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6 THE JAPAN TIMES MONDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2008 (3)

MBA fair

International financial crisis increases demand for places on MBA programsMiho IshiharaCONTRIBUTING WRITER

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Amid the global financial crisis, enrollmentsfor business schools in the U.S. aredramatically increasing. Faced with anuncertain business environment, morepeople are finding this a good time to take anMBA. Is this also the case in Japan?

Michael Leeds, director of MBA programat Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ),thinks that the number of applicants willgenerally increase. At times like these,people are re-evaluating their human capital,skills and abilities. Significant globalrealignment gives people an incentive toseek more highly valued new skills, and thecost of going to school is lower in arecession. ‘‘People have the desire tore-evaluate their niche and try to acquirethose skills. The beginning of a downturn isan especially good time to try to anticipatewhere the market is heading and to pointyourself in that direction. The MBA inparticular, being a generalist degree, is wellsuited for uncertain times like these,’’ saidLeeds.

Individuals pursue their MBAs havingreached a turning point in their careers.

Some seek management skills to advancevertically within their company while othersseek more transferable skills to movehorizontally or diagonally. Also there arethose who have to retool since skillsdeveloped in the past may not be as highlyvalued as before. ‘‘In a recession, all of thatis accelerated and all of that becomes muchmore intense,’’ he said. ‘‘That is why you areseeing enrollments in MBA programsgrowing so dramatically during the lastseveral months.’’

Already cases are being developed andcourses are being redesigned in businessschools to meet the latest events in thebusiness world, and Leeds, who will beteaching an economics course in January, ismaking changes. ‘‘Things are happeningthat are so completely new and so radicallydifferent that the rules are completelydifferent.’’

According to Leeds, TUJ’s diversestudent body is one of the school’s mostimportant strengths. The breakdown isroughly 40 percent Japanese, 30 percentAmerican and 30 percent from othernationalities. In an increasinglyinterdependent world, where countries nolonger operate in isolation, hard skills and

soft skills are crucial to operate in a moreglobal environment, said Leeds. ‘‘Hardskills would be what you learn inclassrooms, learning not just courses in,for example, international business, butlooking at international implications andviewing them in a global context.’’ Softskills are developed from working on groupassignments with students who speakdifferent languages, have different valuesystems, are brought up in differentsocieties and different cultures, and bringdifferent corporate cultures to the table, hesaid. Through this learning environment,which simulates the world we live in, TUJstudents interact with differentperspectives, and acquire skills tocommunicate and manage effectively.Most students work full time, so theybenefit learning from their peers’ extensivebusiness experience.

In the accredited TUJ MBA program,students learn from the same facultymembers and earn the same degree offeredat the main campus in Philadelphia.Membership in the TUJ family, part of thehuge network of Temple University alumni,provides students with an extended globalnetwork.

QS World MBA Tour heads for TokyoYoko KitaSTAFF WRITER

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The QS World MBA Tour iscoming to Tokyo on Thursday,Nov. 6, bringing prospectiveJapanese MBA candidates theopportunity to meet represen-tatives of more than 90 leadingbusiness schools, includingsome of the world’s top institu-tions such as Wharton, NYU-Stern, Michigan, Manchester,

INSEAD and IMD.In this time and age, it is

possible to access informationabout MBA programs throughthe Internet yet nothing canreplace meeting admissionsofficers and alumni of thebusiness school you are plan-ning to apply to.

The event also provides sev-eral informative sessions forMBA aspirants. You can learnhow to maximize your GMAT

score, and be successful on theapplications process throughGMAT and admissions strate-gy workshops. A sample MBAmaster class by top professorsof some of world’s best schoolswill allow you to get a taste ofwhat studying for an MBA willbe like. There’s a panel discus-sion by INSEAD, Manchester,Vlerick and Temple on ‘‘Choos-ing between full-time and Ex-ecutive MBA programs.’’

In addition, Nunzio Quac-quarelli (MBA Wharton), edi-tor of TopMBA.com and inter-nationally recognized experton business education, willspeak at the event about jobmarket prospects for the MBAclass of 2010/11.

The QS World MBA Tour al-so features more than $1.2 mil-lion of exclusive scholarshipsoffered by partner schools,such as Wharton, IE-Instituto

de Empresa and Ashridge. In-formation on eligibility crite-ria is available at the fair. At-tendance at the event alsoqualifies candidates to applyfor the portfolio of six scholar-ships, worth a total of $30,000offered by QS.

