Can you create a balance between an MBA, work, and family? That was the question a number of people asked me when I started considering an MBA. Coming from an engineering background with several years of experience in the financial sector, I thought it was time to learn how to make strategic business choices, and learn more about Finance, Economics, and the impact of humans in business decisions making.
I decided that if I will go ahead with an Executive MBA, it had to be at Lagos Business School (LBS). That is because the institution has a renowned pedigree in delivering excellence and the program is adapted to the African and international context. I also realized that it will help me to achieve the right balance between work, study, and family.
We started with an orientation program where the MBA director and alumni association welcomed us with an address. We also met with other renowned faculty which further convinced me that LBS EMBA was the right choice for me.
In our first semester, we are to cover five courses. Analysis of business problems, which teaches us to analyze cases without bias. Data analytics, where we explore the use of Microsoft Excel and the representation of statistical data. Corporate Financial Accounting is where we gain knowledge to interpret financial statements and basic accounting principles. Then, The nature of human beings, reminds me that in addition to the psychological part of human beings, man is homo-economical. Lastly, Management communication, where we have learned about crisis management, presentation, and writing skills. Search inside yourself, a mindfulness-based emotional intelligence technique has helped me manage anxiety better simply by taking time to take deep breaths and relax.
One exciting aspect of the courses in LBS EMBA is that they are all related. The application of all the courses is seen in analyzing cases. It is amazing how the class groups are organized to have a cocktail of different academic and professional backgrounds with different skill sets. This encourages teamwork and fosters collaboration among Executives. It also helps us learn to manage our emotions since we are all different and just started building our team. In analyzing a case, you have to follow these steps to ensure an unbiased decision.
- Understand the situation
- Define the problem
- Be guided by objectives
- Brainstorming on alternatives
- Develop criteria
- Evaluate alternatives
- Take a decision
- Develop an action plan
The analysis of a business problem is incomplete without financial analysis because we need the numbers to take decisions after computing our variance and of course presenting the proposed solution to the management of the organization.
Lagos Business School EMBA has helped me learn how to prioritize better, improve my time management skills and also incorporate digital adoption into my daily life. Communicating which could be written or verbal is incomplete without feedback. This is one of my learnings from the management communication class. In addition, use the right words for the appropriate audience for clarity. Ever wondered what we could do with a mean in a data set? The knowledge I have acquired from my data analytics class has made me understand the importance of statistical concept as it represents the typical value of all data set. Many decisions in the industry are taken by computing the standard deviation which is a variation from the mean.
It has been four weeks in but definitely feels like four months of learning. I’m so excited about the journey ahead.
