Country Manager - PNG
Air Energi Pacifica Limited
Master of Business Administration, Deakin University, Australia
When I was with the Intercontinental Hotel Group at Crowne Plaza Hotel, I decided that I needed to boost my career opportunities to leverage better returns for my family and myself. I had a basic overseas education, a diploma in management and many years of good solid experience in management roles and this I found out was still not enough to break the PNG employment “Salary Cap”. I was busy working for money just to make ends meet and many times wasting it on unnecessary lifestyle commodities and life was getting stagnant.
When I noticed the advertisement by IBS to facilitate a Deakin University MBA programme, I knew this was my chance to better my livelihood and that for my family. With my partner’s encouragement and sacrifices to our way of living I was accepted on nomination. Hence commenced my journey towards a better life, knowledge credibility and achieving self fulfilment to bridge the PNG “Salary Cap”.
The knowledge I acquired during my time at IBS under the supervision of Senior Lecturers who offered help and direction towards me attaining an MBA from Deakin University has helped steer me towards a rewarding career path. I was never one to sit back and wait for things to happen and armed with my MBA, despite being in my mid career, I moved forward to seek greater challenges and opportunities. With this greater achievement I have established friendship bonds and business networks that exist to this day.
Apart from that it has given me the opportunity to put myself out on the competitive market for job opportunities both within the country and overseas. I would say that this is partly because of the level of competence of the lecturers was high and that they showed a great deal of commitment to assisting their students to attain the best results. I especially valued Dr Tilak Fonseka who was well learned and his encouragement to me and my current fulfilment is a testament to his teachings. A good thing about their teaching methods was the encouragement of open discussions on various topics or cases being studied. This encouraged mature students to also share their work experiences and made the learning process more of a workshop where everyone participated.
I believe that this kind of learning allows you as an individual to be able to listen and communicate well with your fellow staff in the work place and this also prepares you well as you move further up hierarchy within the office to be able to listen to your staff and value their opinions as much as your own.
The clean and well looked after environment at the Institute of Business Studies, enables the learning process for students to be comfortable, the air conditioned rooms enables the students to concentrate well considering the high temperate climate of Port Moresby.
As a former student of IBS, looking back, my experience with the Academic and Support staff is highly commended, as they were all very courteous and willing to seek additional options to assist students with queries. I would say that they are also the ones who help bring IBS up to its standards.