A week ago I attended the career fair at my school. I had the opportunity to meet over 50 companies in a span of 4 days and network with them all under one roof. However, I was repeatedly asked 1 question by the recruiters that made me think deep and hard about the mechanics of an MBA. That question was:
Which industry/function did I specialize in before the MBA?
Before going further, I would like to acknowledge that what follows are my views and opinions alone and if someone doesn't agree with them, its not meant to offend their view of the business world. If someone thinks too differently from my thought process, I welcome you to comment on the blog as long as you do so without disrespecting me or any other readers.
Now to get back to the topic, to me the question sounds counter-intuitive. When I started the MBA over 10 months ago at the IE Business School, my view of the same was that this is a platform that will allow me to develop my professional skills irrespective of which industry I wanted to work for. In a setting of 60 students, with classmates from over 30 different nationalities, with the world-class business school facility and the diversity of courses ranging from the analytical reasoning of Quantitative methods to research based approach of Finance to the creative enhancements of Marketing, I believed that MBA was truly worth the hype. But this view was shattered by this one simple question: What is my specialization?
I thought that MBA was a choice. I thought it was a choice about where do I wish to go from here. But instead everyone was interested in where I came from. They wanted to know not what this would be MBA graduate had learned in the last 1 year but rather what he had been doing in has past life. In an instant I was pigeonholed and not by what I wished to do, not even by what skills I had, and not even by what I had learnt but rather by what I had left over an year ago. But if this is what these firms were looking for then why hire an MBA? Why don't the banks just hire Financial experts and the operations firm hire engineers and the FMCGs hire the creative advertisers? Why would a firm spend so much money and time to go hire someone they had absolutely no need for?
I also thought that MBA was a journey where a student could identify his/her true potential. Where I would be able to discover where my abilities lied. Where I would be given the opportunity to break free from the industrial barriers and get a window into the wide and ever expanding world that is waiting for us out there. And that once I had identified the right window, I would find the door too. But if all the doors are locked except the one I stepped in from, then what really is the difference? If one just has to go back the same way they came from then why come at all?
But apparently this is what the companies were looking for. They wanted not someone who could bring a new range of skills to the table but rather an old seasoned player with the fresh shining MBA trophy in his showcase. I ask them, if MBAs can learn a 1000 different things in less than a year can't they learn an extra 10 if you give em a chance? If a girl from finance background can develop a beautiful marketing road-map for a fortune 500 FMCG in an academic setting with little external help, can't she build one in real life with the support of 10 other experts around him? If a guy from operations can handle the strategic proceedings of a 100 billion dollar company in front of his professors, can he not do this for a 10 billion dollar company in front of his colleagues?
And if the answer really is no, then what really is the advantage of investing tens of thousands of dollars in a course like an MBA? Why can't one just do a more specialized masters in finance or a PhD in operations and develop the only skills the companies are looking for? But if the answer is yes, then wouldn't it be fair to treat an MBA grad with an investment banking background equivalent to another who was running his own small business? I agree that they need to exemplify certain skills and qualities and knowledge to do well but how do the firms know whether the candidate has this based on a simple question like: Which industry/function did you specialize in before the MBA?
Which industry/function did I specialize in before the MBA?
Before going further, I would like to acknowledge that what follows are my views and opinions alone and if someone doesn't agree with them, its not meant to offend their view of the business world. If someone thinks too differently from my thought process, I welcome you to comment on the blog as long as you do so without disrespecting me or any other readers.
