Despite the crisis, there is still a gap in the global labor market between MBA graduates and those who do not have such a degree. Recruiters compete among themselves for young talent from business schools. Nunzio Quacquarelli, editor and topmba.com, talks about the latest on this topic.
In an era of financial instability and intense global competition, the MBA degree is becoming a safe haven for young professionals aspiring to career growth. For the first time ever, continental European business schools reported higher wages alumni than their US and UK counterparts, while the US continues to be the leader in terms of bonuses and awards.
The median salary for MBA graduates in consulting is $101,137, surpassed only by salaries in telecommunications and high technology at $106,142. In comparison, the median salary for a candidate who has four years of work experience but did not complete an MBA is $66,271, and a candidate who worked four years in the field of telecommunications - $ 74,378.
In developing countries, salaries for MBA graduates range from $32,000 to $160,000. It is unlikely that these salaries will decrease, given the projected demand for managers in the coming years.
MBA graduates in media and entertainment are in third place at $97,295 compared to $63,745 for candidates with four years of industry experience. The salaries of people with a master's degree or PhD are also always lower than MBA graduates.
On average, a business school graduate who joins a bank earns $89,169. By comparison, a non-MBA colleague with four years of banking experience earns an average of $80,236. sector reached $140,000 and a rather low $25,000 in some emerging markets.
KPMG, the global market leader in providing audit, tax and consulting services, in Europe traditionally prefers simple accountants, rather than candidates with an MBA degree. Lord Michael Hastings, Global Head of Diversity at KPMG International, says things are changing. KPMG is constantly working with clients around the world who are not only asking for advice when faced with tax problems. They are interested in how they could function and best develop their business in countries where difficult situations arise. An MBA degree opens up broader prospects than a standard one financial education.
Salaries of MBA graduates depending on the region
A weakening dollar and an apparent increase in compensation in Western Europe have resulted in Western European MBA graduates earning an average of $99,156 compared to $91,283 for graduates in North America(more details - in).
Salaries in other regions, apparently, are also being pulled up to this level. Wages in Asia and the Pacific rose by more than 10% in 2008 to an average of $83,380 (Australia, Japan, Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, excluding data from China, India and Thailand).
Salaries in Latin America are also growing quite rapidly, reaching an average of $70,456 in 2008. In all regions, international corporations offer higher salaries to MBA graduates than local companies.
Within countries, salaries for MBA graduates are 20% higher in capitals and financial centers than in small towns. The UK saw the highest salary of $111,000 in 2007 thanks in large part to London-based recruiters. It is not known if the pattern will remain the same next year.
Comparing salaries in different regions, MBA graduates must also take into account living expenses - the real ratio of expenses and compensation in a particular country and company.
Every year the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) publishes a study comparing purchasing power in different countries. Purchasing power in Mexico City is 24% higher than in the US, according to the study. Despite the fact that salaries for business school graduates in Latin America are 23% lower than in North America, graduates living in Mexico City will be able to afford more than their counterparts living in the US. In contrast, Japanese purchasing power is 36% lower than in the US, but higher prices will lead to lower living standards if wages are the same as in other countries.
* The QS TopMBA.com Salary & Recruitment Trends Report is published in August each year. Its summary results are available on TopMBA.com for registered candidates for the QS World MBA Tour exhibition and other QS forums and events.
Recently, topmba.com, known for organizing the World MBA Tour, publishing MBA guides: The MBA Career Guide and MBA market research, conducted the International Recruiters Survey 2003, the largest employers in the world. The purpose of this large-scale study is to identify the latest trends in the business market -education and employment of MBA graduates. Read about some of them below.
Trends
The survey involved 4,000 employers - international corporations and companies that do not limit the search for high-class professionals outside their country. The globalization of business education and the MBA degree is one of the main trends identified by the study.
MBAs (Masters of Business Administration) are becoming in demand on a truly global scale, no matter if the employer is in Bombay or Buenos Aires, Boston or Brussels. And this expands the opportunities for business school graduates and makes them more mobile.
For example, in recent times the number of jobs for MBAs in New York has decreased, but in Beijing there is a real boom in these specialists. There has also been growth in Eastern Europe, Australia and India, countries that until recently had little interest in MBAs.
Graduates of lesser-known schools are slowly starting to compete with the elite. They do not have such high salary requirements, and knowledge is often the same. Many companies, especially those that are not among the international giants, prefer graduates of local strong schools to those who have a diploma from a world-famous school.
