And what does one do with an MBA anyway? What kind of role does an MBA typically fill? What kind of tasks is he/she responsible for? Who are the more popular recruiters?
Below are three commonly filled roles by newly minted MBAs. Keep in mind that these are broad categories and there are many types of opportunities available inside and outside of these descriptions. Still, the companies listed below hire MBAs year after year and are used to offering the kind of exposure, experience, and compensation that an up and coming executive expects.
- Management Consulting. These firms help solve high level strategic problems at the nation’s top companies. The executives will ask you a tough question that challenges their business and you will work hard to find the answer. Market research, competitor analysis, and historical trend research are some of the tasks involved in this role. Top firms in this area are McKinsey & Company, Booz·Allen & Hamilton, Bain & Company, The Boston Consulting Group, and Accenture.
- Investment Banking. These firms advise companies on issues of financial strategy. They help companies trade securities, raise money, and manage financial assets. Accounting knowledge is very important because “bankers” are excellent at understanding how money flows through a company and pointing out a company’s financial pain points. Examples of top companies are Merrill Lynch, Smith Barney, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Goldman Sachs.
- Brand Management. These companies make many of the consumer products you use everyday. Kraft, General Mills, Procter & Gamble, Nestle, and Coca-Cola are examples of large firms in this area. This role functions a lot a like a general manager where you are responsible for the profit and loss of a certain product line. Your job is to understand the vision for the particular “brand” and work with your team of experts to create promotions, extensions, and ultimately a profitable product line.
Keep up your research!
Tags: competitor analysis, job, market research, mba, mckinsey, recruiters, trend research