Nikita Pillai
Expert MBA admissions coach for those with non-linear backgrounds
Studied at INSEAD
Works at Intuit
Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.
Nikita's Offerings
Custom hourly · $100/hr
Get help with Application Strategy, Cover Letters, and .
Nikita’s MBA Qualifications
INSEAD MBA and Master of Finance (Queen's University) with a BA in Economics from McGill — I know exactly what it takes to build an application that stands out. I applied with a non-linear profile: a tech and data strategy background, based in Canada, targeting a full career pivot, a function change, a geography change, and a significant salary uplift — and I got everything I was aiming for. I prepared really hard: GMAT coaching, multiple essay drafts, and extensive interview preparation. I know what the process demands and what adcoms are actually looking for — especially if your story isn't straightforward. In the five years since graduating from INSEAD, I've coached several dozen prospective MBA candidates — from one-off clarity sessions through to 2-3 sessions per candidate of application support — helping them find their narrative, sharpen their essays, and walk into interviews with genuine confidence. My core strengths as an MBA admissions coach: -Helping candidates with non-linear or unconventional profiles build a compelling, coherent story -GMAT strategy and preparation guidance -Essay development — from blank page to final draft -Interview preparation and confidence-building -School selection and positioning strategy -Career goal articulation — short and long term -Navigating ambitious asks: career pivots, geo moves, salary jumps
Nikita can help with:
Application Strategy
Cover Letters
Essays
Financial Aid & Scholarships
General Exploration
Interviews
Networking Strategy
Resume
School Selection
About Nikita
I've been on both sides of the consulting interview table. I spent 10+ years across fintech, data strategy, and management consulting — including McKinsey, where I served as an Engagement Manager on client engagements across growth strategy, AI, and financial services. Today I lead international fintech partnerships at Intuit, one of the world's largest financial software companies, where I work across the UK, EMEA, and North America. I hold an MBA from INSEAD, a Master of Finance from Queen's University (Smith School of Business), and a BA in Economics from McGill — and I've worked and consulted across 4 countries, building a genuinely global career. I can help you do the same. I've coached undergraduate, graduate, and MBA students on case interviewing and PEI, and I bring the same diagnostic rigour I use in my day job to every coaching session. Based on where you are in your journey, here's how I can help: Resume and cover letter review: I'll help you frame your experience the way MBB recruiters actually want to see it — positioning your background for impact, not just description. Case interview coaching: My methodology starts with a live diagnostic case so I understand exactly where you are. From there, we build hypothesis-driven structuring skills tailored to your gaps — not generic frameworks. Fit and PEI coaching: I'll help you identify and articulate your strongest leadership stories so your answers sound natural and compelling, not rehearsed. Career strategy: Whether you're breaking in from industry, pivoting mid-career, or navigating MBB vs. boutique, I'll help you build a strategy aligned to your skills, experience, and long-term goals. Mock interviews: Full simulations with a detailed post-case breakdown — strengths to lean into, gaps to close, and exactly what to work on before the real thing. Building a global career: Having worked across multiple countries and industries, I can give you an honest, first-hand perspective on what it takes to build a truly international career in consulting and beyond.
Why do I coach?
When I was navigating my own career — breaking into consulting, moving countries, pivoting industries — I figured most of it out through trial and error. I had great managers and mentors along the way, but no one who sat down with me specifically to say: here's how you position yourself, here's how you tell your story, here's exactly what's holding you back and how to fix it. That's what I try to be for the people I coach. I also coach because I genuinely love it. There's something about the moment a candidate cracks a case they couldn't structure two sessions ago, or finds the words to tell their leadership story in a way that finally lands — that's deeply satisfying in a way that's hard to replicate elsewhere. I care about people building careers they're proud of. Consulting is a phenomenal foundation — the analytical rigour, the exposure, the global network — and I want to help as many people as possible get through that door. Especially those who might not have the most linear path or the most obvious profile on paper, because often those are the most interesting candidates in the room.
Work Experience
Principal, International Fintech Partnerships Lead
Intuit
January 2025 - Present
Interviewer
Building and scaling Intuit's Money business (payments, capital, FaaS) in international markets through product partnerships and strategic commercial partnerships Driver for key strategic product partnership initiatives across functions (Product, Engineering, Product Marketing, Legal, Compliance, Risk, GTM and Customer Success) to move from partner evaluation to selection, product blueprinting, building, launching, GTM and business impact (profitable revenue growth, retention and new customer acquisition). Scouting for UK, Europe and Canada’s top Fintech startups and scale-ups to partner with to bring SMBs frictionless payment and capital experiences. Recipient of 2025 Intuit Shelleys Award for Big Bet Innovation for efforts building Intuit's Money product portfolio in UK & EMEA.
Consultant
McKinsey & Company
May 2022 - November 2024
Interviewer
I have coached prospective McKinsey London Summer Internship candidates for McKinsey Case Interview training via McKinsey itself.
Data Strategist
Canada Pension Plan Investments
April 2019 - August 2020
Technology & Data Solutions Business Development Lead, Canada
FactSet
January 2015 - February 2019
Education
INSEAD
MBA, Business
2021 - 2021
Co-President of Fintech & Blockchain Club - hosted multiple events dedicated to increasing community's knowledge of fintech and blockchain developments as well as more tactically support them through their recruitment processes in the industry (coaching in product, BD, strategy interview roles in Fintech via workshops and mentorship program). Co-Author of INSEAD-published case on Internationalization Strategy of Brazilian E-Commerce SaaS Company VTEX. Summer MBA Intern at Treinta (YC 2021 Colombian Fintech startup; largest series A raised in Colombia. Coached 20+ incoming class MBA candidates on MBA interviews and application preparation.
Smith School of Business, Queen's University
Masters, Finance
2018 - 2019
VP External, Smith Women in Finance
Nikita was also personally admitted to
McGill University