Alma Mater Index

7/17/2019 Alma Mater Index

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2013


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/alma-mater-index 3/16 THE Alma Mater Index: Global Executives September 2013 3

W here a person went to univer-sity has long played a signifi-cant part in his or her career.

Oxbridge was the favoured huntingground for recruiting British spies (andcivil servants), while a Harvard MBA ona CV won’t have turned many corporateheadhunters off a candidate.

Whether it was an inspirationallecturer, an industry placement that got afoot in the door or the network of friendsand contemporaries, for the vast majorityof these CEOs, university was where itbegan. Of course, innumerable factorscontribute to any career path, and partic-ularly to those leading to a really big job.But to a greater or lesser degree, univer-sity will have played a role in many a riseto the top of the corporate ladder.

To create the Alma Mater Index:

Global Executives we examined theeducation history of the CEOs as per theFortune Global 500 2013. We countedhow many degrees institutions hadawarded to these CEOs and ranked themprimarily on this number. Then we lookedat how many CEOs had graduated (aconsiderable number had spent theirentire higher education at one institution),and ranked the institutions by those whohad educated the most individuals. Thenwe considered how much money theseindividuals’ companies were responsiblefor, using their revenue as our measure.

Some universities in the Alma MaterIndex are as big a brand as the companiesin the Fortune Global 500; indeed, someare even better known. The growth of brands in the university sector has beenphenomenal, with monikers such as

‘Russell Group’ no longer being used onlyby academics, but also by potential

students, their parents and in almostevery speech regarding pupil aspirationand student/teacher recruitment from theUK Secretary of State for Education.

Universities have always been aboutdeveloping independent learners, teachingthe value of scholarship, creativity andfree thinking. Many also aim to createfuture leaders – and can claim to haveeducated many already.

So why look at where the CEOs of the500 companies in this year’s FortuneGlobal 500 attended university? First andforemost, because it is inherently interest-ing. Leave two people together longenough and one will ask the other where(if) they went. It is more than likely thatthey will make assumptions based on theanswer. About intelligence, background,social connections and whether theycould be a useful person to know.

There is a clear leader in the number of CEOs produced. And it’s unlikely tosurprise anyone. But the rest just might.As you’d expect, the Northern Hemi-sphere dominates the table, but the splitbetween East and West is much more

balanced – perhaps a reflection of thegeography of the 500 companies.However, the number of countries repre-sented by universities is much lower thanthe countries represented by companies,demonstrating an international degreeexperience is a commonality on manyexecutive CVs, with the majority includ-ing a spell in the US.

Including the THE World UniversityRankings alongside the Index givesanother perspective – a good WUR posi-tion does not seem to guarantee corporatesuccess for its graduates. Of course, manyinstitutions in the Alma Mater Index arenot eligible for the WUR as they are post-graduate institutions or do not conductresearch. But the Index is iconsideringonly those people who are running the500 largest corporations.

Alma maters are key to the alpha jobs

Our new index shows the

link between a university’sreputation and successfulbusiness careers.Fiona Salvage reports

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11

12

14

Introduction

Does your almamater matter?Richard Cree looks at where

CEOs went to university

Top 10 women CEOs

Alma Mater Index:Global Executives

The top 100 universities

Methodology How the Alma Mater Index:

Global Executives was devised

Country filesUniversities by location

The top 10 CEOs

The learning curvePeter Bartram considers if an

MBA is a shortcut to the top

Top 10 MBA institutions

Profile: Justin King The CEO of Sainsbury’s reveals

how his alma mater shaped

his career

Contents

Supplement editor Fiona Salvage

[email protected]

Account managers Matthew Clancy

[email protected]

Lucy Reddin

[email protected]

Design Chris Barber

Sub editor Susan Wood

Also available as a digital edition

www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/executives


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/alma-mater-index 4/164 THE Alma Mater Index: Global Executives September 2013

Where you went could determine wResearch appears toconfirm that manypotential employersput more weight onwhich university youattended than on

what you actuallystudied there, writesRichard Cree

Plenty of column inches have beenfilled in recent months examiningbizarre aspects of Mark Carney’s

life. During the recruitment process forhis new role as Governor of the Bank of England, it’s unlikely his prospectiveemployer, George Osborne, wasconcerned about his ability to wear shortswell or the modern-art tastes of his wife.He would have been interested in howwell he performed in last job, heading upCanada’s central bank. But was he alsocomforted by the fact that Carney isHarvard and Oxford educated? From themoment the Canadian became the firstforeigner to take on the job, much hasbeen made of the impact his time atOxford had on him. But what part doesuniversity education play in the modernbusiness environment? And does it matter

where you get that education? This firstranking of the institutions behind theFortune Global 500 CEOs, THE AlmaMater Index, suggests that it does.

