Joe Watson, Executive MSc Social Business and Entrepreneurship Student
The EMSBE is supporting the development of my business and entrepreneurial skills to enable me to think through the models that could create this social impact for more people. It’s also opening out opportunities and possibilities that I had never imagined.
Pursuing his passion
An educator at heart, Joe has spent the last twenty years working in the education and culture sectors. In his role for BrandEd, he leads a team of more than twenty people in the UK and USA, who create and deliver educational programmes in partnership with iconic global brands including The New York Times, Sotheby’s and Vogue. Joe’s previous credentials include Creative Director for the National Trust in London, and senior learning roles at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) and the Courtauld Institute of Art.
Joe’s driving passion is education, with a particular mission around how people of all ages explore and activate their vocation in the service of leading the most fulfilling life possible. It was the gaps in his business knowledge that led him to the EMSBE programme.
“The impact I want to make is to help more people discover their mission, develop their skills and enhance their powers of creative expression. Throughout the world, I see the innate potential, power, and talent of too many people going to waste. In most cases, this is because they haven’t had access to the relevant experiential learning programmes, or mentorship, that could nurture those vocations.”
Employer Sponsorship
For Joe, support from his employer made his Executive Master's ambition a reality. As a purpose-driven corporation with a deep belief in education’s transformative power, BrandEd’s CEO took the support request seriously and responded positively, also writing him a professional reference for the programme.
“Once our CEO understood the potential benefits to the company and my development, we agreed on the level of sponsorship and the requirements of me. Like BrandEd, most companies will expect you to remain with the company for an agreed period after a sponsored programme so they can reap some of the value of your new-found expertise. I would highly recommend applicants speak to their employers and be ready to outline the opportunities this presents to their organisation. The EMSBE team offered support with this.”
Devon, UK | British | Global Director of Collegiate and Professional Programmes, BrandEd