Building a Path to Product Leadership with an EMBA | EMBA 2026A - Abhilash Patil
- blogs, product management
- 4 min read
Authors: Abhilash Patil – Manager at HSBC HDPI
Finance has been at the centre of my professional journey so far. But as I think about the next phase of my career, I don’t want to leave that experience behind. I want to build on it.
Having worked with multiple investment banks across core treasury and regulatory reporting, I’ve developed a strong understanding of the financial domain. Now, I want to combine that knowledge with product leadership and eventually move into a leadership role within fintech.
That ambition is what brought me to an Executive MBA in Product Leadership.
Building on What I Already Know
When we think about changing careers, it can sometimes feel like we have to start all over again.
I see my journey a little differently.
My years in finance have given me valuable domain knowledge. I understand financial processes, the complexities of treasury, regulatory requirements, and some of the challenges financial institutions deal with.
Instead of moving away from that experience, I want to use it as my foundation.
Over the next year, my goal is to move closer to becoming a product leader in the fintech space. I want to work on platforms where my understanding of finance can help me identify problems, understand users, and contribute to better product decisions.
What I need now is the other side of that equation: deeper knowledge of product management and product leadership.
Why Detailed Learning Matters to Me
One of the key reasons I chose this Executive MBA was the depth of learning it offered.
At this point in my career, I’m looking for more than a surface-level introduction to product concepts. I want to understand how products are built, how decisions are made, and how successful product leaders approach complex business problems.
I also want to learn how to translate my existing domain expertise into a product context.
Knowing an industry well is valuable, but leading products within that industry requires a different set of capabilities. There is strategy, customer understanding, prioritisation, stakeholder management, leadership, and much more to learn.
For me, structured and detailed learning is an opportunity to develop those capabilities systematically.
The Classroom Is Bigger Than the Curriculum
The second factor that influenced my decision was the network.
An Executive MBA brings together professionals and leaders with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. That creates a learning environment that goes far beyond what is taught formally.
There will always be things I don’t know.
Being surrounded by experienced professionals gives me the opportunity to discover some of those blind spots. A conversation with a peer can introduce me to a different industry. Someone else’s experience can change how I approach a problem. A leader’s career journey can help me think differently about my own.
That is the kind of network I was looking for – not simply a large group of professional contacts, but a community I can learn from.
Returning to the Classroom With Curiosity
Going back to school at this stage of my career feels exciting.
Of course, I don’t know exactly how the journey will unfold. There will be new concepts to understand, different perspectives to absorb, and probably moments that challenge the way I currently think.
But that uncertainty is part of what makes the experience interesting.
I’m coming into the program ready to learn and hoping to make the most of the people and experiences around me.
There’s More to Me Than Finance
While most of my professional life has revolved around finance, there is one thing about me that many people don’t know: I’m a pretty good cook.
It’s something I enjoy and something that tends to surprise people who know me primarily through work.
In a way, I think it’s a good reminder that none of us is defined by just one part of our lives or even one professional identity.
Today, my identity is strongly connected to finance. Tomorrow, I want it to include product leadership as well.
My goal isn’t to replace one with the other. It’s to bring the two together.
With my finance experience as the foundation and product leadership as the capability I’m developing, I hope to build a career at the intersection of finance, technology, and product.
For me, that intersection is fintech – and that’s where I want to lead next.
