Strategy Business Thinking With An MBA

Rob at BusinessPundit recently asked “Who needs an MBA?” and a comment by Andy Swan caught my attention, he says:

The strategic thinking aspect of an MBA is worthless. Why? Because it is EXACTLY the same strategic thinking that your competitors are using. Think of business like a poker game or trading the stock market…if most people are playing based on the same set of strategic rules, then it is going to be the “maverick” who changes the dynamic of the game and can exploit the weakness of ALL competition with a single strategic difference.

I disagree. I think the strategic element is very useful. An understanding of strategic thinking gives you an insight into what your competitors are likely to do and why. Sure following the same strategies that everyone else uses will not give you a competitive advantage, but understanding the strategies that other business are using will allow you to identify their weaknesses. Once identified you can then exploit these weaknesses. An understanding of your competitors strategies will also allow you to predict their likely response to your strategy and the limits they are working to.

The danger of course is that you assume that the strategies taught are the only strategies available, in other words you become blinkered by what you’ve learned.

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• 1

  Hi John,

  Good point. I am with you on this one. I have had seasoned project managers come into some MBA level courses and realised why they had on-going problems in their work. They were after to craft a better strategic vantage point through just a bit more education.

  Thanks

  Luke

  Luke on December 5th, 2007
• 2

  The MBA strategy module will give people a set of tools to use to look at their business in terms of customers, competitors and the environment.

  In no way does the full course say “this is the strategy to use” since it encourages investigation, analysis and insight although at a basic level some of the individual tools may appear prescriptive.

  One of the benefits I get from my MBA is the ability to see patterns of likely development in a market but that gives me a choice:
  * Do I want to encourage that pattern to happen or indeed lead it from the front?
  * Do I want to fight against it and standout from the crowd?

  It is only a choice to have if you know enough to see the patterns from what is happening.

  Paul Simister on December 5th, 2007
• 3

  Good point and I’ll concede that knowing the strategy of others is definitely a good thing.

  I do think however that there is significant risk of paradigm-fixing, which limits an MBA grad’s ability to identify strategic alternatives, and to “think” like everyone else.

  I’m definitely not saying an MBA is a bad thing….I just think that spending those 2-3 years working high up in a startup (even for no pay) is a better use of time/money.

  Just my .02

  Andy Swan on December 5th, 2007
• 4

  Andy,

  I agree there’s definitely the risk that you’ll get trapped thinking inside the box, but if you’re inclined to think that way then at least the MBA should increase the size of the box.

  I’d also agree there’s an opportunity cost associated with doing the MBA and you might well get more out of working for a startup, unless your goal is to climb the corporate career ladder – which I doubt is the case for many of my readers.

  Personally as an entrepreneur I don’t believe that the top tier business schools deliver value for money (i.e. the corporate bragging rights and networking opportunities are not as relevant) and your time would be better spent in a startup. However if you’ve already got some entrepreneurial experience and you’re looking to expand your knowledge then a part time, reasonably priced MBA may well be a worthwhile investment.

  Thanks for sharing your $0.02.

  John on December 5th, 2007
• 5

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