A lot of MBAs start out wanting to become entrepreneurs, but then there are 100,000 reasons why many don't... What can be done to make it more viable for more MBAs to take the plunge?
I think that shift is certainly already happening (due to catalysts of the broader startup movement including cloud storage, tech outsourcing, more funding options), but education (loosely defined) around these realities within entrepreneurship is still needed to make them tangible. That you can make fairly comparable post-MBA salary at a funded startup is still not commonly understood. The opportunity to disrupt major industries where MBAs tend to have backgrounds (marketing, professional services, education) are well within reach. This kind of awareness needs to be filtered down through the administration via curriculum and formal programs (e.g. InSITE), which is very much still a work in progress at most schools
From what I've seen in the past year, I'm very optimistic that this will be embraced by both administrations and students in a big way in the next 1-2 years. I do think its worth pointing out though that a blanket evangelization of MBAs isn't the right approach. Entrepreneurship is hard and certainly not for everyone. The traditional sectors that have historically supported MBA programs are still excellent ways for graduates to contribute meaningfully to the economy. But I do hope that where there are curiosities, there are sufficient resources to explore and discover the appropriate opportunities. We're still not there yet
Great response Joe!
Completely agree with Joe. Im also really interested in what Upstart (upstart.com) is doing, equity investment in people rather than specific ideas. If this works it could be an amazing option for entrepreneurs to pay off loans and/or finance their startups after b-school.
The government and/or academic institutions can also do a lot more to support post-MBA entrepreneurs. If you go to a non-profit you get all kinds of support (deferred and forgiven loans). Well, most startups/SMBs are basically 'negative-profits' initially, but they are also the largest driver of economic growth. Why wouldn't the government support that? B-schools could do this too. It would be a great differentiator to attract serious aspiring entrepreneurs.
Great point Abe. Stern actually has a loan forgiveness/alleviation program for people going into social/non-profits. I've talked about pitching something similar around launching new ventures with a classmate at Stern, and am actually on the hook for creating a proposal. If you guys are interested, I'd love to get more input. As someone bootstrapping, the interest alone on the loans is scary and a more rational person probably wouldn't be doing what I'm doing.
Totally agree with post-grad support. Understandably, founder-loan-forgiveness isn't something a school can just activate overnight. But there are fairly easy/cheap ways for universities to strip out some of the risk for students looking to make that kind of leap. Columbia just launched a working space for post-grads working on their own businesses. In visiting recently, its clear that it doesn't represent a huge cost for the school but it is a pretty big deal for the students involved. Aside from the obvious cost element, the community thats built gives people confidence that they're not just stepping out on their own once they graduate.
I agree, it wont happen overnight, but it should happen.
The Columbia Business Labs initiative is awesome. You're absolutely right, it's a small investment/commitment relative to the value it provides. Hopefully we'll see more of those types of services from Columbia and other schools. Credit to the recent alums (Ted, Kaj, Philip and Allie) who really made that happen and to CBS (the Lang Center, Murray Low, Cliff Schorer, etc.) for supporting it.