Perhaps most striking is the benefit of studying, as Carney did, at Harvard. TheBoston-based institution comfortably topsthe Index by every measure. The debateas to the return on educational investmentis an old and ongoing one. Plenty of academic research shows a correlationbetween future earnings and the qualityof university attended. But how doeswhere you study affect a business career?

Regardless of what you study, the pres-ence of the right institution on your CVreassures potential employers about yourlikely aptitude for the job. Mark Free-bairn, a partner at top City headhuntersOdgers Berndtson, agrees with this.

“There is an elite group of top universitiesthat stand out. If you have been toHarvard, Oxbridge or INSEAD, that hasan impact.” As a headhunter, Freebairnsays that no matter what level the post heis looking to fill, he and the employerboth look at where a candidate studied.“A lower-class degree from a top institu-tion is better than a first-class degree froma less well-respected one,” he argues.“For prospective employers there iscomfort in the fact that someone has beenselected ahead of a lot of other applicants.It means they are obviously bright. Pass-ing that selection process is an endorse-ment for employers.”

Professor Steven Haberman, dean of Cass Business School, part of City Univer-

sity London (ranked 89), agrees: “Highlyranked universities are much more selec-tive in their intakes, so if you got into ahigh-profile institution and graduated, itsays something meaningful about yourskills and potential. This can only be aplus on your CV. But it is just one elementof what makes a strong CV.”

For all the soul-searching that prospec-tive undergraduates go through to choosethe best course to study, often with oneeye on picking a subject that will do themost for their future career, where youstudy has much more impact than whatyou study. The Alma Mater Index doesn’tsuggest that any one topic or type of course leads to success. There are plentyof specialist business schools on the list,

New man of Threadneedle Street The fact that Canada’s Mark Carney attended Harvard will have influen



ere you go in business

but most universities listed here are gener-alist institutions offering a wide range of faculties and subjects. This supports theview that the school matters more thanthe subject. One caveat is that success inmining and engineering companies, whichform the bulk of the world’s largestorganisations, seems to depend on havinga related specialist degree.

Freebairn concurs that, save for thesehighly vocational courses, recruiters arenot concerned about the subject studied.“It is institution first, quality of degreenext – what they studied comes a longway behind. Most degrees are meant tobe up to a comparable standard so a 2:1in history is better than a 2:2 in law.”

This view is further supported by

research from the Centre for Economicsof Education, which identifies a typicalaverage wage premium of up to 10 percent for graduates from a Russell Groupuniversity compared with those from amodern one. A spokesman for the RussellGroup adds that the most recent researchconfirms that the average salary sixmonths after graduation from RussellGroup universities was £22,399, morethan £3,500 higher than the average forthe rest of the sector. “Graduates face anextremely competitive job market, but itis clear that a degree from the rightinstitution remains a valuable invest-

ment,” she says.According to Freebairn, this head start

really matters to future prospects. “Whilepeople still look at where a candidatewent to university, and the quality of degree and what they studied, by the timesomeone is 45 with 20 years’ experience,it is less relevant. But it has an impact inthe first three to five years. By then theadvantage is established and it is difficultfor laggards to catch up.”

Haberman agrees: “A very importantthing, after where you study and howwell you do, is what you do with theskills and knowledge you have acquiredand how you demonstrate what you’velearned.”

He adds that leading institutions alsogive students opportunities to build anetwork. “This can be with classmates,

lecturers and alumni, but also at the high-profile events the best schools hold, whichare attended by business associates.” Hesays that Cass, which has invested heavilyin its alumni network in recent years andboosted its events programme, “regu-larly” hears from alumni that they have“relied heavily” on the network of students, alumni and other businessfigures during subsequent careers.

