IMPORTANCE OF MBA TO YOUR CAREER

There has been a sea change in the economic and industrial scenario of India over the past few years. The Government's policy of liberalization has unshackled restrictions and controls on business with the result that there has been a spurt of entrepreneurial activity and a spawning of megaconglomerates. Increasing globalization has perpetuated severe competition and tough battles for market share. For business success, these organizations need talented, qualified managers with a professional approach. They turn to MBAs from premier business schools. The MBAs recruited are credited with the following:

The functional knowledge of the business organization The knowledge of functional interdependencies In-depth knowledge of at least one discipline The ability to adapt to new environments - micro and macro A problem solving approach The necessary inter-personal skills The skills of communication Self-confidence Initiative and the drive to succeed

If one takes a look at the profiles of captains of business and industry, movers and shakers of the corporate world, high flying executives, key decision makers, in short anyone who makes a difference to the fortunes of a corporation, more often than not, you will find they have one thing in common, an MBA from a premier business school. Be it in Marketing, Finance, Banking, Advertising or Consulting. Take any organization and, by and large, occupying the top and senior level positions are men and women of familiar qualification.

Understandably, the well-chronicled success stories of the alumni of premier business schools and industry's growing confidence in teaching and training methodologies of these business schools, which have widely respected, acknowledged authorities on various subjects, as faculty, have sent the stock of MBAs soaring. In today's complex and competitive world, personal entrepreneurship is required to succeed irrespective of the profession/position that you are handling. Just having focused / specialized skill sets though important may not serve the overall purpose in a business environment. Some are born entrepreneurs like the Tatas, Birlas, Ambanis etc. to name a few. However, this quality of 'entrepreneurship' is not inculcated or developed in professional courses of engineering, medical, commerce, arts, economics etc. An MBA course would sharpen your vision, increase your business acumen, enhance you skill set and help you to view things with a business perspective. To highlight the above point, a pure engineer may not be able to appreciate commercial, legal, financial or marketing aspects of a business unit. However, coupled with an MBA, he/she is likely to do better. For Engineering Graduates an MBA is an added advantage. As an Engineer, you develop: 1. Good analytical skills 2. Good quantitative skills 3. Good decision making 4. The art of attacking a problem head-on and reaching its solution 5. Instant thinking

But the industry these days requires you to have (in addition to the above mentioned skills): 1. Good communication skills 2. Creativity 3. Leadership qualities 4. The right personality 5. The ability to work in a team 6. Knowledge of all functional areas in Management 7. One specialization in Management An MBA bridges this gap most effectively Career profiles of specialists get 'stagnated' and their acceptability from one job function to another is limited. In the modern environment apart from varied formal and informal training, an MBA gets irrespective of specialization functional job knowledge in areas of marketing, finance, HR, systems, legal etc. Apart from the 'formal' education curriculum students are vigorously trained and given exposure to industry, asked to take up social projects etc. A few institutes even provide specialized training for development of personality, mental and physical health. In short, B-School MBAs irrespective of their graduation background are specially equipped to tackle their jobs and responsibilities in a more efficacious and business-oriented manner. The demand for MBAs far outstrips the supply. And that is the reason they command such great bargaining power. Where else does one get the opportunity of making it really big in a short time span, a high-powered life style, lucrative

earnings, of fully exploiting talent and potential, except in a career in Management? No matter if one is an Arts, Science, Commerce, Engineering or Social Sciences student. An MBA from a premier business school can provide foundation for a successful career path.