CBS International Business School, 5 September 2019

Alumni Interview with Yascha Roshani

The startup of our graduate Yascha Roshani provides the latest beer trends: On his online marketplace "Craft Exchange" the founder successfully sells craft beverages of small, regional beverage producers. Yascha opted for his own company after passing his master's degree in "General Management" and gaining several years of management experience in various companies. "Craft Exchange" is the second start-up of the Berlin-born founder.

CBS: Why did you apply for the "General Management" course at our campus?

Yascha Roshani: I studied Sports Management at the University of Leipzig. I enjoyed the university, the study course and the city very much. Towards the end of my bachelor's degree, however, two things were certain for me: On the one hand, I only wanted to continue with business studies in my master's degree. During my studies and my first internships, I learned that the broader business administration curriculum is more important and specific knowledge to specific industries and specialist areas - including sports. On the other hand, I wanted a different kind of university teaching in the Master's programme. I wanted smaller learning groups, more exchange with the lecturers, stronger practical relevance and a course mix that covered my wishes. I looked at a lot of universities and study courses at that time. Everything was fulfilled in my study programme „General Management“ at Cologne Business School.

CBS: What did you like best about studying at CBS?

Yascha Roshani: The best thing about studying at CBS was the high-class lecturers, the close contact to them, the intensive look into practice and the contemporary and balanced curriculum.

CBS: What does a typical working day look like for you today?

Yascha Roshani: First I usually check the most important metrics of the previous day and briefly skim the news of the day. What follows is very diverse. But it's all about the three areas of product development, dealer management or marketing - or of course boring administrative things.

CBS: What do you like about your work?

Yascha Roshani: What appeals most to me is that I'm dealing with something that has long been a hobby and passion for me. I love drinks and I am a hobby beer brewer myself, make my own liqueurs and lemonades and roast my own coffee. I have also been enthusiastic about special and high-quality drinks from smaller producers for a long time. And now being able to live out this passion with exciting and dynamic technology in the form of an online marketplace makes it all the more exciting.

CBS: Which typical cliché about your current position doesn't apply?

Yascha Roshani: I think many people imagine their founding life to be more beautiful than it is. The creative freedom can't be surpassed. However, it is endless work where you have to do everything yourself.

CBS: What are your career plans for the next few years?

Yascha Roshani: With Craft Exchange I want to realize our vision: Bringing together the taste diversity of the beverage world on one platform and thereby offering people an easily accessible alternative to commercial beverages of major brands.

CBS: How did your studies at CBS prepare you for your current position?

Yascha Roshani: It has always been important for me to be a generalist. In my opinion, a good understanding of organisations, entrepreneurial functions and economic interrelationships are the most important prerequisites for taking on a strategic role in companies. In order to expand this broad knowledge and understanding of management, my studies at CBS were optimal.

CBS: What advice would you give to prospective students?

Yascha Roshani: The biggest nonsense that students unfortunately often hear is that you will never need the things from your studies again, because you learn everything on the job anyway. That's why you only study for getting a degree. The opposite is the case: If you are smart and understand the connections between theory and practice, then you can apply a lot from your studies in your later job and thus be better than others.

CBS: Thank you very much for the interview!

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CBS International Business School

CBS International Business School is a state-recognised private university of applied sciences for business. We offer accredited Bachelor's, Master's and MBA degree programmes in German and English on a full-time or part-time basis. Throughout Germany, the university is represented at three locations in Cologne, Mainz, and Potsdam.

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