Qualifications vs Experience

In a couple of weeks I'll be off to Adelaide where I'll attend the AIB's class of 2018 graduation ceremony. In this event I'll be handed a Parchment that represents so much time, effort and sleepless nights. See for me receiving an MBA is more determination than anything, I left school at year 10 and have worked ever since.

I'm not blowing my own trumpet here but I was very blessed to be in situations whereby skills I had where needed in positions above me. It was thanks to these situations where I had managers who took a well guided punt to elevate me to being the youngest state manager of my time (in the company). At 25 years old I was managing the affairs of a small state and then 18 months later was managing a huge operation in the biggest state. To people reading this I'm sure lots have achieved the same where others might not have been so lucky. Either way through zero education I received promotion after promotion and worked on some enormous projects often beyond my ability however, I surrounding myself with very clever individuals and we pulled of some fantastic results.

This leads me to my real question - do I need this piece of paper? As many of you have wondered the exact same question I'd be curious to know your thoughts. For me I can see 2 sides.

1, No i don't. I've made it far enough from the floor that my management now is really based on how can I make sure my employees feel excited to come to work everyday. My entire M.O. is about making sure they come to work, be productive then head home with a better than average work life balance.

I can (I hope) say I achieved this in positions I've been in. Is an MBA going to help me do this better? I'm unsure, but my teams success across all fields from WHS to KPI creation to contractor management to deliveries, is my success.

2, Yes it does, its the ultimate 1%er. In my current position I'm lucky enough to be involved in meetings with senior managers including our CEO. I find that without any thought or hesitation I can easily keep up in conversations of any nature and can have valuable input - why? Because an MBA teaches you - no - forces you to critically analyse every action, decision and process within your vision. Here I'm not talking about running a quick six sigma session and creating a process map. I'm talking about a really deep dive, one in which you open so many doors that to fix one you improve an entire operations feel for both your employees and the company as equal.

Within the MBA course you learn the basics from whats the difference between a sole trader to corporation and the far reaches of financial management which teach you calculations like this one - P/E1=D1/E1 / rE-g= D1/E1 rE-[(1-D1/E1) X ROE] - if anyone asks this is something to do with shares.

My conclusion

If anyone out there has little education but a crap ton of industry experience and is considering it I'd say go for it but assess your current life and ask how much free time do I have per week? You need at least 15 hours a week to scrape through (in my experience) and any more is higher and higher marks. Ask yourself what do I do in my life that I can give up for a year or 2 in order to free up space for said degree?

I promise anyone out there that it is worth it if you are looking to excel your career, sure a ton of people are higher than me in the workforce with less qualifications, all good, they learnt what they know through other experiences. I'm happy to say that I can keep up with there lingo and even assist them on matters where particulars are needed.

The ultimate question -will having an MBA lead to promotions which lead to better lifestyles - yes, if you apply your learning, I can't see any company not welcoming professionals improving themselves which in the long run your company and its share holders or owners (for private firms) will take benefit.

In all honestly I did most of my course alone so I'd love to hear what other experiences people had and if they agree with me in this. I'd also welcome other point of views that I can think about.

Daniel Byrom