Jim Aisner, director of media andpublic relations for Harvard BusinessSchool, says this is certainly the case forHarvard students. “Needless to say, wethink HBS adds tremendous substantive

value to a person’s higher education. Wehave extraordinary faculty, students, facil-ities and a global alumni network,” hesays. “Students here learn from one other(the average entering age here is 27, soeveryone has work experience from allsorts of backgrounds) as well as theirprofessors. Because students are put in theshoes of decision-making executives everyday, the process is an education in judg-ment as well as one that focuses oncompetence and character. Our mission is‘educating leaders who make a differencein the world’.”

The top 10 institutions in the AlmaMater Index offer a good representationof the entire index, certainly in terms of type and location of institution. Four arelocated in the US, three in France, two in Japan and one in Korea. But, as already

Simon Calver is 18

months into the

biggest challenge of

his career to date,

turning around the

previously struggling

Stock Exchange-listedhigh-street retailer

Mothercare. Every day

he says he draws on

things learned at

university but also in

his career since. He

studied computer

systems at Hull

University (“famously

described by

Blackadder as ‘one of

the great universities’,”

he points out, although

Blackadder was trying

to catch out a German

spy). And his approach

to the businesses hehas worked for since,

from Deloitte to Pepsi

to Dell to LoveFilm,

has been informed by

skills he picked up at

university. “It’s about

understanding the

systems and key

metrics that make a

business tick,” he

explains. “You have to

be able to break a

business down to work

out what makes it

work. Being able to

work out what you

need to measure is

essential.”

Calver adds that he

also gained huge

amounts after

graduation from his

time on the Unilever Companies

Management Develop-

ment Scheme, the

highly regarded gradu-

ate management-train-

ing scheme.“I derived

as much of importance

to my career at

Unilever as I did at

university.”

Simon Calver, CEO, Mothercare

his appointment as Bank of England Governor

G E T T Y



Fortune

Global

500

2013

Company Country CEO Bachelor’s Master’s MBA PhD

25 Petrobras BRA Maria das

Graças

Silva Foster

Universidade Federal

Fluminense, Chemical

Engineering

Universidade

Federal do Rio de

Janeiro, Nuclear

Engineering

Fundação

Getúlio Vargas

43 Hewlett-Packard US Margaret C

Whitman

Princeton University,

Economics

Harvard

Business School

62 IBM US Virginia M

Rometty

Northwestern

University, Computer

Science and Electrical

Engineering

82 A rcher Daniels Midland US Patricia A

Woertz

Pennsylvania State

University,

Accounting

122 Pertamina IDN Karen

Agustiawan

Bandung Institute of

Technology, Industrial

Engineering Faculty,Physics Engineering

137 PepsiCo US Indra K

Nooyi

Madras Christian

College

Yale University,

Master of Public and

Private Management

Indian Institute

of Management

in Calcutta

216 Lockheed

Martin

US Marillyn A

Hewson

University of Alabama,

Business

Administration

University of

Alabama,

Economics

237 Westpac

Banking

AUS Gail P Kelly University of Cape

Town, History and Latin

University of

Witwatersrand

267 DuPont US Ellen J

Kullman

Tufts University,

Mechanical

Engineering

Northwestern

University,

Management

313 Mondelez International US Irene B

Rosenfeld

Cornell University,

Psychology

Cornell University Cornell

University,

Marketing and

Statistics

TOP 10 WOMEN CEOS

mentioned, the most striking thing is theutter dominance of Harvard at number one.By every measure Harvard beats its near-est rival twice over. Fifty-one of the CEOsrunning Fortune Global 500 companieshave a degree from a US institution in thetop 10 of this index. Of these, half (25)count Harvard as their alma mater. Thecombined revenue of companies led by achief executive with at least one Harvardqualification is a staggering $1,548 billion(£988 billion). Its nearest rival in terms of financial clout is the French École Poly-technique, whose alumni run companiesworth $917 billion. By contrast, theUniversity of Oxford (the highest-rankedBritish institution on the Index) claimsalumni responsible for revenues of $268billion, while City University London laysclaim to its CEOs running companies inthe Fortune Global 500 worth $85 billion.

