I have heard so many conflicting opinions about management education. The problem is that people are disappointed when they discover that their MBA wasn't a road to riches. To my understanding, this education has to do something with the premium value (in terms of earning potential), which attracts many people who are just looking for a lucrative job and are not interested in becoming professionals.
Having traversed this trajectory myself, and having learnt my lessons, I can share five learnings that I believe an MBA does not, or rather cannot, teach you.
The shortcomings I talk about are generic "" they apply across the board, countries and institutions. The real world throws you into the deep end of the pool. You realise soon enough that ground realities are radically different from what you were taught.
Sixth sense: Earlier in my career, I used to believe that management is a science. But as you go up the management ladder, you find that it's evolved into an art and there is nothing for you to go by except your gut feel and your intuition "" the sixth sense.
Actually, intuition is not as random and unscientific as we make it out to be. Partly, intuition stems from our knowledge and experiences, processed, distilled, and stored in our sub-conscious. But it can complement our analytical and logical thought processes. It not only encourages you to think out of the box but also helps you to look at unconventional ways of doing conventional things.
Respect for experience: I've also learnt that experience and expertise should be respected. Entry-level MBAs often develop some kind of disdain towards older and more experienced people, who may not be in sync with modern concepts and tools. There will always be a generation gap. But to be successful, respecting the experience of seniors in an organisation is vital.
Execution: Vision statements can create a sense of confidence and comfort in a team but are for the most part, aspirational. They are useless in terms of charting out the actual implementation. Getting a task done, making it happen is the most un-appreciated skill in a business course, but the most effective tool of a business leader.
At the end of the day, more often than not, every competitor basically fights with the same weapons. Most industries have five to six success factors that drive performance.
For instance, everyone knows that product planning, brand image and in-shop customer management are critical in the retailing industry. It is difficult, if not impossible, to redefine what it takes to be successful in that industry. So execution is really the critical part of a successful strategy.
Getting it done, getting it done right and getting it done better than the competitor is far more important than drawing vision statements. Execution flows naturally and instinctively, not from procedures and rule books. Manuals and management books may play a role in early training activities, but they have limited value in the heat of the battle.
Passion that is visible: As a management student, I would have never guessed that passion would be the single-most important element of personal leadership. I don't recall that word ever being spoken during my classroom time.
All the people I have worked under have passion and show it, live it and love it. It is not a substitute for good thinking, good people and good execution but it is the electricity on which a well-made machine runs.
And it is completely an individual management style, because I believe that managers at all levels of a company develop this emotional side of their leadership only at the workplace. All of us love to work for winners and be part of the winning team.
Walk the Talk "" Foot Marketing: As much as I have read marketing, I realise real involvement "" reaching out to your market "" is mandatory before the changes (strategic as well as tactical) become systemic and sustainable. LG has grown in seven years thanks to such persistant foot marketing on a daily basis. The learning is that if you choose to fight a battle, you must be ready to tread the ground.
Lastly, I feel each one of us derives his own learnings at the workplace. And I still look up to my workplace as a continuing MBA that will help plug the gaps not filled by formal education.
(Pushp Saurabh Baisakhia is the product group head, microwaves and vacuum cleaner, LG. He graduated from Amity Business School in 1997)
