Rashi Mehta

I was looking for ways to gain new tools and new knowledge to keep a competitive edge in a dynamic landscape. That’s when I came across Berkeley Executive Education and the Certificate of Business Excellence program. The first course I took was the New Manager Boot Camp because I wanted to see what Berkeley had to offer. The course appealed to me because there were several managers within my organization who were up for promotions, and I wanted to experience the classes before recommending them to others. I quickly saw how beneficial this class would be for a new manager –– I also learned some useful tips in the program as well!  I recommended the course to the new managers and they came back full of excitement and eager to test their new-found knowledge. I believe this course helped them move effectively into that next phase of their careers. It’s rewarding to help others succeed, and to have the tools to make it a reality. 

Even though I’ve been in finance my entire career, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I learned in the Financial Data Analysis for Leaders program. Having studied finance in India, I was especially intrigued to learn about financial processes in the U.S., so that I could apply best practices in my current role. The most significant take-away from the class was learning how to present financial information to non-finance people. The short formulas I learned enable me to take complex financial concepts and communicate them in a stripped-down, simple fashion for the lay person. I will continue to use this method throughout my career.

As I’ve mentioned, I lead the finance operations for Rahi Systems, and my accounting and finance team comprises 11 employees, 10 of which are women. My team has the most women of any function within the organization. It’s no secret that our industry is male-dominated. I was drawn to a course focused on women in leadership not only for my own development, but also to help the women on my team develop as professionals. The Women’s Executive Leadership program gave me tangible tools and skills that have resulted in noticeable improvements in confidence and performance for me and my team. I could see a noticeable improvement in a recent presentation I gave, and the best part was noticing how confident I appeared being on stage in front of all of those people. That was not how I felt in the past! I have nothing but praises for UC Berkeley and this amazing class.

I elected to take the Venture Capital Executive program because Rahi Systems was looking into venture funding possibilities. I had absolutely no experience or knowledge about that area of finance, and I was eager to learn more. I wanted to determine if venture capital made strategic sense for my organization. I learned a lot in the course, especially the case study of another company’s model. Taking the course has helped me in my conversations about venture capital; I am much more fluent in this specialized area of finance.

To learn more about Rashi's COBE experience, visit here.