I quite agree and most good business schools recognise that and require real commercial experience before accepting students onto the course. As I’m sure you know.

Unfortunately there are also people with an MBA and no real business experience who do tend to be arrogant and they’ve given the brand a bad name.

Like many of your respondents I think that an MBA is really valuable, but probably most valuable when you are in a position to apply the lessons and principles that have been acquired and learned.

I have an MBA from the Open University. It took me sveral years to progress through the entire route through Diploma and on to the full MBA. I even had to “drop out” for a couple of years whilst I started up a new business! So, I was in a great position to apply everything I had learned. I feel far more “rounded” in my business skills and have acquired a greater degree of self-confidence and self-worth as a result of gaining a wealth of practical as well as theoreticval knowledge.

I think also, that many of those who knock the MBA do not have one themselves. Do they have an adequate amount of knowledge of what is involved to acquire one to criticise those who have made a significant effort to learn the real craft of management?

I finished up with an MBA by accident.

Yes I know, it’s difficult to believe.

You have to enrol at a business school, hand over a small fortune in crisp £20 notes and then work all the hours in the day to do the course work, revise and pass the exams.

I am a chartered accountant by training and we have to do mandatory continued professional development but I am a business development coach and consultant so all that boring stuff about accounting standards and tax updates wasn’t relevant.

I resented paying £500 a time to go on a day’s course where I learnt little just to keep to the ICAEW rules.

I also ran into a little bit of competitive pressure from MBAs so I contacted a few Business Schools and asked if I could do an individual module as CPD.

It cost a bit more but there was structure to the courses.

I choose Strategic Management to start with from the Manchester Business School. I offer strategic planning services and didn’t want to be seen at a competitive disadvantage.

It was great and it forced me to focus on areas that I had avoided. Business strategy (out-thinking and
out-manoeuvring competitors) is what excites me.

So I did another module and then another.

It got to the stage that when I ran up for the next I was asked to call the boss and persuaded to sign up formally. There wasn’t that much extra I had to do to earn those special letters.

It was still filling my professional obligations for continued professional development and I was hit with the impending even close.

“Paul if you sign up now the price is £xxxx but if you leave it to the next semester it will cost you £x,xxx extra and you will have to do another module that your accountancy qualification exempts you from”.

Decision made and that’s the story of how I received my MBA (with distinction) from one of the best Business Schools in the UK.

It has certainly made me more aware of management issues and helped synthesise the different skills you need to help businesses.

But an MBA is not essential to for an entrepreneur.

Instead look for a clear vision, a great idea with real profitable marketing opportunities, the courage to act, sheer determination and hard work.

As a business coach I would also say that an entrepreneur should know when to take advice.

Thanks again John. I have got carried away but you’ve inspired me to put a version of this on The Business Coaching Blog.

Interesting idea, I’m not sure that a startup is the most relevant place to apply the knowledge though. In the UK most business schools insist on the applicant having a few years experience in industry before starting their MBA so they should already have an idea how to apply the knowledge to a business.

Markos,

I couldn’t agree more with the last sentence.