A smoother ride to success

Attaining the NUS MBA gave Go-Jek Bandung’s district head William Hartono a competitive advantage

Marianne Tan
Jan 10, 2019

At 27, Mr William Hartono already has an impressive career, having worked at companies such as management consulting firm Boston Consulting Group and oilfield services company Schlumberger.

In 2017, Mr Hartono — then the head of e-commerce and field marketing at an Indonesian e-commerce start-up — pursued the Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Among other skill sets, he wanted to sharpen his business acumen and learn from his peers from different countries.

“Singapore is the tech hub of Southeast Asia, and NUS is well-recognised in the tech and start-up fields,” he says.

During his 17-month full-time course, he became proficient in general management knowledge, which helped him excel in multiple job functions, especially in the high-growth tech start-up sectors.

The Entrepreneurship Study Mission — Silicon Valley, USA module gave him the opportunity to visit Silicon Valley to better understand the international entrepreneurial scene. He also had the chance to study under the tutelage of Professor Virginia Cha, a well-respected educator and influential figure in Singapore’s entrepreneur ecosystem.

Shortly after he obtained his MBA, he was headhunted to join Go-Jek. He was tasked to help streamline the recruitment process at the company, despite not having any human resource experience.

With the know-how obtained during his MBA studies, he managed to identify and solve a bottleneck issue and helped the company increase its manpower recruitment significantly.

For his efforts, Mr Hartono was promoted after his three-month probation. Now as a district head at Go-Jek’s Bandung office, the largest of the brand’s business in Indonesia after Jakarta, he deals with all facets of the business — from marketing and operations to external affairs.

He believes his NUS MBA has helped him to attain higher levels of knowledge and soft skills to solve business problems.