Continuing business education and professional development
I currently am not extremely challenged by my job and am looking for the best way to develop my knowledge so that I can develop my career further. Should I consider an MBA program, if so which one (Polish or international) or would it be better to pursue some other alternative forms of education?"
Today as the Polish market has matured, many executives face similar dilemmas: How to advance in their careers.
This executive has recognized that in order to further his career he needs to find an edge. It seems that he feels he is at an impasse in his career, on the one hand the work he is doing is no longer very challenging and on the other there do not appear to be any vacancies or development opportunities.
Is an MBA the best alternative? This depends, of course, on the situation. Gaining an MBA is a recognized and useful step in consolidating and developing a knowledge base. On the other hand, an MBA is not a substitute for professional experience and management capability (more on this later).
However, assuming that the questioner is considering an MBA, the initial questions to ask himself are: What is the time commitment I am willing to take on? What is the cost I am prepared to bear financially? What do I expect to learn from the program? Are there other benefits I can expect (e.g. financial, etc.)?
Choosing an MBA Program
MBA programs are sprouting like mushrooms across Poland to meet the demand of the marketplace. The most common structure is actually an Executive MBA program, which is pursued at weekends or in the evenings. The U.S. style two year MBA is not popular here, partially because of the time commitment (and partly because it is not an alternative). However, in EMBA programs the time commitment, for a working executive with a family, can also be frightening.
While there is clear evidence that management education is of great value to professionals, there is little empirical information of benefit from most Polish MBA programs (excluding the top two or three) and it may be difficult to choose among them.
From the well-established Polish MBA programs, many graduates are now in senior positions and can give feedback on their benefits. Also an alumni network is developing. This sort of networking does provide career opportunities.
On the other hand, graduates of the top full-time U.S. MBA programs seem to get an even greater benefit directly, both in terms of prestige and learning. There is a value to taking a year (Insead or IMD have one year programs) or two out of a career to focus on professional development. However, the cost of these programs is often so high that it does not provide a return on one's investment (there is a good Economist study on this).
All traditional MBA programs are starting to face competition from a new type of executive MBA called the Global MBA. These programs, which take place in campuses across the world, are designed for executives with 10+ years of experience and run by top global schools such as Duke and the University of Chicago.
The best programs (worldwide) offer a 'case style' of education, which is based on real life business situations. Another important criterion is your classmates - for instance, for an experienced executive it makes little sense to join a program aimed at graduates because a significant part of the learning comes from peers in the program. In fact, this is one of the primary advantages of the international MBA programs - they offer a significant international level of exposure with an extremely high caliber student body.
Advice From A Boss
I asked the CFO of a large logistics group about his recommendations for the executive's dilemma. He felt that while education is important, it is often not the crucial ingredient for career success. All too often he has seen young executives get caught on the 'qualification merry-go-round'. He gets constant requests for further education whether it is for an ACCA qualification, MBA support or tax courses, etc. His feedback is that much of the specialist education is designed for specialists. The more senior an executive becomes the more he must take a broader business overview and work on developing core management skills: leadership, delegation and negotiation capabilities.
He suggested that the executive should look carefully at why his job is not challenging enough, and discuss this with his boss. He should then try and find ways to develop the skill set that would allow him to take on a more senior job. Another alternative, common in multinationals and available to high performers, is an international assignment - perhaps in a similar position abroad or a more specialized role in the European headquarters.
To this CFO (who has an EMBA from a Polish university), the value of the MBA was the exposure to non-finance executives and non-finance points of view. He learned the importance of working cross-functionally and understanding the specific market and business issues of his colleagues on the board.
A Human Capital Point of View
The frustration that the executive expressed in the question is becoming more and more common, and should serve as a warning to Human Resource executives and senior management. So often in Poland the root of frustration, especially among high performers, is the lack of delegation of responsibility (even in multinationals) by bosses. If this executive is a high performer, then his frustration is a risk for the company. There is a strong correlation between motivation and performance.
Ray & Berndtson are currently working with the alumni network of a leading Polish MBA program to better understand the benefits that their graduates perceive, and if they perceive that the organizations they work for are fully utilizing their new skills and knowledge.