Now to get back to the topic, to me the question sounds counter-intuitive. When I started the MBA over 10 months ago at the IE Business School, my view of the same was that this is a platform that will allow me to develop my professional skills irrespective of which industry I wanted to work for. In a setting of 60 students, with classmates from over 30 different nationalities, with the world-class business school facility and the diversity of courses ranging from the analytical reasoning of Quantitative methods to research based approach of Finance to the creative enhancements of Marketing, I believed that MBA was truly worth the hype. But this view was shattered by this one simple question: What is my specialization?I thought that MBA was a choice. I thought it was a choice about where do I wish to go from here. But instead everyone was interested in where I came from. They wanted to know not what this would be MBA graduate had learned in the last 1 year but rather what he had been doing in has past life. In an instant I was pigeonholed and not by what I wished to do, not even by what skills I had, and not even by what I had learnt but rather by what I had left over an year ago. But if this is what these firms were looking for then why hire an MBA? Why don't the banks just hire Financial experts and the operations firm hire engineers and the FMCGs hire the creative advertisers? Why would a firm spend so much money and time to go hire someone they had absolutely no need for?
I also thought that MBA was a journey where a student could identify his/her true potential. Where I would be able to discover where my abilities lied. Where I would be given the opportunity to break free from the industrial barriers and get a window into the wide and ever expanding world that is waiting for us out there. And that once I had identified the right window, I would find the door too. But if all the doors are locked except the one I stepped in from, then what really is the difference? If one just has to go back the same way they came from then why come at all?
But apparently this is what the companies were looking for. They wanted not someone who could bring a new range of skills to the table but rather an old seasoned player with the fresh shining MBA trophy in his showcase. I ask them, if MBAs can learn a 1000 different things in less than a year can't they learn an extra 10 if you give em a chance? If a girl from finance background can develop a beautiful marketing road-map for a fortune 500 FMCG in an academic setting with little external help, can't she build one in real life with the support of 10 other experts around him? If a guy from operations can handle the strategic proceedings of a 100 billion dollar company in front of his professors, can he not do this for a 10 billion dollar company in front of his colleagues?
And if the answer really is no, then what really is the advantage of investing tens of thousands of dollars in a course like an MBA? Why can't one just do a more specialized masters in finance or a PhD in operations and develop the only skills the companies are looking for? But if the answer is yes, then wouldn't it be fair to treat an MBA grad with an investment banking background equivalent to another who was running his own small business? I agree that they need to exemplify certain skills and qualities and knowledge to do well but how do the firms know whether the candidate has this based on a simple question like: Which industry/function did you specialize in before the MBA?
For those who are interested in the specifics of the IE's international career fair, please keep an eye out for my next post. I would again add that the post would be based on my own perceptions and experiences.
ReplyDeletehey! ok, so the logic behind doing an MBA post certain years of experience is that you wish to gain managerial skills in your field of work. The work you had been doing till now had been about the technical and executional skills of the field and now you wish to get Managerial abilities to take on responsibilities with wider scope and different perspective but still based on the same technical knowledge :) This is why companies ask that question. They do not wish to spend time, money and energy giving you technical skills of their industry (which is very very vital for any successful manager) not to mention execution skills (which they definitely cannot do!) and hence would like to hire someone who has the same prior to hiring. MBA is about gaining Decision-Making skills - which is why you study HR, Marketing, Finance, Ops and even IT and Strategy. So that every decision you make henceforth will give you perspectives from all these angles while using the actual technical knowledge of your industry. You never actually make a Balance-sheet in any organization but you study them deeply in B-School just so you can analyse what you are presented with by your finance dept. in job after MBA! The companies hire MBAs for making Decisions in their companies and not do the manual work. But like I said, Its about making decisions based on technical know-how of actual implementation. Hence, the question - What did you do before? - Hope you got the point
ReplyDeleteSorry Ira but I disagree with this point and here are 3 reasons why:
Delete1. The reasoning that MBA is for people who just want to gain decision making skills doesn't sit well with a traditional MBA. This logic goes well when we are talking about executive MBAs where people have 10+ years of experience and are primarily looking to move into a senior corporate position in their original firm. But a typical MBA classroom ranges from 2-7 yrs of experience which is usually concentrated in a small niche in their native industries, not enough to get all the technical skills.