There is an interesting split betweenEast and West on the list. More than half of the institutions on the Index are in

North America and Europe. Japan alsofares well, with the University of Tokyoranked second in the index. It awarded 14

degrees to 13 Fortune Global 500 CEOswho together look after companies worth$756 billion. Perhaps predictably, Chineseinstitutions also figure in large numbers,but without any individual one yetmaking the top 10. The most notable isTsinghua University, which is ranked at13, and has trained seven of the FortuneGlobal 500 CEOs, together responsiblefor companies worth in excess of $300billion. It is likely that future editions of this index will include more institutionsfrom emerging economies. The combinedoffering to this inaugural index from insti-tutions in BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India andChina) economies is already significant, withdegrees awarded to 47 CEOs (almost 9 percent of the total), with revenues betweenthem worth in excess of $2,500 billion.

So in a global business landscape, doacademic institutions need global reputa-tions to have any real impact? Habermansays they do: “Academic institutions thatwant to operate on a global level need to

be known internationally to attract thebest faculty and students, and make animpact with their research.”

Among the top 10

CEOs (see page 11),

one common trait

stands out when

examining their CVs.

Sadly, it has less to

do with their educa-

tion and more to do

with their post-gradu-

ation careers. The

majority of the top 10

CEOs are loyal com-

pany men who have

stuck with the same

organisation either

since graduation or

from very early on in

their careers.

What this means for

the importance of

education and where

a person studied ishard to evaluate, but

clearly there is a lot

to be said for knowing

your way around an

organisation and

having the persis-

tence to climb the

corporate ladder.

The same is true for

the top 10 female

CEOs, (see below),

although here there is

slightly more of a

trend towards a busi-

ness, finance, eco-

nomics and generalist

degree, rather than

more specific engi-

neering qualifications,

which dominate the

male top 10

(although that is likely

to be effect rather than cause).

The power of loyalty



Alma Mater

Index

THE WUR

position

Institution name Country Number of

degrees

awarded

Number of

CEOs

Revenue

(US$ bn)

1 4 Harvard University US 31 25 1,548.32 27 University of Tokyo JAP 14 13 755.63 =2 Stanford University US 13 11 492.54 =62 École Polytechnique1 FRA 12 12 916.75 HEC Paris FRA 10 9 616.8

6 ENA, École Nationale d’Administration FRA 9 9 695.27 15 University of Pennsylvania US 9 8 405.48 5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology US 9 7 428.59 351-400 Keio University JAP 8 8 706.7

10 =59 Seoul National University2 KOR 8 8 473.111 18 Cornell University US 8 6 375.312 INSEAD FRA 7 7 440.913 52 Tsinghua University CHN 7 7 301.114 10 University of Chicago US 7 6 489.915 19 Northwestern University US 7 6 323.716 14 Columbia University US 6 6 545.717 226-250 Mines ParisTech1 FRA 6 6 532.118 =54 Kyoto University JAP 6 6 384.619 11 Yale University US 6 6 330.520 351-400 Waseda University JAP 6 6 304.221 =2 University of Oxford GBR 5 5 26822 351-400 Southern Methodist University US 5 4 575.323 56 University of Southern California US 4 4 70424 226-250 University of Witwatersrand ZAF 4 4 369.325 41 New York University US 4 4 327.126 226-250 Korea University KOR 4 4 180.827 Chuo University JAP 4 4 160.528 Universität Stuttgart GER 4 3 357.129 =70 Georg-August-Universität Göttingen NLD 4 3 324.330 Shandong University CHN 4 3 129.231 105 Technische Universität München GER 4 2 158.332 Bocconi University ITA 3 3 284

33 301-350 Sapienza University of Rome ITA 3 3 253.834 =156 Texas A&M University US 3 3 237.835 Fundação Getúlio Vargas BRA 3 3 222.936 6 Princeton University US 3 3 218.737 =94 University of Notre Dame US 3 3 177.838 Universität zu Köln GER 3 3 16839 San Diego State University US 3 3 161.640 61 Pennsylvania State University US 3 3 160.441 12 ETH Zürich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich CHE 3 3 139.142 China Europe International Business School CHN 3 3 13743 Hitotsubashi University JAP 3 3 136.144 69 Purdue University US 3 3 135.445 7 University of Cambridge GBR 3 3 131.346 20 University of Michigan US 3 3 113.347 Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC CHN 3 3 102.748 276-300 University of Kansas US 3 2 231.149 =171 Universität Bonn GER 3 2 173.850 =174 Georgetown University US 3 2 162.251 Comillas Pontifical University ESP 3 2 150.152 =128 Tokyo Institute of Technology JAP 3 2 126.953 58 Katholieke Universiteit Leuven BEL 3 2 123.154 226-250 University of Cincinnati US 3 2 89.655 =72 Erasmus University Rotterdam NLD 3 2 67.556 University of St Gallen CHE 3 2 53.357 Babson College US 2 2 33558 23 Duke University US 2 2 218.259 47 University of Minnesota US 2 2 213.7