Matthew Tebeau, the Managing Partner of Ray and Berndtson Poland and the Baltic States
Today as the Polish market has matured, many executives face similar dilemmas: How to advance in their careers.
This executive has recognized that in order to further his career he needs to find an edge. It seems that he feels he is at an impasse in his career, on the one hand the work he is doing is no longer very challenging and on the other there do not appear to be any vacancies or development opportunities.
Is an MBA the best alternative? This depends, of course, on the situation. Gaining an MBA is a recognized and useful step in consolidating and developing a knowledge base. On the other hand, an MBA is not a substitute for professional experience and management capability (more on this later).
However, assuming that the questioner is considering an MBA, the initial questions to ask himself are: What is the time commitment I am willing to take on? What is the cost I am prepared to bear financially? What do I expect to learn from the program? Are there other benefits I can expect (e.g. financial, etc.)?
Choosing an MBA Program
MBA programs are sprouting like mushrooms across Poland to meet the demand of the marketplace. The most common structure is actually an Executive MBA program, which is pursued at weekends or in the evenings. The U.S. style two year MBA is not popular here, partially because of the time commitment (and partly because it is not an alternative). However, in EMBA programs the time commitment, for a working executive with a family, can also be frightening.
While there is clear evidence that management education is of great value to professionals, there is little empirical information of benefit from most Polish MBA programs (excluding the top two or three) and it may be difficult to choose among them.
From the well-established Polish MBA programs, many graduates are now in senior positions and can give feedback on their benefits. Also an alumni network is developing. This sort of networking does provide career opportunities.
On the other hand, graduates of the top full-time U.S. MBA programs seem to get an even greater benefit directly, both in terms of prestige and learning. There is a value to taking a year (Insead or IMD have one year programs) or two out of a career to focus on professional development. However, the cost of these programs is often so high that it does not provide a return on one's investment (there is a good Economist study on this).
All traditional MBA programs are starting to face competition from a new type of executive MBA called the Global MBA. These programs, which take place in campuses across the world, are designed for executives with 10+ years of experience and run by top global schools such as Duke and the University of Chicago.
The best programs (worldwide) offer a 'case style' of education, which is based on real life business situations. Another important criterion is your classmates - for instance, for an experienced executive it makes little sense to join a program aimed at graduates because a significant part of the learning comes from peers in the program. In fact, this is one of the primary advantages of the international MBA programs - they offer a significant international level of exposure with an extremely high caliber student body.
Advice From A Boss
I asked the CFO of a large logistics group about his recommendations for the executive's dilemma. He felt that while education is important, it is often not the crucial ingredient for career success. All too often he has seen young executives get caught on the 'qualification merry-go-round'. He gets constant requests for further education whether it is for an ACCA qualification, MBA support or tax courses, etc. His feedback is that much of the specialist education is designed for specialists. The more senior an executive becomes the more he must take a broader business overview and work on developing core management skills: leadership, delegation and negotiation capabilities.
He suggested that the executive should look carefully at why his job is not challenging enough, and discuss this with his boss. He should then try and find ways to develop the skill set that would allow him to take on a more senior job. Another alternative, common in multinationals and available to high performers, is an international assignment - perhaps in a similar position abroad or a more specialized role in the European headquarters.
To this CFO (who has an EMBA from a Polish university), the value of the MBA was the exposure to non-finance executives and non-finance points of view. He learned the importance of working cross-functionally and understanding the specific market and business issues of his colleagues on the board.
A Human Capital Point of View
The frustration that the executive expressed in the question is becoming more and more common, and should serve as a warning to Human Resource executives and senior management. So often in Poland the root of frustration, especially among high performers, is the lack of delegation of responsibility (even in multinationals) by bosses. If this executive is a high performer, then his frustration is a risk for the company. There is a strong correlation between motivation and performance.
Ray & Berndtson are currently working with the alumni network of a leading Polish MBA program to better understand the benefits that their graduates perceive, and if they perceive that the organizations they work for are fully utilizing their new skills and knowledge.
Matthew Tebeau, the Managing Partner of Ray and Berndtson Poland and the Baltic States
