Does MBA degree produce managers or CEOs?
For many Indians, life is about
moving from one orbit to another, with most of us trying to jump to a higher
orbit at every opportunity Each higher level promises more financial security,
prosperity, satisfaction and happiness. This is exactly what admission into a
B-school promises, at least in the Indian context — a magical gateway to a new
world.
Essentially, what you gain from an
MBA is confidence — an invaluable commodity in today’s competitive environment
— as well as the ability to work harder and without sleep, also an asset in
today’s corporate sphere.
Coming to what you don’t gain from
B-school, an MBA degree, even from the best institute, cannot make significant
changes to your basic talents and skills. What it can do is polish your
intrinsic abilities. The extent of polishing, however, depends on the clarity
that you have on what you want from the MBA.
B-school brings out managers, not
CEOs. The education trains you to understand and analyse a problem the way CEOs
or MDs do. But you should not expect to join in the action and take strategic
decisions immediately. The maturity to make informed decisions ideally happens
only after a concerted work experience of, say, seven or 10 years.
It may get a little discouraging
when your ideas are termed naive and inexperienced.Philip Kotler says “customer
needs” is the end decision. Henry Ford had a different view, “If I had asked my
customers what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse.” So take
heart.
A management course can provide good
training modules on the technical aspects of marketing, finance, human
resources and so on, but what is equally or perhaps more important are skills
like effective time management, leadership, communication, people management,
and relationship building. While these can be honed or encouraged, they cannot
usually be “taught” through formal instruction.
“Management is the art of getting
things done” is the old adage. But “how” to get it done is not something that
is taught in a management institute. It is an art to get work done from
colleagues and also convince them that this is a value-add to their work and
career.
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