Our newest Junior CEO

Amongst 300 participants, Grade 9 student Shashini Bommala from the Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad was recognised as the best Junior CEO through an international entrepreneurial course. Here, we learn more about Shashini's experiences leading up to becoming the best Junior CEO. 

Grade 9 student Shashini Bommala"I have spent the last couple of months searching for my passion, and in the process, I came across a three-week online course by Clever Harvey in partnership with Callido and IIT Roorkee.   

The Junior CEO course is all about entrepreneurship skills and design thinking and there were students from all around the world attending this course. An important aspect of the course included a project where participants had to come up with a complete business idea. Each day I learnt different concepts such as value proposition, revenue streams and much more. All of this was to be presented in a pitch deck, which is a presentation of the idea from scratch.

Being granted an opportunity to use virtual reality to attend events like this and have some fun is definitely a breath of fresh air! Throughout the process, I was involved in different case studies of some of the most successful business ideas, such as Amazon, Uber and Swiggy. By the end of the course, I was able to confidently pitch my idea.

It is because of the skills that the Academy has equipped in me over the years that enabled me to successfully build an idea, which then led me to become awarded the best Junior CEO in my course. Learning what it takes to build an empire from scratch was a delightful experience.

It’s always been easy to say, 'I want to be a CEO,' but not knowing what it takes to be one. This course has definitely taught me every role and responsibility that a CEO is accounted for. Overall, the Academy has given me the confidence to face the world and take on new challenges and opportunities, and I am grateful for that."

Shashini Bommala

Grade 9