Business Owners: This Is Why You Need An MBA
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
The Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree is often associated with high-flying leaders of the business world, but, in fact, that association no longer represents all who study the MBA. The degree is undoubtedly still a powerful tool for leaders and managers, but it’s also relevant for those who are aspiring leaders, those who are specialists in their field, and finally, business owners and budding entrepreneurs. Whether you’re conceiving your first startup idea, or you’ve run your own company successfully for quite a while, the MBA provides the knowledge and strategies to support your business journey. In an environment where around 60% of small businesses close within the first three years, having the right knowledge and skills will often be the difference between success and failure. Here are just a few ways that the AIB MBA helps business owners to start, run and grow their ventures.
Not every business is suited to fast growth, so it’s important that you understand your business and what strategy works for you. Once you’ve worked out what sort of growth you want to pursue, you can develop a plan to finance the business and fuel that growth. Venture capital may be in your sights, or you might prefer to stick with self-financing. There is a range of options, so understanding the pros and cons of each is a must. View the AIB MBA Subject Guide to learn more about the subjects studied and outcomes achieved.
A Holistic, 360-Degree View of Business
Running a successful business requires one to be an all-rounder. You need to know how to market your product or service, identify your target market, raise and manage the finances, hire and manage staff, as well as have excellent customer service skills. All that and more, plus the in-depth knowledge and skills on the product or service that you’ll offer. Entrepreneurs often have the initial great idea, and usually, some technical acumen to go with it. They may not, however, have the skills and knowledge to build a successful business from that idea. That’s where an MBA is so valuable. An MBA will give you a holistic overview of what’s involved in running a business, from learning how each business function works to teaching you about the wider industry in which your business operates. When studying the AIB MBA, all students will develop their leadership skills, grow their understanding of operations practices, and they’ll learn about marketing, finance and human resources.A Business Plan and Strategies for Growth
At AIB, the MBA in Entrepreneurial Management is designed specifically for business owners, entrepreneurs, or those with ambitions to run their own business. With a focus on entrepreneurial thinking and growth, product design and consulting, you’ll learn how to conceptualise, develop, grow, manage and commercialise ideas through business creation. It teaches how to foster an innovative work environment, and importantly, it will assist you in developing a comprehensive plan to set your business up for lasting success. If you already have a business plan, the MBA will help you to validate it or highlight some areas for improvement. The specialised MBA will also help you understand the key growth phases of a business so that you can decide whether to scale, how to obtain financing and other growth strategies. Knowing when to scale and how to do it properly is one of the trickiest decisions a new business owner will make. Too fast, and you risk finding yourself with too many balls in the air to juggle safely. Too slow, and you might find that someone else corners the market before you do.