60 51 Brown University US 2 2 207.761 76 University of Pittsburgh US 2 2 188.362 Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro BRA 2 2 183.963 Clark University US 2 2 174.564 Polytechnic University of Turin ITA 2 2 173.165 351-400 University of Oklahoma US 2 2 173

TOP UNIVERSITIES IN ALMA MATER INDEX: GLOBAL EXECUTIVES 2013



TOP UNIVERSITIES IN ALMA MATER INDEX: GLOBAL EXECUTIVES 2013

Alma Mater

Index

THE WUR

position

Institution name Country Number of

degrees

awarded

Number of

CEOs

Revenue

(US$ bn)

66 48 Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München GER 2 2 158.167 Southwest Jiaotong University CHN 2 2 153.968 University of Delhi IND 2 2 15369 Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications CHN 2 2 150.370 87 Tufts University US 2 2 147.7

71 University of San Diego US 2 2 142.272 251-275 Hong Kong Polytechnic University HKG 2 2 137.573 Tianjin University CHN 2 2 125.674 147 Osaka University JAP 2 2 124.275 118 University of Virginia US 2 2 119.176 Hanyang University KOR 2 2 118.677 Jilin University CHN 2 2 117.378 Zhongnan University of Economics and Law CHN 2 2 115.579 113 University of Cape Town ZAF 2 2 112.980 University of North Carolina at Charlotte US 2 2 112.281 Sciences Po FRA 2 2 112.182 Nankai University CHN 2 2 110.583 9 University of California, Berkeley US 2 2 98.384 91 University of Colorado Boulder US 2 2 9685 Tongji University CHN 2 2 95.386 École des Ponts ParisTech FRA 2 2 89.387 University of Science and Technology, Beijing CHN 2 2 87.988 ESSEC Business School FRA 2 2 85.389 City University London GBR 2 2 85.290 201-225 Queen’s University CAN 2 2 84.491 28 University of Melbourne AUS 2 2 83.492 Cranfield University GBR 2 2 81.993 Wuhan University of Science and Technology CHN 2 2 73.294 Huazhong University of Science and Technology CHN 2 2 67.995 Harbin University of Science and Technology CHN 2 2 67.796 301-350 Wayne State University US 2 2 67.497 150 Boston College US 2 2 66.6

98 351-400 University of Houston US 2 2 63.499 21 University of Toronto CAN 2 2 60.2

100 Hosei University JAP 2 2 59.6

Methodology

E

ach CEO’s education has been

researched using executive biogra-phies from sources such as company

websites (current, previous or non-execu-tive director companies), company pressoffices, current or previous company orthird-party company-authorised pressreleases, university alumni announce-ments, university press offices, industryassociation websites, conference speakerbiographies or news sources (eg, Fortune,Forbes, Bloomberg, Reuters). Wherecompany or university information is notavailable, news sources have, where possi-ble, been verified with another source.

The placement of institutions has usedthe following hierarchy: the total numberof degrees awarded to CEOs; the totalnumber of CEO alumni; the total revenueof the alumni CEOs’ companies.

The methodology was as follows:

! CEO(s) are as listed by Fortune in the

Fortune Global 500 2013, published inFortune’s 22 July 2013 issue.! Where joint CEOs for one company arelisted, we have endeavoured to includeboth alma mater(s) where the informationcan be found, but revenue for thecompany is counted only once if theCEOs share an alma mater.! Where one CEO is listed for twocompanies, the institutions are countedonly once, but the revenue for bothcompanies is counted.! Where a CEO has two degrees from thesame institution, the revenue is countedonly once.! Where a CEO is working a noticeperiod and the incoming CEO is known,the individual listed by Fortune has beenused. Where a new CEO was in post atthe time of publication, but his or her

predecessor was named in the Fortune

Global 500 2013, we have used the CEOlisted by Fortune.! Executive education (eg, short-coursemanagement programme) or othercourses (eg, higher nationals) that havenot resulted in a degree are not included.! Where the degree-awarding institutionhas been subsumed into anotherinstitution or has changed name, thecurrent name has been used.! Revenue has been calculated using US$billion to one decimal point.! Management schools have been listedunder the parent institution.! Where a CEO has dropped out of adegree, the institution has not beencounted for that instance.! Where information has not been found,companies have been contacted directly,but not all have responded.