2. Most MBAs are looking for a change in industry/geography implying that their knowledge of their previous industry may not be relevant any more. This is also how most B-schools advertise their traditional MBA program and is easily visible when you talk to a room full of such candidates.
3. There are many more specialized courses that target specific industries while giving you an overview of other related fields like Marketing, Strategy etc from that sector's perspective. For example, IE has a well developed Masters in Advanced Finance program which covers all the major areas of an MBA but caters them specifically for banking and finance related industries.
I do not imply that the prior experience is not valuable. But if firms consider that to be the decision maker then the value of an MBA gets limited. The MBA is probably the biggest value addition activity a candidate can perform and its scope should not be limited to the prior experiences but to the extent to which one can leverage it.
Hi Manu,
ReplyDeleteI guess there are a few things people like about an MBA:
1.The people:
2.(related)The Network
3.Learn things I never had the opportunity to learn prior to my getting admitted. Accounting / Operations / Organizational Behaviour / Negotiation. I had never taken a course in either while I was an undergraduate student.
4. Career change
5. The space to self-evaluate, travel, and contemplate new possibilities.
Let's break MBA into its component parts:
1. Three letters on your cv valued at a majority of firms in the us, uk, and to a degree in other countries (as measured by salary surveys) which likely improve ratio of resumes-distributed:call-for-interview
2. A network of alpha professionals you are likely to use if you work in proximity to the school (variability of proximity I leave to you, school)
3. Some Finance education
4. Some Marketing/Strategy education
5. Some Management/Organisational Behaviour education
6. Some Other Business Skills education (varies by school, electives) including negotiation, entrepreneurship, politics, policy, accounting, operations, etc (not sales or customer service sadly in my personal experience)
Your post seems more of a rant on the trouble while looking for a change. Do note that when business schools talk about change its:
1.Industry
2.Geography
3.Role
Your post seems to imply you are trying all three together, which has been historically tough as well.
Siddharth, I was not talking about just my own personal situation but on a more generalistic view of what I noticed while talking to varied firms. Personally I'm just looking for a change in industry but how would an employer know if I can do well in their work environment if all they care about is where I worked before.
DeleteI agree that almost everyone is looking for a change in 1 or more of those 3 dimensions. MBA is not just 3 letters on your CV! It helps one analyze where they would feel the most comfortable. It is a stretch of time that allows you to see the whole business world from different perspectives and decide where your skills & interests lie. Sometimes the 2 can mismatch and the MBA helps one develop the right skills too so that your interests align with them again.
The author of the article makes his point from his perspective which might have been true of his experience. And I know for a fact that schools in different countries operate differently. I personally at least spent the last year in classes learning things that I would never otherwise have in 20 years, building networks that span over 5 continents and developing myself the best I can.
My grievances stem from the fact that the firms are disconnected with what is going on in an MBA classroom. The value creation in such a setting is much higher than anywhere else and if the companies do not value it then I don't see why they would come to a business school rather than going to a master's.
Read and may be enact accordingly:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.quora.com/Business-School/Why-are-business-school-applications-declining-for-the-fourth-year-in-a-row/
Hello Manu,
ReplyDeleteI think you're being too negative with this subject. Of course companies are going to ask for your background, it is logic. If a company is looking to hire someone for the marketing department they will prefer an MBA with a marketing background instead of an MBA with an engineer background. If you want to change industry your first job is to prove that you know enough about the new field you want to enter. Why a company would hire you, spending more money on training, instead of hiring someone with prior knowledge of the industry, when you answer this question to them then you will be hired in that position.
Salvador
Hi Salvador,
DeleteThe issue is if companies are interested only in your background not your skills and knowledge. I agree that if one if from a marketing background they probably have a better chance of doing well in that industry but there are several others who having done well at the MBA can be equally good. If the companies start filtering out based on work experience, these candidates wouldn't even get a chance to meet the companies first hand and explain why they are a good fit.