For the more senior profes-sionals and HR managers,there will be a VIP area focus-ing on Executive MBAs.

The event will be held from 5p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Four Sea-sons Hotel at Chinzan-so, a 10-minute walk from Edogawa-bashi Station on the YurakuchoSubway Line or 15 minutes bybus from JR Mejiro Station.

For the full school list and toregister, visit topmba.co m. Ad-mission is free with online reg-istration and ¥500 at the door.The first 100 visitors to the fairwill receive a free TopMBACareer Guide.

Studying the Executive MBA alternativeSpencer Matheson---------------------------------------

The continued growth andpopularity of the ExecutiveMBA across the globe re-flects the attractive rewardsfor participants and their em-ployers, ensuring accelerat-ed professional developmentand enhanced corporate per-formance.

Companies are realizingmore than ever that they mustinvest in employee career en-hancement to retain top man-agers, said Bernadette Con-raths, head of Kellogg-WHUExecutive MBA (EMBA).And recent conversations withadmissions directors at topbusiness schools worldwidesuggest the executive educa-tion uptrend will persist into2009, an indication that com-panies are taking this invest-ment seriously.

According to the results ofthe 2007 Executive MBA Coun-cil survey of member schools,the percentage of studentswho received promotions in-creased from 34 percent in2004 to 43 percent in 2007.‘‘Based on feedback from ouralumni and corporate part-ners, I believe that EMBAnumbers are picking up ascompanies invest more in re-tention. The demand for quali-ty executives is high,’’ said

Conraths.Targeted at senior manag-

ers and young executives on afast-track managerial ca-reer, the EMBA has been thegrowth area in managementeducation during the pastfive years. A growing num-ber of schools, including CassBusiness School in Londonand the University of Virgin-ia’s Darden School, arelaunching new programs.Meanwhile, other schools aredeveloping partnership EM-BA programs such as the Rot-man School at the Universityof Toronto and St. Gallen inSwitzerland, INSEAD andChina’s Tsinghua University,and London Business Schooland Columbia BusinessSchool, catering for an inter-nationally mobile audience.

Kirt Wood, director of mar-keting and admissions at theRSM Erasmus RotterdamSchool of Management, notesthat demand for the programis no longer regionally based.Fast-developing economiesare looking to train the newgeneration of internationallyexperienced senior managersto manage growth. ‘‘We areseeing more inquiries and stu-dents from new markets,’’ heexplained. ‘‘Central Asia inparticular is entering the poolin a big way.’’

As more and more EMBAparticipants are crossing fron-tiers, EMBA programs are un-locking the potential of the In-ternet for distance learning.Online tutorials, group ware,simulations and virtual groupassignments all play an im-portant role in the learningmodel. George Hill, chief tech-

nology officer at Bell South In-ternational, has been im-pressed with the richness ofthe distance-learning segmentof Emory University’s Modu-lar EMBA Program. ‘‘It is avirtual extension of the class-room. The ability to have dis-cussions via the Web is a pow-CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

Future executives: MBA aspirants gather at the QS MBA fair in London in February. QS

Business track: Students attend an MBA class at TempleUniversity’s Japan Campus, in central Tokyo.TEMPLE UNIVERSITY JAPAN CAMPUS

(Publicity)

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MBA fair

Global experience a must rung on ladder to the topRoss Geraghty---------------------------------------

It’s taking less time to get tothe top and an MBA degree ismaking reaching the board-room even more likely thanever before, according to theresults of exclusive researchreleased in May 2008. In addi-tion, research into the careersof the world’s top CEOs showsthat financiers have replacedmarketers as the dominanttrack for getting into theboardroom; that internationalexperience is a must — but nottoo much; and that now, morethan ever, the MBA is a careeraccelerator for those with am-bitions of reaching the board-room.

The research, conducted byprofessor Monika Hamori

(Ph.D., Wharton) from IEBusiness School in Madrid, isthe most comprehensive studyof its kind into the career tra-jectories and habits of theworld’s top CEOs. Focusing on10 top-level executives fromeach company in the Fortune100 between 1980 and 2001, theresearch featured in the Har-vard Business Review showsthe profile and career path ofmodern executives, and therole of the MBA in their ca-reers.

The most striking observa-tion is the role played by theMBA program and by leadingbusiness schools in the careersof CEOs, principally in theU.S. and Western Europe; ad-ditionally the rise of women inexecutive ranks is notable.

