While a famous movie was called “What women want”, I’m pretty sure that most of our students wonder “What Employers Want” instead. As the MBA jobs market is changing fast, it’s important for graduates to identify the skills that may turn their MBA in a golden ticket.
To shed light on the process, the Financial Times conducted an anonymous survey about the skills employers look for — or don’t — in MBA graduates.
It may surprise you, but having a talent for finance, marketing and other core MBA subjects, probably won’t make your CV stand out. Soft skills like networking and time management will do instead.
The magic formula to success doesn’t exist, but the Financial Times survey helped us to identify the three top skills you should focus on during your MBA
1.Networking
The ability to create a solid community on and offline is among the five most important skills mentioned by the survey.
International programs offer many occasions to meet people from all around the globe; an opportunity you should grab. Exactly as Ramy Temraz, MIP MBA Alumnus, did: “I had the unique opportunity to meet life-time friends, learn a new language, and interact with inspiring entrepreneurs and intellectuals…”
2.Time management
“What I feel is that 24 hours is not as short a time as it seems. I am learning to fit in all my plans and hoping to upgrade this skill to perfection soon and use it — even after graduation — for good.”
Vira Smyshliaieva, i-Flex student at MIP, is both mother and COO, and she is cultivating her time management skills.
Is there anything more valuable than a manager who is able to prioritize and schedule his workload? No, according to the employers surveyed. A Part Time or a digital learning format will teach you to juggle between a full-time work, family and school assignments.
3.Working with a wide variety of people
Last but not least, 76% of the employers interviewed highly valued the ability to work with people from different professional and cultural backgrounds. A theme that is important also for MIP students, as testify Ammar Akhtar, comment:
“The more time you spend with different people, the richer you get. We first spent two amazing days learning about cultural diversity and how to handle it in the workplace with Prof. Raffaella Bossi Fornarini. I must say it was eye-opening for all of us.”
An interest shared also by Sifan Guo, Part Time MBA student at MIP:
“I enjoy in particular working in team with my classmates who are professionals from all different industries. We learn a lot from each other’s way of thinking and working”
There is an extra tip I would like to share: be patient! You may need a bit more time than expected to be hired in a senior level position, but never give up! Hard and soft skills are important, but recruiters also look for people really interested in working in their company and ready to fit in the firm’s culture.
If this survey tempts you to begin the MBA journey, seize the moment! Our Recruitment Staff will be glad to help you find the program that suits you best!