According to the study, the MBA hiring situation has improved this year compared to the previous year. This applies to two areas: production and consulting. Manufacturing companies that are especially active in developing an international network of branches (for example, Siemens, DaimlerChrysler, BASF) even create special programs to attract the best MBAs. Another fast growing market is IT and telecommunications companies. There are no significant changes in the financial sector. However, according to recruiters, next year growth is expected in all
areas. MBA salaries this year increased by 2%, but in general over the past seven years they have risen by 16.5%. Wage growth is projected to continue, especially in North America and Asia.
Building forecasts for the next year regarding the fate of the MBA, the experts are full of optimism. "Recruiters are returning to campuses and expect to recruit many more MBAs in 2004 than in recent years," says Alison Edmonds of the Manchester Business School. Her words are confirmed by Melissa Carlson from the American Tuck School of Business: "We expect 100 percent employment of next year's graduates."
Adrian Barrett, International MBA Employment Services, adds: "More and more small companies are hiring MBAs. It's working. chain reaction: first, one MBA gets a job in such a company, and having received the right to hire new employees, he attracts his own kind.
It is generally accepted that the holder of an MBA diploma is waiting for a career of a senior manager, whose area of responsibility includes strategic management and development of the company. Nevertheless, statistics show that the majority is engaged in consulting and marketing. The least popular area of application of the MBA diploma in recent times is e-commerce.
What do MBA graduates do?
Consulting - 18%
Marketing - 14%
Strategic planning - 12%
Consulting in the field of finance - 10%
Sales and development - 10%
Finance - 9%
General management - 8%
Operational management - 6%
IT/technologies - 5%
Logistics/purchasing - 5%
E-commerce - 3%
Top 10 MBA Hiring Consulting Companies in 2003
Accenture
AT Kearney/EDS
Boston Consulting Group
Booz Allen
Bain&Company
Deloitte Consulting
IBM Consulting
McKinsey & Co
Mercer Management Consulting
Roland Berger
Top ten banks and financial companies Hiring MBA in 2003
ABN Amro
American Express
Barclays Capital
Citigroup
Deutsche Bank
GE Capital
Goldman Sachs
JP Morgan Chase
Merrill Lynch
Morgan Stanley
top ten manufacturing companies Hiring MBA in 2003
Eli Lilly
Ford
General Electric
General Motors
GlaxoSmithKline
Johnson & Johnson
L "Oreal
Pfizer
Procter & Camble
Unilever
Top 10 Hi-Tech Companies for Hiring MBAs in 2003
AOL Time Warner
AT&T
Bertelsmann
british telecom
IBM
Lucent
Microsoft
Philips
Siemens
Vodafone
What employers want
The study shows that more than half of employers (53%) are looking for candidates with experience from one to four years, 38% are interested in specialists with experience from 4 to 8 years. According to recruiters, it is these MBAs that have the optimal combination of youth, energy, professionalism and reasonable ambitions. Those with more than 8 years of professional experience are already counting on a much higher salary, higher position and more exclusive work. But there are few such candidates, and, accordingly, employers (9%), as well as absolute beginners without experience (5%).
Speaking about professional skills, employers put in the first place the ability to manage people, think strategically and leadership qualities. This, in their opinion, is much more important than academic, financial and IT knowledge. Among other important components of a successful candidate and future manager are entrepreneurship, knowledge of the international market and the availability international relations, the ability to think and work on a global scale.
What do MBAs want?
As you know, an MBA degree is obtained not only for the sake of a career, but also for the sake of a high income. The dot.com boom in 1999 propelled MBA salaries skyrocketing. However, the collapse of this market as early as next year and the economic recession that began in 2001 cooled the ardor of employers, and the average wage level fell. And only this year there is again a slight rise, which, according to forecasts, will continue in the future, and by the end of 2004 it will reach the pre-crisis level. (see graph 2). True, the growth of MBA salaries has been outlined only in the USA and Asia,
in Europe, everything remains the same. In anticipation of the next upsurge, experts advise not to waste time and accept a job that may not meet salary expectations, but can help develop professional skills, knowledge and connections. Although, despite the instability of the economy, the game is worth the candle: after all, according to statistics, an MBA diploma provides its owner with an increase in income by 50-100% compared to what he had before.
Average MBA salary in the US and Europe ($)
1996 - 65106
1997 - 66678
1998 - 66563
1999 - 73807
2000 - 78372
2001 - 81680
2002 - 74367
2003 - 75846
The highest salaries are in the financial sector, as well as the largest bonuses and compensations, as a result of which the average total annual income of MBAs working in this area exceeds $100,000. The second place in terms of financial attractiveness is currently occupied by consulting. However, if we take into account bonuses, then high-tech business (IT, telecommunications, telephony) is almost as good as it.
