Global MBA Market Trends
By Nigel Banister
Special to The St. Petersburg Times
|
|
For The St. Petersburg Times
Manchester Business School has seen the numbers of its Russian students increase dramatically during the past two years, and expects to see more and more Russians joining its ranks in the future.
|
Globalization and technology have had a huge impact on the executive education market. The landscape has tremendously changed over the past decade. Many Western economies have entered a period of recession whilst other parts of the world continue to prosper and grow, notably in Asia. As an international school offering finance, construction and engineering MBA programs to more than 3,000 executives worldwide, though we haven’t felt a downturn in enrollment. On the contrary, in time of recession people are especially keen to get ahead of the crowd and also our student base is very widespread geographically. We have noticed a series of leading trends, beyond the increasing popularity of specialist MBAs, with vocational diplomas, which provide students with customized programs to suit their career. Flexibility has also been an important trend, as a lot of people are increasingly reluctant to take 18 months off to study for an MBA, especially in the context of the credit crunch. As I travel to our different centers around the world — Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jamaica, and soon Shanghai — I have picked up a number of other leading trends on the global MBA market. BRIC in Focus The first major trend is that any big business school will now have offices or be planning to open one in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). Russia is very important to us; we have had Russian students for over a decade, and have noticed a huge increase in numbers during the past two years. We are also finding that we are getting a lot of students from Africa recently, now equating to 15 percent of the cohort. Many schools have launched Global MBA programs. Our own Global Manchester MBA program has been largely oversubscribed and is a huge success only a year after having been launched. Globalization, which is being accelerated by the rise of emerging economies, in particular China and India, and by the falling of entry barriers around numerous countries, has been driving this demand. In parallel, a lot of business schools have started to offer shorter courses to meet the students’ demand, although this is not something we are considering at Manchester. Back to Basics In terms of popular modules, there has been a shift away from specific program modules such as banking and financial management to more traditional modules such as leadership and international business strategy. This reflects three major factors of today’s market: Increased competition and recession in the West, and globalization. When times are tough, improving leadership talent is more than ever a business priority, as leadership skills are really put to the test and organizations with the right quality and quantity of leaders will be those emerging from the mass, as they will weather the storm better than the less prepared and equipped. In the face of pressure to reduce costs, organizations must remain firm in their commitment to invest in leadership. International business strategy has also been a favorite. Bricks and mortar Specialists’ MBA, covering industries such as construction and engineering, have been very popular. For instance, three years ago, Manchester Business School Worldwide launched an MBA for Construction Executives that was developed with U.K. industry bodies of excellence such as ConstructionSkills, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and Royal Institute of British Architects. The MBA for Construction Executives has met with phenomenal success in Dubai, which is the heart of a tremendous construction boom and where the school has a thriving branch. I can see a similar pattern occurring in Russia, given the huge construction spur currently underway throughout the country, the revenues it is generating (it is estimated that the construction industry is now comparable in turnover to the domestic oil industry), the launch of enormous infrastructure projects by private developers and federal agencies, and the tremendous need for more housing in the country. For years now, getting an MBA has been seen as a rite of passage for many executives wanting to further their career and get the most coveted jobs in a competitive and global market. Despite fears that the popularity of the qualification would dilute its “gold standard” reputation, the MBA remains the leading business qualification in the world. We see a clear path for us in Russia, as our next strategic point to open a branch given the rise in our student base here. With a thriving economy and dynamic workforce, we very much see a future for us here and very much hope that we will see more and more Russian executives joining our ranks. Nigel Banister is CEO of Manchester Business School Worldwide www.mbs-worldwide.ac.uk. Manchester Business School is ranked 22nd in the world by the Financial Times Global MBA Rankings published in January 2008.
|
Ïåðåâåñòè íà ðóññêèé
Print this article
