Norma Magomo’s continent-spanning story begins in Zimbabwe’s rapidly evolving financial landscape, where she brought banking to the unbanked. Now, she is pursuing her MBA at the University of Bath School of Management to amplify her impact further.
Before becoming an MBA student, Norma Magomo worked in the fast-paced environment of investment regulatory compliance in South Africa. Before that, she was a rural banker addressing the urgent demand for financial inclusion in her native Zimbabwe.
She says, “I was a community-based banker, or what is called a rural banker… I was stationed in a rural community where we were trying to improve the quality of life through financial inclusion.” (07:25)
Between 2014 and 2022, approximately 1.2 million adults in Zimbabwe were introduced to the banking system. Finance experts like Norma significantly contributed to this progress in financial inclusion.
While Norma’s work gave her a solid foundation in finance, she felt there was much more to learn. “I have this firm belief that people only grow when and if they choose to take on new challenges,” Norma says. (00:58)
For her, the next challenge was traveling across the world to pursue an MBA. Like many MBA aspirants in the finance sector, she chose the UK, and the University of Bath School of Management, an institution favored by finance professionals for its location and renowned reputation.
The Bath Full-time MBA program, particularly the Strategy module, reshaped Norma’s approach toward finance and problem-solving. “Strategy has really taught me to frame the problem well, go deeper from the surface, and find out what the actual problem is,” Norma explains. (12:29)
Additionally, the Managing People module opened her eyes to the human element in financial services, allowing her to appreciate the industry’s multifaceted nature
Norma put her learnings to the test in the Multi-Project Suite. The Multi-Project Suite focuses on entrepreneurship, consulting and change management, and an integrated project. The integrated project tasks groups of students with solving diverse business challenges with real organizations. Norma’s project was with Lloyds Banking Group, researching ways to implement cost-cutting measures while maintaining the customer experience.
“It’s a really exciting project. It has been challenging. A lot of research has gone into it. I find that even though it’s challenging, I’ve managed to learn more about areas that I didn’t know of,” Norma says. (05:54)
The Multi-Project Suite is the essence of the MBA program – turning academic insights into real-world solutions. As she prepares to re-enter the professional world, Norma carries with her a wealth of knowledge, experience, and a renewed sense of self.
Beyond expanding her financial knowledge, her MBA also gave Norma new insights into communication practices. “I always thought that being quiet or reserved is respectful… The MBA and my fellow cohort actually have challenged me to vocalize my ideas, something I hadn’t been exposed to before.” (02:08)
Norma used these insights to reflect on corporate and societal structures in her home country. “I’ll give you an example from when I started my position at the company that I was previously working at before coming onto the MBA. I joined as an intern, and the culture in that organization was that junior staff didn’t really have a voice. So in that context, it was really based on how senior you are. The more senior you are, the more suitable it is for you to speak out your ideas.” (03:27)
The MBA helped her realize her ideas were valuable and that she had more to contribute. Post-MBA, Norma aims to blend her learnings into her passion for financial regulation to help bring about positive changes.
In finance, numbers are just the tip of the iceberg. Underneath everything is a complex web of regulations. It became Norma’s passionate pursuit to decipher this layer by going into regulation strategy. Her goal is to aid local communities to enhance Zimbabwe’s broader economy.
“Zimbabwe’s regulations are not sound,” Norma explains. “So you find that we have had financial institutions fail. We’ve had the economy fail so many times. So I feel if I am able to get experience in regulation, I would be able to actually go and do something for the greater good. I had the most rewarding moment in my career when I was working as a rural banker. I felt like I was doing something that was bigger than me and that was just beyond my career. I could tangibly see people’s lives getting changed.” (14:10)
Norma’s aspirations are rooted in a deep commitment to societal progress. Armed with her Bath MBA and rich experience, she is poised to transform lives and communities through her expertise in finance and regulation.
Did Norma’s story inspire you? Contact the University of Bath School of Management ambassadors to learn from their experiences.
