For MBAs, a Brave New World

As business models evolve, post-recession MBA jobs will, too, with employers looking for well-rounded types with strong leadership skills
By Eitan Ahimor

When trying to explain the regression that usually follows a chaotic event, Albert Einstein once said, "I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones." While the MBA job market may not revert to "sticks and stones," its future is likely to be quite different from what came after the last recession in 2001.
There is no doubt that the current recession will also be followed by an increase in MBA recruitment, but the nature of the opportunities offered to freshly minted MBAs will change. In the period following the dot-com crisis, companies sought MBAs with special skills and knowledge of niche areas, such as structured finance and private equity, as they strove to extend their business and gain market share by offering their customers sophisticated products and services. This strategy resulted from the flourishing capital markets, available funding, stiff competition, and increased consumer demand. Both MBA students and business schools were quick to seize upon these new market needs as many students chose to specialize in things such as financial real estate, financial engineering, advanced securitization, structured finance, and other exotic courses. Many MBAs saw business school as a gateway to a niche area instead of the place to develop leadership and general management skills like corporate finance, marketing, and operations. In our current recession, however, this approach is bound to change.
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