1 Carlos Ghosn is CEO of Nissan Motor and CEO of Renault. He is a graduate of École Polytechnique and Mines ParisTech. The institutions were accredited once eachfor his degrees, but the revenue calculation for each institution includes the revenue for both Nissan Motor and Renault. 2 Both CEOs of SK Holdings were awardedtheir first degree from Seoul National University, so both degrees and CEOs are counted in the totals for the institution, but the revenue is counted only once.



Fortune

Global 500

2013

Company Country CEO Bachelor’s Master’s MBA PhD

1 Royal Dutch Shell NLD Peter Voser Zürich University of Applied Sciences,Business Administration

2 Wal-Mart Stores US Michael T Duke Georgia Tech, IndustrialEngineering

3 Exxon Mobil US Rex W T illerson University of Texas at Austin, Civil Engineering

4 Sinopec Group CHN Fu Chengyu Northeastern PetroleumUniversity, China,Geology

University of SouthernCalifornia, PetroleumEngineering

5 PetroChina CHN Zhou Jiping Nanhai Marine ResearchInstitute of the ChineseAcademy of Sciences,Marine Geologic Structure

6 BP GBR Robert W Dudley University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,Chemical Engineering

Thunderbird Schoolof Global Management,Management

SouthernMethodist University

7 State Grid CHN Liu Zhenya Shandong IndustrialInstitute, Engineering

8 Toyota Motor JAP Akio Toyoda Keio University, Law Babson College

9 Volkswagen GER MartinWinterkorn

Universität Stuttgart,Metallurgy and Metal

Physics

Max-Planck-Institute for

Metal Research10 Total FRA Christophe

de MargerieÉcole Supérieurede Commerce

TOP 10 CEOS

UNIVERSITIES BY COUNTRY IN ALMA MATER INDEX: GLOBAL EXECUTIVES 2013

13

14

1

2

3

4

76

9

10

11

12

816

17

515

1 US 382 China 153 Japan 94 France 85 Germany 56 UK 4

7 Canada 38 Italy 39 Korea 310 Brazil 211 Switzerland 212 South Africa 2

13 Netherlands 214 Australia 115 Belgium 116 Spain 117 India 1

Alma Mater Index:

Global Executives 2013 by Country

The 100 institutions that make up the Alma Mater

Index 2013: Global Executives are spread over only 17

countries. The US dominates the table, with 38 in total

and four in the top 10. Another major player is France,

with six in total and three in the top six.

Notes: Peter Voser will leave Royal Dutch Shell at the end of March 2014. Ben van Beurden was announced on 9 July 2013 as his successor and will be in post from 1 January 2014



Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, is onebusiness leader who believes anMBA can be an entry ticket to the

executive suite of the world’s largestcompanies. He told students at the FuquaSchool of Business at North Carolina’s

Duke University: “An MBA helps you towork with people who have a very differ-ent point of view from your own.

“For me, that was the overwhelmingvalue of being here – not learning aboutthe specific rules of marketing or strategyor operations.”

There are hundreds of other CEOswho swear that they would never havemade it to the top without their MBA.Gary Smith, a graduate of Britain’sAshridge Business School, is one of them.Smith, now CEO of US networkingtechnology company Ciena, valued atsome $2 billion (£1.27 billion) says:“Without an MBA, I don’t think I wouldhave been given the opportunity tobecome CEO. Could I have become aCEO without an MBA? I think so, but itwould have been more difficult. And I’mnot sure that I would have had the confi-dence to take it on.”

Ankur Kumar, director of MBA admis-sions at the University of Pennsylvania’sWharton School of Business – one of THE’s top 10 – says there are threereasons why an MBA should help ambi-

tious managers on their way to the top.First, the core curriculum covers topicssuch as operations, marketing, strategy,communication and leadership, whichprovide a good understanding of allaspects of business.

