Sample Cambridge MBA Spectacular Failure Essay (Consulting)

F1GMAT · https://www.f1gmat.com/sample-cambridge-failure-essay-consulting ·

Add F1GMAT as a preferred source on Google

Save this guide as a PDF

Free · keeps the editor comments · made by your browser

Email me articles like this

MBA essay guides and deadline reminders. Unsubscribe in one click.

Leave the email blank to save without it. Unsubscribe in one click.

Cambridge Judge Business School
MBA Essay Examples, Openers & Essay Writing Strategies

In this example, we cite the example of a consultant working for the government of India to decode the high open defecation. Applying complex data models, the candidate and his team came up with a formula that involved attacking the problem in three areas – infrastructure, awareness, and project allocation. The extensive study and analysis led to the recommendation to prioritize an infrastructure-driven solution. However, the candidate failed to decode the complexity of Indian culture and their deeply held beliefs. The lessons learned is an interesting perspective for solutions that is increasingly reliant on data and not enough on creativity, cultures, and beliefs.

Sample Cambridge MBA Essay - Learned from your most spectacular failure? (194 words) (Reducing Open Defecation and the complexity of cultural beliefs)

2014 was a challenging year for the India government with open defecation as high as 65% - highest in the world. Corruption in constructing toilets was rampant. The government of India called on us to offer a solution. I led the data modeling, where past failures were built into the analysis. Our solution prioritized the construction of toilets and developing an open-bid system for contractors as a solution to reduce corruption. The approach led to a 26% decrease in open defecation. Watching the results closely, we found an alarming failure rate...


Atul Jose F1GMAT's FounderAbout the Author 

I am Atul Jose, Founding Consultant of F1GMAT, an MBA admissions consultancy that has worked with applicants since 2009.

For the past 15 years I have edited the application files of admits to the M7 programs: Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, the Wharton School, MIT Sloan, Chicago Booth, Kellogg School of Management, and Columbia Business School, together with admits to Berkeley Haas, Yale School of Management, NYU Stern, Michigan Ross, Duke Fuqua, Darden, Tuck, IMD, London Business School, INSEAD, SDA Bocconi, IESE Business School, HEC Paris, McCombs, and Tepper, plus other programs inside the global top 30.

 

My work covers the full MBA application deliverable: career planning and profile evaluation, application essay editing, recommendation letter editing, mock interviews and interview preparation, scholarship and fellowship essay editing, and cover letter editing for funding applications. Full bio with credentials and admit history is here.

 

I am the author of the Winning MBA Essay Guide, the best-selling essay guide covering M7 MBA programs. I have written and updated the guide annually since 2013, which makes the 2026 edition the thirteenth.

 

The reason I still write and edit essays every cycle: a good MBA essay carries a real applicant's voice. Writing essays for F1GMAT's Books and Editing essays weekly is how I stay calibrated to what current admissions committees respond to.

 

Contact me for school selection, career planning, essay strategy, narrative development, essay editing, interview preparation, scholarship essay editing, or guidance documents for recommendation letters.