Women in real estate – MBA alumna forges global network 

“The MBA was one of the best years of my life,” says Sheena Saraf, Strategy and Finance Manager at MapMortar, a London-based startup focused on decarbonising real estate. “I established my career in London through the programme, met my husband, who is also an MBA graduate from the same cohort, and found lifelong friends from all around the world – I don’t know where I would be without it.” 

Professional development aside, Sheena says the Cambridge MBA taught her skills to help tackle problems and challenges head-on. “The MBA broadened my perspective, as everyone on the programme came from various backgrounds – it’s an intellectual cauldron,” she says. “The experience has been an anchor for my career and will continue to shape my future.” 

The power of networking

Networking, she believes, is at the core of the MBA. “Cambridge Judge does a great job of providing networking opportunities both within the Business School and beyond, including ample alumni events,” she says. “With the College system at Cambridge, you aren’t just pigeonholed into the cohort. One day, you’re in class sitting next to a corporate lawyer. The next, you’re debating sustainability with a PhD student in climate science over lunch.” 

So how important is networking for MBA students? “I can’t emphasise the importance of networking enough,” she says. “It’s one of the best ways to advance your career, and it should be an ongoing, lifelong process. Most of my career moves have come from conversations, not job postings.” 

Founding a community

Fuelled by that awareness, Sheena co-founded the Oxford and Cambridge Built Environment Alumni Club in 2023 (alongside Oxford Saïd alumnus Jonathan Betts) – a networking group created for Oxbridge alumni working in the built environment sector. “There are many networking platforms for real estate professionals, but there weren’t any that catered to Oxbridge alumni,” she says. “We wanted to build a community where people from different areas of the built environment could connect and collaborate, but where there’s already an immediate sense of familiarity.” 

So far, the club has held 3 events in London, with more planned for this year. “If you have any connection to Oxford or Cambridge, you are very welcome,” she says. “You might already be in the sector, or you might just be curious.” 

“The club has featured prominent industry speakers – at our last event, we had the opportunity to invite another alumnus from the Cambridge MBA, Yigit Akar (MBA 2018), who co-founded a startup focused on energy efficiency for buildings (xWatts). Previously, we hosted Andrew Baum, a prominent Oxford professor, for a fireside chat on the future of real estate investment managers. So, it’s also about promoting and celebrating the work that comes out of the universities, and it’s a great example of the strength of the network both at Cambridge Judge Business School and across the wider Cambridge ecosystem.”

Working in real estate 

For Sheena, real estate is more than just an industry – it’s about the people in it. “It’s an open, welcoming community,” she says. “And I love the tangible aspect of it. You can walk past a building and know you played a part in making it happen. It’s very rewarding.” 

Sheena grew up in Calcutta, but her career has been anything but linear. She has worked in real estate private equity in Mumbai, corporate finance for a developer in Dubai, and real estate investment banking at Bank of America in London. Now at MapMortar, a proptech startup focused on decarbonising real estate, she leads strategy and finance. “Startups are different,” she says. “You see your impact immediately. It’s dynamic, fast-paced, and incredibly fulfilling.” 

Women in the sector

So, what’s it like to work as a woman in the sector? “I’ve enjoyed it, and I think more and more organisations have woken up to the importance of having a diverse team, but there’s work to be done,” she says. 

The data is stark: a 2020 report by consulting firm Bridge Group concluded that, “men dominate senior positions in the sector”. Research by Deloitte found that women still represent around 26% of senior financial leadership positions in the UK real estate sector in 2022 (up from 22% in 2016), and only one in 7 C-suite roles. 

She points to a familiar pattern. “The issue isn’t hiring women,” she says. “It’s retaining them. You will see a gender balance at the junior level of an organisation, but the higher up you go, it trickles out.” She believes more needs to be done to support women in pursuing leadership roles – and that starts with greater flexibility for all employees as they go through various stages of their lives. 

“I think a lot of women drop out as the lack of flexibility disproportionately impacts them when starting to raise a family,” she says. “We’re hearing about companies imposing 5-day working weeks, which can be hard for working parents who might have childcare responsibilities at home. This limits their ability to make longer-term career decisions given the short-term needs.” 

The solution starts at home. “We need to normalise shared childcare responsibilities between parents,” she says. “Some of my MBA friends who recently had their first child are splitting responsibilities equally – it’s working incredibly well for them. This shouldn’t be the exception – it should be the norm.” 

“If companies are serious about retaining women, the next stage is providing flexible parental leave and post-maternity facilities, and supporting mothers in integrating back into the workforce,” she says. “These aren’t just ‘nice to haves’ – they’re critical for retaining top talent.” 

Role models and mentors

Sheena says that having more female role models is crucial – but this requires more women reaching the top in the first place. “It’s a chicken-and-egg situation. If you have women at the top, that drives better policies. But to get women to the top, you need those policies in place to begin with. Change is happening, but it’s slow.” She also believes that seeking mentorship and peer support is a crucial step for women keen to pursue higher positions. “As women, we need to be more proactive in asking for guidance and support,” she says. 

That’s where networks like the Oxford and Cambridge Built Environment Alumni Club – and other groups such as Diversity Talks Real Estate, Ladies in Real Estate, Women in Real Estate, and Real Estate Balance, to name a few – can help provide a vital stepping stone. “Groups such as these can help level the playing field and drive change in an industry that’s ripe with opportunity,” she says. “And the MBA is a great bridge to finding these opportunities.”