Usman Awyas has always yearned to surround himself with smart, driven people who would challenge him and whom he could in turn challenge. He had built a network in his native Pakistan where he worked as a senior associate at KPMG, and later in Saudi Arabia where was a fund manager for the Middle Eastern arm of the largest investment bank in Malaysia, Wasatah Capital.

But when he decided to move to Canada, he hoped the Ivey MBA classmates he was about to meet would become that group in his new home. “Here I was in Canada without any family, without any friends. But I’m a big believer that your network is super important and I believed an MBA would help me,” he says. “Trust me, I couldn’t be happier. This friend network is also like my family now.”

Right away, he loved that his classmates had different backgrounds and came from all over the world. “I wanted to know how different people frame problems and solutions,” he says.

As he worked his way through case studies with his classmates, Awyas found himself using them as his benchmarks to improve his skills: “I would notice this person is a great communicator, or that person is great at stats. So I observed them to find out what makes them so great so I could be better.”

With their help, and his professors’ help, Awyas was able to fill in certain professional gaps beyond the realm of finance where he had spent all of his career. He acquired skills in negotiations, corporate strategy, marketing, operations and mental models for effective decision making.

These are skills he now uses everyday in his job raising finances and scaling M&As for Carbon6, a SaaS company that has acquired more than 15 companies in under three years.

Now that he’s an alumnus, Awyas says he understands better the significance of the Ivey brand. When he started applying for jobs, everyone seemed to know exactly the kind of person to expect. In fact, he found prospective employers and others were happy to talk to him just because of his affiliation with Ivey.

Out of school, Awyas continues to rely on his Ivey network for industry insights and draws inspiration from his accomplished peers who are excelling in their careers. “The more time I spend out of my MBA, the greater that one year is stacking up” he says.