The statistics show thatCEOs in 2001 were more edu-cated, having completed al-most 2 percent more educa-tion — 17.3 years on the aver-age compared to the 17 yearsof their 1980 counterparts.More time behind a schooldesk translates into more timebehind a top-tier corporatedesk as younger executivesfound themselves in the board-room toward the end of thecentury. In 2001, the averageage of a CEO was 52 comparedto 56 in 1980.

There are regional differ-ences here too. The averageage of a European CEO is justover 54 years against the U.S.average of 56.2. Europe alsohas a higher percentage ofCEOs in the 45 years and be-

low age bracket (14 percent to8 percent in the U.S.) as wellas in the 46 to 55 segment (41percent to 36 percent) than theU.S. One reason for this dis-crepancy may be the timespent by U.S. executives com-pleting their MBAs. The re-search shows that far moreU.S. CEOs (38 percent) haveMBAs than their Europeancounterparts (16 percent).

So from the evidence of re-cent CEOs, it looks like theMBA is set to keep its rele-vance, said Hamori. ‘‘The factis that the proportion of MBAgraduates is growing amongyounger-generation CEOs inEurope. Some 34 percent ofEuropean CEOs who are 45years or younger are MBAgraduates while the figure is

only 10 percent among CEOswho are 55 and older.’’

She continued: ‘‘The secondpiece of evidence comes fromthe study I did with Peter Cap-pelli: a comparison of 1980 and2001 top executives. Statisti-cally, in the type of second de-grees, graduate or master’s,earned by the Fortune 100 topexecutives in the two time pe-riods, the percentage of busi-ness and law master’s degreesamong all types of degrees, in-cluding arts and science, was23 percent in 1980 and 26.6 per-cent in 2001, a slight increase.However, the overall numberof law and business second de-grees increased across the twotime periods. While in 1980there were 187 law and busi-ness second degrees earned,in 2001, we have 307 executiveswith law and business seconddegrees.’’

While there is a marked up-ward trend in the numbers ofbusiness-educated CEOs inthe world, international expe-rience is, according to Hamo-ri, extremely important inreaching the top, even thoughit comes with a slight word ofwarning. ‘‘International expe-rience is not just necessary,but it has become a businessprerequisite to have that skillset. Paradoxically, it alsoslows down your path to thetop. It’s a career gamble but isseen, these days, very posi-tively.’’

This was not always thecase. In 1993, only 7 percent ofAmerican CEOs had interna-tional experience. The latestfigure stands at 44 percent, aclear indication that such ex-perience is valued highly in aglobalizing market. Hamoriexplained why. ‘‘It’s a busi-ness requirement to have theskill sets associated with in-ternational experience. It’s as-sociated with problem-solvingand management skills; man-aging overseas staff requiresmore sophisticated manage-ment skills and dealing with

additional levels of complexi-ty.’’

This advice comes with acaveat, however. Get some es-sential overseas experiencebut don’t stay away for toolong. CEOs who spend sevenyears or more abroad do sig-nificantly worse than their col-leagues who do not, perhapschoosing to return earlier tothe eye of the storm, and beingclose to the hearts and mindsof their managers earlier intheir careers. Said Hamori:‘‘Those who embark on fewer(overseas) assignments thatlast for a shorter time, one ortwo years, or who gain inter-national experience by stay-ing in the company HQ andvisiting foreign divisions mayreach the top faster.’’

In the 2008 QS TopMBA Ap-plicant Survey, one in six re-spondents said that they seethemselves as CEOs of a largecorporation in 10 years’ timeafter gaining their MBA.While the time frame may be alittle ambitious, there has nev-er been a stronger argumentfor getting that overseas expe-rience and MBA at the sametime.-------------------------------

Ross Geraghty is managing editorof the QS Quacquarelli SymondsTopMBA Career Guide andwww.topmba.com---------------------------------------

International University of Japan’s REP electivekeeps students rooted in real business worldAn MBA will add prestige to an academiccareer and allow you to obtain furthermanagement knowledge, however, youmight need to take time out from the realbusiness world and thus lose valuablework experience while on the course.

But the ‘‘Research Education Platform’’of the MBA program at InternationalUniversity of Japan, which is the onlybusiness school in Japan to be included inThe Economist’s Global Top 100 Ranking,keeps students close to or in the real world,even when studying full time.

