3 years post MBA - a reflection

It's a combination of factors. Some people come in very good ideas of exactly what they want to do, and others, most I would argue, come in with a better understanding of what they don't want to do. Even among those who say they know what they want, often the reasons seem a bit superficial (money is usually a key motivator), and as any behavioral economist will tell you, money is a poor motivator. On top of that you layer a very intense microcosm of MBA life - 500 similar minded students all searching for the 'perfect job' - and its pretty easy to be swayed by the bright lights and the song and dance. Companies put a LOT of money and effort into recruiting people - they can make most any job sound glamorous. I don't think its an issue of not doing your homework, I think its an issue of perception vs reality. That's in part the beauty of the internship, you get to try before you buy - and one of the biggest reasons I think the FT program is better than a PT program (unless you plan on staying in industry/function). This is all a bit rambling but basically I think people pick wrong because they 1) Dont REALLY know what they want to do, 2) There's a tendency to pick from a small 'menu' of jobs (you can be a banker, a marketer or a consultant), 3) The idea of something is usually better than the reality of it.


My comp before MBA was basically 100K, so I wasn't going in with the expectation that I'd be leaving with some stellar ROI. (One friend was at 42,500 before school, and landed a gig at $127K right out - now THATS ROI!). I haven't a clue what my lost income, tuition and other crap added up to, but it was probably close to a $400K total including the opportunity cost. But I didnt go to grad school for money (well, in part money) - I went because I didnt want to do the same crap I had been doing before and knew an MBA was the most likely way to change job and function, without also taking a huge paycut to do it. This year, I'll be well ahead of where the graph below suggests I should be.

So, is the ROI there? Probably. Hard to say what I would have made if I hadn't gone to get an MBA. That said, I do know people who make less - a lot less in some cases - one girl I know spent a year looking for something and ended up at 90K. I know another guy who took a job offer 2 years out at total comp of $120K. I know another person who, far as I can tell, hasnt been able to get a job at all. Of course, there's a sampling bias problem here too - the only people who share their incomes are those who know they are doing well.... people don't generally offer up "Yo! I'm at 75K plus free coffee!"...

Theres also the real value of the intangibles -- getting to do something I do enjoy and having the network to call on .... I dont know how you value that, but its hard not to look at it and say its meaningful.

By the way, if you are curious what the averages look like -

and

From: https://faculty.chicagobooth.edu/mariann ... s_1209.pdf


Yes. Clearly. ROI and job and happiness etc. But its clear that not everyone feels the same way... Like I said, I've got that one friend who just cant understand how someone younger than him with a non-top tier MBA could possibly get promoted ahead of him - or god forbid - someone without an MBA. It drives him INSANE. He's categorically convinced he should be making $500K a year by now and thinks its absurd that the rest of his company hasn't realized that. He holds a HUGE grudge against booth and wouldn't be caught dead saying anything positive about his MBA.


I must admit im shocked that some of these firms have managed to stay alive. There are a few that don't surprise me at all - I was offered a chance to invest in one at graduation, and wanted to but just felt like it was going to be a lot of money. I wish I had. They just closed a KPCB investment a few months ago. Granted I'd be diluted to 0.000001% by now, but dang!!! Other companies I cant understand how they manage to stay in business - but honestly I dont know of a single company started out of Booth in my year thats folded. I'm not sure what to make of that - it can't be that every single one is successful... but the folks that started them were die hard passionate about it and I could see them eating ramen noodles just to keep the lights on.


I feel like I'm a lot closer to the ideal. If I could layer in a little international experience, I'd probably be completely in love. I got my MBA to leave my industry and go into general management with ideally, P&L responsibility. I've got that now, even if its not huge. I've got my direct reports and a slew of indirect reports, I've got strategy setting authority and get to drive my business line. At the end of each month I can see if what I'm doing is making more money or making us less - and I love being able to just pull up a report and say 'Yup, cool. Add another million to the AB!'. Bottom line, I have fun going to work, I make decent money and I work decent hours. Unless someone can find a way for me to do this job from a ski chalet or the beach, there's not a whole lot more I could ask for.