TMMBA Alum Dreams Big at Disney

“If you dream it, you can do it” ~ Walt Disney

Yasmin Mowafy, TMMBA 2016

Yasmin Mowafy (TMMBA 2016) is someone who dreams big and does the hard work to reach these dreams. Case in point – during her time in the UW Foster Technology Management MBA (TMMBA) Program, not only did Yasmin land a spot in a highly competitive rotational program (more on that below), but she graduated in the top ten percent of her class and did so while having a baby during the program.

Yasmin started her career as a software engineer at IBM and later moved into a business analysis role where she consulted with the Egyptian government. Working with her clients made her realize her passion for the business side of technology. In order to advance her career and pair her passion for business and technology, Yasmin joined the TMMBA Program in 2015.

While in TMMBA, Yasmin took advantage of many of the career resources offered by the program – including access to employer events and connections. For her next career move, she set her sights on the Walt Disney Company Technology Management Rotation (TMR) Program. Since 2012, Disney has visited the TMMBA Program to present this highly sought after two-year rotational program that aims to develop future leaders of the company. The program consists of projects through six-month rotations within Disney, where participants have maximum exposure to Disney’s technology organization and share their expertise across multiple high-priority projects.

Yasmin was accepted to the TMR Program and started shortly after she graduated from TMMBA in 2016. She completed the rotation program this past summer and now has a permanent role at Disney as a Senior Product Manager for the Consumer Identity and Data Platform team. Yasmin builds the identity management product that customers, fans and guests use to interact and enjoy the Walt Disney Company experiences.

Graduation day in 2016

Read more about Yasmin’s experience in the TMMBA Program and the Walt Disney TMR Program:

Why did you choose the UW Foster TMMBA Program?
Choosing the TMMBA Program was an obvious choice for me. The program is 18-months straight and work-compatible which allows students to finance their education while working and also not lose out on their work experience. The caliber of the students is very high and the average years of experience for our class was 10 years. This made me confident that I would have great teammates that I would learn from.

What were your goals when you entered TMMBA?
My goal for entering TMMBA was to branch out into product management and be able to create awesome products and experiences in a big technology company.

How has the TMMBA Program impacted your business mindset?
Attending the program has equipped me with the right mindset to work as a product manager. There is a saying that “the product manager is the CEO of the product”. That mean as a product manager, I get to make financial and marketing decisions for my product as well as design and launch the product. The focus on technology management and entrepreneurship in the TMMBA Program was the perfect mix for me to gain the CEO skills required for my desired job.

Yasmin and her study group after winning a competition in the Operations and Supply Chain Management course.

What TMMBA resources did you find beneficial?
A fascinating part of the program is the study groups. It is a unique experience for this program to be working closely with classmates to finish homework and projects. This provides a great opportunity to build strong relationships and learn from one another. These relationships and the network built with smart and local professionals, is a huge win and a foundation any alumni can rely on in their careers. I was fortunate to have used my network to get a job at a local start-up during the program through a referral by a colleague of mine.

What TMMBA career resources did you utilize during the program?
One of the great things about the TMMBA Program is the career services. The staff is very knowledgeable and well connected with the technology community in Seattle. That helped me to polish my resume and rehearse for interviews towards the end of the program. There were also plenty of career mixers, company visits and networking events to get us in front of employers and apply for jobs. As a matter of fact, this is how I knew about the TMR Program at Disney, which I joined after graduation. Disney’s on-campus recruitment team came to TMMBA and presented the TMR Program as they were hiring for it.

Describe your experience in the Walt Disney Technology Management Rotation (TMR) Program.
The TMR Program has proven to be a great next step in my career. I spent two years working on four six-month rotations at Disney. During that time, I got the opportunity to work in different segments and deliver high-value strategic projects that were picked by the company’s CIO Susan O’Day for us. I was able to focus on product management throughout the four rotations and gained a lot of experience in a relatively short time frame.

My TMMBA support system has one more time helped me land this job. I was able to connect with some TMMBA alumni who went through the program to get their guidance and insights. This helped me build a strong profile and tell a compelling story through the rigorous interview process and eventually land the job.

What do you like most about working at Disney?
Besides landing my dream job, I am very fortunate to be working in a company and a brand that I truly value and respect. My favorite part of working at Disney is the people I work with and the culture everyone operates in to create the magic that we know and enjoy from Disney.

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Read more TMMBA alumni profiles
Learn more about the Walt Disney TMR Program