Secondly, an MBA programme canprovide access to a network for bothformal and informal advisers throughfaculty and alumni. “And, thirdly, bynavigating different interpersonal situa-tions, you get a great lesson in decision-making, time management andprioritisation,” says Kumar.

But not everyone is convinced that anMBA is such a hot ticket in a businessworld that is changing faster than ever.Candice Carpenter Olson, a HarvardMBA and former CEO, says: “Myperspective is that an MBA is no longer

the requisite path to business leadership itonce was.”

Olson, co-founder of the FullbridgeProgram, which provides courses thatprepare recent graduates for the work-place, says: “The pace of potentiallearning in a real job is much faster thanit was when the MBA was invented andmoves far quicker than any current MBAprogramme. Therefore, the opportunitycost of sitting out two years of selling,working with customers, making presen-tations, and thinking about new busi-nesses is quite high.”

Olson argues that even the supposed

benefits of using business schools to builda contacts network are not all they arecracked up to be. “There are manyeffective ways to build a solid and rele-vant network today,” she says. “In anyevent, that personal network will have tobe constantly refreshed and rethought in achanging global business over the courseof a career.”

Graham Clark, director of the full-timeMBA programme at Britain’s CranfieldSchool of Management, says that whetheran MBA helps an ambitious managertowards the CEO’s chair or not dependson the quality of the course. “If it’s a

Is the MBA still an express ticket to the top?

Some people feel the degree

got them where they aretoday, others query its worthin a fast-changing globalscene, says Peter Bartram

ALMA MATER INDEX TOP 10 MBA INSTITUTIONS

Alma

Mater MBA

Rank

Alma Mater

Index 2013

Institution Number of MBAs awarded

to CEOs in Fortune Global

500 2013

1 1 Harvard University 14

2 12 INSEAD 7

3 3 Stanford University 5

4 14 University of Chicago 5

5 7 University of Pennsylvania 4

6 16 Columbia University 3

7 11 Cornell University 3

8 42 China Europe Inter national

Business School

3

9 22 Southern Methodist University 3

10 13 Tsinghua University 3

Apple’s Tim Cook reckons an MBA provides entry to the executive suite



course where you sit in a classroom andtake on board bits of management theory,that’s probably a waste of time,” he says.“But if the course is focusing on aspectsof leadership in its broadest sense, then Ithink an MBA is invaluable.”

He says an MBA should equip futureleaders with the ability to turn ideas intoreality.“There’s an old view that an MBAis a smart-arse who knows what to do butcan’t actually do it,” he adds. “There hasto be an implementation piece in thecourse; how do you create something andhave the backbone and courage to see itthrough?”

Pejay Belland, director of marketing,admissions and financial aid for thedegree programmes at Paris’ INSEAD –another THE top 10 business school –agrees that teaching executives to makethings happen is important. “Schools suchas INSEAD prepare students for roles inwhich they will need to hit the groundrunning – through the sheer intensity of

the programme,” she says.She also argues that the diversity of

faculty, students and cultures at topbusiness schools prepares CEOs to runmultinational businesses in the future.“An MBA, particularly from a top school,can help executives to refine their skills,broaden their knowledge of all aspects of business, particularly in the global arena,build their network and accelerate theircareer path from an early stage.”

However, Vincent Bastien, who wasCEO of the luxury brands Louis Vuittonand Yves Saint Laurent Parfum beforebecoming a professor teaching on theglobal executive MBA programme atParis’ HEC business school, says: “AnMBA is only really useful when you are aCEO or COO – head of a company. Thenyou must understand all aspects of yourbusiness.”

Former British cabinet ministerVirginia Bottomley, now chair of theboard and CEO practice at headhuntersOdgers Berndtson, says that an MBA willcertainly be one of the things sheconsiders when reviewing candidates for amajor CEO post.

“An MBA from one of the most pres-tigious business schools certainly suggests

that the individual has great intellectualability,” she says. “They will also havehad exposure to a highly multiculturalenvironment exchanging views and learn-ing from others.”

But lack of an MBA would not rule outher recommending a suitable candidate,she stresses. “But I’d need to satisfymyself the candidate had ability,intellectual rigour and a strategic facility.”

