If you look at Abby Dekkers’ LinkedIn page, it’s evident that her career trajectory has been rapidly accelerating. With career highlights that include positions as Commercial Finance Manager with L'Oréal’s luxury products division, and International Treasury Analyst with the AON Corporation, the 2009 undergraduate alumna of the Krannert School of Management was already demonstrating a unique tenacity and drive in the world of finance.
But during her time in treasury, she realized that she was working in an extremely niche field though she had desired to be in a more strategic role. Dekkers realized that she would need to pursue an MBA to achieve her career goals. As for the school, going back to Krannert was a very clear decision for her.
During her time in the MBA program, Dekkers was exposed to an extremely diverse set of experiences where she worked with individuals from different backgrounds and geographical locations she never thought she would have.
“They [Krannert] have the ability to pull together people from different backgrounds and put them in the same place, working towards the same goal,” said Dekkers. “I think that’s a unique time in your life that you’ll be able to leverage that opportunity and use it to better yourself and your ability to work with other people.”
These diverse experiences included case competitions, where she found lessons in the classroom and their application started to come together. In these competitions, individuals are put on the spot with a team of peers to solve a real-world business case and do a presentation oftentimes in front of corporate leaders. This is where Dekkers felt the true value of her out-of-class activities and how they prepared her for her career after graduation. By being in the “hot seat” in the competitions, she was already being exposed to scenarios that were typical in a professional work environment.
After graduation, Dekkers was recruited for a position at consumer product giant Reckitt Benckiser (RB), for a position in finance. Before accepting the offer, she was able to reach out to a fellow Krannert MBA alumnus who was working with the company at the time and was able to get an inside look at the company in terms of the culture and the types of people she would be working with.
After accepting the offer from RB, Dekkers found the position was not typical of a traditional finance position. She was working with a lot of people that most individuals in a finance role would not interact with. From supply chain partners to logistics, and marketing to sales -- each area had a different agenda. Her experience at Krannert refined her the ability to work through difficult conversations and move together towards an end-goal.
It was the small steps she took from leaving her job to pursue an MBA and applying the skills she acquired at Krannert, which propelled her into the management role she now holds as the Head of Finance, Productivity and Performance Office at RB.