Total income by sector ($)
Production: salary 69392, bonus 13642
High technologies: salary 69281, bonus 20656
Consulting: salary 73964, bonus 16143
Finance: salary 81144, bonus 26107
Companies operating in the US and Western Europe, offer roughly the same salary to MBA graduates. Slightly inferior are international corporations and investment banks located in Asia (but mainly in large financial centers - Hong Kong, Tokyo, Shanghai). More low income from MBAs in Latin America and Eastern Europe. This is due to a number of reasons: an unstable economy, less investment attractiveness, an unstable currency, and in addition, a lower cost of living. The latter, by the way, is of great importance when choosing
e places of work. After all, of course, real income is much more important than nominal. And the figures say that, for example, in Mexico the cost of living is 24% lower than in the States. This means that the noted 33% difference in salaries does not matter much, because the standard of living of a Mexican and an American with an MBA is about the same. At the same time, let's say Japan is 36% more expensive than the US, while the Japanese MBA receives on average 10% less, so his standard of living is significantly lower. According to the numbers, the best performer is an MBA who lives and works in Eastern Europe. On the
For example, the cost of living in Hungary is 55% lower than in the US, and salaries are only 44% lower. There are no similar figures for Russia in the study. But given that Moscow is one of the most expensive cities in the world, it is unlikely that the same optimistic picture would have turned out as with Hungary.
Average MBA salary by region ($)
USA - 76953
Western Europe - 75929
Asia - 70182
Latin America - 51070
Eastern Europe - 49667
Patrick McDonald
Every business school graduate dreams of getting a job as soon as possible in a prestigious, responsible and high paying job. But what are his real chances of success? Graduate employment statistics are the most important indicator of the success of an MBA program. A good position in a reliable company with a decent salary and great growth prospects is the very goal that justifies far from small funds, financial and time, invested by the student of the program in their own training.
How ratings are made
One significant nuance should be noted here. If the performance of a particular school in the ranking suddenly deteriorates, this is not a reason to panic. In some cases, this may indicate that many graduates of this educational institution are trying to launch their own startups or go to work in non-profit organizations. Accordingly, if you dream of creating your own innovative business, perhaps you should pay attention to a school that has the most favorable environment for start-ups - and not to one whose students sign lucrative contracts with large corporations.
Business schools are leaders
Based on statistics from the 2014 edition, four business schools in the US can boast that 98% of their former students started working three months after graduation: these are Chicago Booth, Goizueta, Tuck and Wharton. Goizueta has consistently delivered this indicator for the third year in a row, thus holding the world record for the number of students successfully placed in 90 days after graduation. However, if you look at the employment statistics at the time of graduation, Tuck will be the international leader with 91%.
Curiously, schools also differ in the willingness of their graduates to accept job offers. For example, in Chicago Booth, 98% of graduates were invited to a position at a company within three months, and 97% said yes. At Columbia Business School, 97% of former students received offers, but only 91% accepted them.
The highest level of income can be expected by an applicant who has not only a set of relevant skills, but also an impressive work experience and an impressive portfolio with projects implemented before entering the MBA. Some graduates can expect a starting salary of $300,000, which is the figure on the contracts of several professionals who left Stanford, Wharton and Harvard last year to work in investment banking, private equity and venture capital.
In recent years, more and more professionals dream of working with private equity, as they offer a very solid reward for this. However, the demand for MBA graduates in this field is relatively small compared to what is found in consulting, banking or working with high technology. Recruiters recruit young professionals in a very limited circle of prestigious educational institutions, and for a place under the sun in a promising industry, you have to fight hard. In 2014, Stanford alumni who entered private equity received a median salary of $170,000, the highest salary ever for an MBA graduate. On top of salary, these specialists received a median starting bonus of $40,000, and the total amount of compensation given to them for the year was $175,000 on average and $300,000 at its maximum.
In terms of bonuses, in 2014 the world's largest annual compensation of $350,000 went to a Wharton graduate. Taking into account the basic salary, the income of the lucky one for twelve months reached (and, possibly, exceeded) half a million dollars. According to the balance of power today, for high bonuses in addition to salary, you should go to hedge funds: there, annual compensation for effective employees reaches $150,000 with a salary of $125,000.
The most modest salaries are usually offered in retail, healthcare, entertainment and media. Can not boast of phenomenal income and holders of MBA diplomas, employed in non-profit organizations. Those specialists who go to work in Asia or other regions of the world stand apart, where, in accordance with the local standard of living, their salary is more than competitive, but in terms of the dollar equivalent it seems modest. For example, last year a graduate of Kenan-Flagler Business School, who left for an Asian country with an emerging economy, began to receive only $ 23 thousand. Three more graduates from schools such as Columbia, Michigan and Carnegie Mellon started with a salary of $ 24 thousand - and this was a record low for 2014.