REP, established by the university twoyears ago, comprises the activity unitsthat work on shared global issues. The 14platforms focusing on 14 categories ofproblems serve as the cooperation basesfor IUJ’s stakeholders, such as alumni,sponsor companies, internationalorganizations, governments, localcommunities and the NGOs, to conductresearch and analysis to find practicalsolutions to those problems.

Students on the IUJ’s master’sprograms are encouraged to participate inthese REP activities. While students takegeneral MBA classes such as casestudies, lectures and team research, theyalso participate in on-going research and

problem-solving projects conducted byJapan’s blue-chip companies.

Philip Sugai, dean and a professor ofmarketing at IUJ, says that textbookteaching for current and future businessleaders is no longer enough. What theyneed is the actual experience ofovercoming key challenges, beyond casestudies. ‘‘Things are moving so fast in theinternational business world, studentsdon’t need to wait for graduation to getinvolved in solving upfront issues in thereal world,’’ said Sugai.

Sugai said that these projects connectstudents with the real business world, givethem the opportunity to interact with realexecutives through working on the sameissue, and make their master’s coursedynamic and inspiring. ‘‘Besides, as IUJhas a very diversified international studentbody, sharing opinions and perspectiveswith classmates from other countriesgreatly helps Japanese students obtainan international perspective, andbroadens their horizons,’’ Sugai added.

Some of the projects the university isworking on include ‘‘environmentalmanagement’’ with Fuji Xerox, ‘‘mergersand acquisitions’’ with AEON and NTT,and ‘‘mobile and wireless’’ with France’s

Bouygues Telecom, Dai Nippon Printing,etc.

‘‘We haven’t seen a significant trend inMBA courses worldwide employing thiskind of system, but we believe this willfundamentally be the direction businessschools will take,’’ said Sugai.

In 2008, a high percentage of IUJgraduates quickly found jobs. Accordingto university statistics, some 60 percent of

graduates had found positions in theseveral weeks after graduation while theratio was 55 percent in 2007. IUJ sees thisas a positive sign, influenced in part by theintroduction of the REP, because ‘‘In jobinterviews, our students can talk abouttheir practical experience, what they havedone in the project, instead of talkingabout cases they studied sitting at adesk,’’ said Sugai. (Y.K.)

Executive MBACONTINUED FROM PAGE 6

erful tool and has allowed meto participate frequently a s Itravel internationally. I foundthe online discussions as en-gaging and intense as theclassroom case studies.’’

The international audienceisn’t the only group attractedto EMBAs. The accessibilityof the programs means moreand more women are consid-ering studying for this presti-gious qualification while bal-ancing work and family com-mitments. Several EMBAschools are looking to accepthighly qualified women withslightly less work experiencethan they have traditionallytargeted. Columbia EMBAdean, Ethan Hanabury, seesEMBA demand trendingyounger as women check theMBA box. ‘‘They’ll do thiswhile advancing professional-ly before they start to think ofchildren and other family obli-gations. And when you thinkabout the average age ofsomebody taking an EMBA,it’s right during the peak ofchild-bearing years.’’

But what is the driver that issustaining the demand for theEMBA? After all, the pro-gram requires a considerableinvestment of time and moneyfrom employer and employee.Frank Bertuzzi is an EMBArepresentative for TerawareCommunications in the U.S.When he began his EMBA atESC Lille in France he hadspent 12 years in his homecountry as an engineer. ‘‘After12 years in engineering, I de-cided to enroll in an EMBAprogram to take charge of mycareer and expand my hori-zons. I had acquired skills insales and management atwork, but I gradually realizedthat I needed a more theoreti-cal knowledge of business,which one can rarely find incompanies. I chose to enroll atESC Lille because of the repu-tation of the school, its exper-tise in project managementand its exchange program

with UTS in Sydney, Austra-lia. I completed my EMBA inFrance and Australia, andpassed international certifica-tions in project managementand cost engineering. My ca-reer turned international and Inow work for a California-based global manufacturerthat provides solutions in opti-cal networking.’’

For the majority of EMBAparticipants, the intenseschedule is just part of thetrade-off that sees them ableto earn more and moveahead, without interruptingtheir careers.-------------------------------

Spencer Matheson is acontributing editor to the executivesection of the TopMBA CareerGuide.---------------------------------------

(Publicity)

Professor Monika Hamori, IEBusiness School

The real world: MBA students of the International University of Japandiscuss corporate environmental strategy and management in one of‘‘Research Education Platform’’ project. INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF JAPAN