She adds: “The other thing an MBAsuggests is that the individual has a usefulnetwork, which often lasts through theircareer. So the MBA has become ratherlike the old school tie.”

Not all MBA graduates have followeda traditional route. Howard Collinsstarted his working life as a trainee on theLondon Underground, driving trains andsweeping platforms. Then he decided totake an MBA at Westminster BusinessSchool. That was followed bymanagement posts in London Under-ground.

Now he has just been appointed CEOof Sydney Trains, which operates the railservices in the Australian city. He says:“The MBA programme introduced me topeople from across the full business spec-trum. These people opened my eyes tonew ways of thinking.

“And the programme gave me real-lifeimmersion into new industries and execu-tive exposure to how businesses reallywork at board level.”

Virginia Bottomley: MBA is ‘old school tie’

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Higher education can be a wonder-ful and enriching experience, butit’s not for everyone. My own

four years at Bath were hugely enjoyableand an excellent career springboard, butI’m a firm believer that at every stage of

life people should be encouraged tofollow the path that is right for them. Adegree is by no means the only route intoa successful career, a truth that is demon-strated not least by hundreds of brilliant,senior managers at Sainsbury’s.

As for me, I was educated at TudorGrange in Solihull – a grammar schoolthat became a comprehensive while I wasthere. Leaving with four A levels (maths,physics, geology and general studies), Iwanted to go straight into work – I wasconsidering accounting or joining theNavy. But my sixth-form college provided

great encouragement, and after lookinginto vocational courses at the Universityof Bath I fell in love with the city andknew immediately that this was where Iwanted to go.

I chose a four-year degree in businessadministration. This gave me a good,formal grounding and the tutorials gaveme an opportunity to test my thoughtsand ideas. As it was a sandwich course Icould gain practical experience but alsopay my own way. In retrospect, this wasone of the best decisions I ever made as itreally suited my circumstances – again, it’sso important to find what’s right for you.

The course also gave me the opportu-nity to join Mars as a graduate, my firststep into the world of business. Mars gaveme a very broad range of experience earlyon and the chance to work alongsidesome very talented people. It’s remarkablejust how many leaders in the food andconsumer goods industries now startedtheir careers in Mars.

Most people say that university is notjust about the learning. My course was aclose-knit group and many stay in touchtoday. And it was quite an eclectic groupthat included Bob Wigley, now chairman

of hibu and Expansys; Russell Senior,guitarist from Pulp; and broadcaster NeilFox. Friendships forged at university canbe incredibly valuable, as can those youmake with people in the early years of your working life, wherever that may be.

Sainsbury’s employs around 50,000people under 25, so I’m often asked foradvice on career paths. I don’t automati-cally think of formal, higher education.My advice to prospective students issimply “to apply yourself, work hard andbe tenacious”. If you have an entrepre-neurial streak, you should take time tobuild your knowledge of your chosen field

and do your research. If you want tolearn, do something that gives you theopportunity to apply that knowledge,such as a vocational degree or work expe-rience. Whatever you do, it should besomething you enjoy, that will ensure youdo it to the best of your ability.

Qualifications can be valuable andenriching, but I always advise people tochoose carefully. I believe the experienceyou share with your peers and the oppor-tunity to find out more about yourself arejust as important as the degree or workexperience itself.

‘Whatever you do, it should besomething you enjoy’Sainsbury’s CEO Justin King

says experiences shared withpeers and a chance to learnabout yourself are just asimportant as qualifications

2011 CBE for ser vices to the

retail industry

2010-12 Prime Minister’s Business

Advisory Group

2009 Honorary DBA,

University of Bath

2009-13 Board of the LondonOrganising Committee of

the Olympic Games and

Paralympic Games

2007-present Non-Executive Director of

Staples, Inc

2004-present Chief Executive Officer

Sainsbury’s, Chairman of

the Operating Board.

2000-2004 Director of Food at Marks

and Spencer Group plc

1993-2000 ASDA/Wal-Mart

1990-1992 Häagen Dazs UK

1989-1990 Pepsi International

1983-89 Mars Confectionery

1983 BSc Business

Administration,

University of Bath

Justin King CV

Alma Mater Index

Documents

Transcript of Alma Mater Index