However, it should be understood that personal income is a very delicate topic. Most well-established graduates, if they make something public, as a rule, the salary level, but not the amount of bonuses. Some business schools - including Harvard - do not publish the salaries of their former students, even on condition of complete anonymity, limiting themselves to more abstract indicators (for example, that 13% of their graduates working with private equity and leveraged buyouts can expect a median bonus of in the amount of $80 thousand). Conspiracy is observed in order to ensure the privacy of specialists, and also so that applicants do not have high expectations about their own prospects.
Caroline Zimmerman, along with her MBA from INSEAD Business School, acquired the usual set of benefits: an understanding of business fundamentals and a wide network of connections. However, one skill was not offered by the program - programming in Python.
Python is one of the most important tools in Zimmerman's work (she leads the analysis and data processing at the music company BMG). However, her lack of technical skills didn't stop her from applying for the job, because at INSEAD she learned how to face challenges—not to be afraid of them. And Zimmerman taught herself Python in online courses.
The desire to learn something new that you don't know is valued more than broad knowledge in the tech sector, Zimmerman says.
The ability to solve complex problems is one of the five most sought-after skills for MBA graduates by employers, according to the FT's 2018 FT MBA Skills Gap Survey. More than 70 of the world's largest employers took part in the study.
The FT data shows that employers tend to hire graduates with the right soft skills, such as the ability to work in a team and find mutual language with the most different people(among the most important they were named by 64 and 54% of FT respondents, respectively).
MBA programs traditionally provide a variety of professional knowledge and work skills (hard skills), and, according to employers, candidates with the necessary professional skills (for example, who accounting who know marketing, economics, programming or foreign languages) is easier to find.
Susan Sandler Brennan, assistant dean of the Sloan School of Management at MIT, says positive social-psychological qualities will help those with them protect their jobs in the era of automation. However, at the stage of hiring an employee, such qualities are more difficult to assess than the same accounting skills. Now companies are increasingly using preliminary online testing of candidates, which means that only applicants with the necessary professional knowledge and experience reach the interview stage. The ability to build, maintain and expand relationships can be very valuable to an employer, but without the necessary technical skills, a graduate will not be invited to an interview, says Sandler Brennan.
Leading employers are increasingly skeptical about business schools as a channel for training employees with the necessary skills - both socio-psychological qualities and professional knowledge.
The Most Important Skills for Employers
1) Ability to work in a team 2) Ability to work with a wide variety of people 3) Ability to solve complex problems 4) Ability to build, maintain and expand relationships with people 5) Time management and the ability to prioritize
“We expect candidates to have professional experience, the ability to manage a team and coordinate work with clients,” says Anna Perchas, Partner at KPMG UK. Consulting company is looking for candidates with experience in their field, with leadership qualities and enthusiastic about their work. However, KPMG UK found that such candidates can be found not only in business schools, but also in other companies, especially in the technology sector. “We're not in the business of recruiting MBA graduates, and we don't even keep track of how many of our employees have that degree,” Purchas said.
Employers from all industries have admitted that big data analysts are the hardest to find. 13% of FT respondents said it was impossible to hire such specialists.
Candidates for positions at KPMG related to cybersecurity or data analytics should be proficient in programming languages such as Python and R and data visualization tools such as Tableau.
Zimmerman says that the lack of technical subjects in the MBA program did not affect her satisfaction with the course, the acquired knowledge and experience were already valuable, but she feels that business schools do not pay enough attention to technical skills, while many of their graduates go to work to the technology sector.
Sangeet Chufla, CEO of the Graduate Management Admission Council (the organization that administers business school entrance examinations), says business schools are trying to add technical disciplines to programs and this process is proceeding quite quickly.
Still, a third of tech companies surveyed by the FT said they had the hardest time finding MBA graduates with programming skills.
Five Skills Employers Are Hardest to Find
1) Ability to influence others 2) Strategic thinking 3) Energy and resilience 4) Ability to analyze big data 5) Ability to solve complex problems
Almost half of the survey participants admitted that they had difficulty finding business school graduates with the skills and qualities they needed, and that the difficulty was getting worse every year.
Chufla recommends that business schools act in two directions: to identify candidates with the right employers potential and force students in the learning process to solve unusual problems and interact with people who are different from them. All this will help them in their work.
MBA graduates generally agree with employers that the right psychosocial qualities are most important, the FT survey found. However, they value their strengths than employers. Graduates from elite business schools most often cited energy and resilience, as well as the ability to solve complex problems, as their strongest qualities. Recruiters say these are the qualities they find hardest to find in business school candidates. Sandler Brennan acknowledges that MBA graduates overestimate their abilities.
Translated by Nadezhda Belichenko
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