Maligaspe shares how her commerce degree not only kickstarted her corporate life, but also laid the foundations for a stellar career in HR recruitment.

Manisha Maligaspe is the country lead for Amazon’s student recruitment programs in ANZ. In her role, she is responsible for implementing the campus strategy and developing and leading student recruitment programs across the region.

She joined Amazon in September 2021, nearly 15 years after graduating from Monash Business School and starting her career in professional services.

Looking back, Ms Maligaspe says her business degree from Monash had strongly shaped and influenced the first decade of her career.

"I knew (upon graduation) then that I wanted a career in business that would utilise my skills, however, at the time I wasn’t exactly sure what shape that might take," Ms Maligaspe says.

"The Bachelor of Business degree offered a great general-base qualification which I could use as a springboard to launch my corporate career, even though I hadn’t figured out what exactly that would look like!  I knew I had decent communication skills and wanted a people-based role in an area like HR and as such, I chose broad subjects and majored in economics and management."

A 'prestigious school' on her CV

Throughout her years of career-building, Ms Maligaspe said her Monash Business School was one of the first things recruiters took notice of on her CV.

"Without a doubt, it sets me apart and has opened multiple doors when it comes to career prospects - Monash is seen as a prestigious school on many different levels," she says.

"It’s renowned (for its) supportive staff who are recognised as SMEs in their field. Monash Business School always continue to win a plethora of awards, has an impeccable reputation and has an esteemed profile within the corporate world. It definitely gives my CV status and helps put me towards the front of the queue."

"Many people don’t fully realise what an impact great networking can have on your career and being part of the Monash Business School community can really help here."

She describes how she sharpened her focus on specialised HR roles in her early career years.

"During the last year of my degree I knew I wanted to be a specialist in a HR role, specifically within recruitment," she says, adding: "After uni, I worked in various recruitment roles, focusing on both lateral and graduate recruitment."

Benefits of working for a market-leading brand

"I worked at EY for seven and a half years as the recruitment leader for the Transaction Advisory Services (Corporate Finance) practice. It was a fantastic role which provided me with great opportunities and challenges."

"The training and mentoring opportunities you receive at EY is world class and the firm attracts extremely intelligent professionals from all over the world so you are constantly working alongside the best in the game."

"As part of my role, I was always thinking of new ways to attract diverse professionals to EY and work on many initiatives aimed towards helping our teams achieve this. My key areas of interest were attracting and engaging the best graduate talent and targeting and retaining the best female executives in corporate finance."

Importance of alumni community

Her ongoing involvement with the Monash Business School's alumni community has been central to laying her career foundation, Ms Maligaspe says.

"Over the years, I have attended many networking events which have been invaluable to me – for my own career progression but also the benefits that come about with being connected to your alma matter and the opportunities you have to give back and contribute," she says.

"The alumni community brings together so many people from various corners of the corporate world, many people don’t fully realise what an impact these networks can have on your career, and being part of the Monash Business School community has really opened these doors for me."

"Working in recruitment I have a bird’s eye view of changing employment trends and what organisations are looking for."

"While having a business degree is mandatory and an entry-level requirement for most corporate roles, there are various other skills employers are now looking for – not just a degree, but if you’re talented and have a great attitude, then you automatically already stand out!"

"Being part of the broader university community while studying can definitely help with this. Whether it’s networking, getting involved in clubs and societies on campus or volunteering as a mentor and giving back to society – you’re gaining skills such empathy, resilience, problem solving and the ability to adapt and work with others."

"These are all skillsets employers value highly and as such, the advice from me to prospective graduates is to ‘get involved’ right from the start!"

"When I think back to my time at Monash, I have many great memories. I formed some very close friendships. and the opportunities that came about from being a Monash student have been second to none."