Guinness World Record holder is winner of WBS Bursary Awards

Whether it is using artificial intelligence (AI) to serve democracy or playing tag rugby on Mount Everest, Mike Wilmot is a man on a mission; and his latest mission is an MBA at Warwick Business School.

The Armed Forces veteran, who was the winner of the Warwick Business School Bursary Awards 2024 at the Heropreneurs Awards ceremony last night at WBS London at The Shard, has been awarded a 100 per cent scholarship to study for the Executive MBA (London).

Partnering with Heropreneurs, a charity that supports the business ventures of the Armed Forces community, WBS was offering serving or ex-military personnel, including spouses, the opportunity of a place on one of its world-class programmes, worth up to £64,220. 

Mike, 38, started his Executive MBA programme in September, and is already putting it to good use.

“I wanted to use the MBA to shape my current work at Helsing, the defence AI company, and I’m already bringing the learning into my day-to-day decision making there,” Mike said. “The opportunity to apply MBA lessons to a start-up firm is vast.

“I’ve just finished the Organisational Behaviour module at WBS, which, of course, fits right in with my Army experience, where setting up an organisational culture is so important.

“But I am also really enjoying the Strategic Advantage module. The business case studies in this module have been fascinating.”

Over the longer term, he believes the MBA will increase his “business acumen” and add to the considerable leadership experience he has already gained from the Army, and with this he hopes to “drive transformative change within the defence industry and beyond”.

Backed by venture capital funding, Helsing is dedicated to bolstering defence AI capabilities to protect democracies, particularly as cooperation between China, Russia, Iran and North Korea grows.

“We need to be championing liberal democratic values on a global scale,” said Mike. “Basically, I’ve swapped my Army uniform for Helsing, but it’s the same mission.”

A sense of mission

Even if it did not originate there, Mike’s sense of mission was definitely honed during his time in the Blues and Royals, which he joined in 2010 when he was commissioned to the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. The Blues and Royals is a regiment of the Household Cavalry, famously where both Princes William and Harry were also serving officers.

Deployed across the world as part an armoured reconnaissance unit, Mike was involved in combat operations in Afghanistan; and, in 2014, organised and led an expedition of servicemen who had been deployed in Afghanistan to Mount Everest to raise money for military veterans.

“No-one had thought of playing tag rugby at Everest Base Camp before, so I arranged for an expedition of 28 soldiers from the Household Cavalry, including myself, to do just that,” said Mike.

“Running around at an altitude of 5,000 metres above sea level was really exhausting, but in the end it was worth it.

“We raised money for the Household Cavalry Foundation and we set the Guinness World Record for the highest game ever played of tag rugby.”

Heropreneurs

Mike was not the only scholarship winner at the Heropreneurs Awards ceremony last night. While the Blues and Royals veteran took first place in the WBS Bursary Awards, two runners-up also secured substantial WBS scholarships.

In second place was George McCrea, of the Corps of Royal Engineers, who is currently working in the field of data analytics, visualisations and business insights. He was awarded a 75 per cent scholarship to join the Global Online MBA (London).

In third was Clare Otridge who won a scholarship for the Executive Diploma in Behavioural Science at WBS London, which she began in September.

Clare, who leads Grounded Research, a specialist research agency delivering insights and behavioural analysis to the food and agriculture sectors, is already finding her course valuable.

“Even the first module of the behavioural science course has changed how I view some of the business challenges I encounter and the solutions I employ,” she said.

“Re-learning the art of academic research has reignited my curiosity and opened my eyes to the broader scope of the challenges I face and to understand them at a deeper level.

“I look forward to what the remaining three modules will teach me, and fully anticipate being a different person with a different way of working by the end of it.”

Meanwhile, Holly Henderson, a former Royal Navy officer whose passion for sustainability has led her into a role supporting companies in their transition to greener energies, was another scholarship winner, gaining a scholarship for the Executive MBA at the University of Warwick campus, which she started in September. 

Fellow runner-up Richard Da Gama, who served for 15 years in the Grenadier Guards and is now a director within ResoLex – an SME consultancy that specialises in supporting clients to design and establish collaborative environments – was awarded a scholarship to join the Executive MBA (London).  

Speaking at The Shard awards ceremony, Andy Lockett, Dean of WBS and Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, said: “WBS are delighted to have partnered with Heropreneurs again to identify and support high potential students from the military community. It is really encouraging to see the growing interest in this award and this year we were thrilled to have received our highest number of applications yet.

“At Warwick Business School we believe in the Change Maker mindset. Those who think beyond themselves and their environment as well as challenging the norm and questioning the status quo to make a positive impact on a personal, social, and commercial level. 

“Those in the military community have tremendous skills and we can provide them with the knowledge to succeed in business as they take the next step in their professional development.”

The benefits of an MBA at WBS

Mike is certainly looking forward to the next steps of his MBA. This might mean applying more lessons, to his current role, he said, or taking up the opportunity for an overseas university placement.

“I’ve had the privilege of seeing a lot of the world, but I’d love to see more of it,” he said.

Before joining the Army, he was at McKinsey & Company where he worked in the Retailing and Fast- Moving Consumer Goods practice with a particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa.

Years later – following a spell as Army Chief of Staff in London – he returned to Africa, this time to Nairobi with his family. On this occasion, he was leading strategy for a cross-government organisation with a mission to build domestic security capabilities.

“My passion for the African continent is ongoing,” Mike said. “Having said that, a module at a business school in France would be equally as good.”

Discover more about our Change Makers at Warwick Business School.