I graduated from the university more than twenty years ago, but I have always wanted to go back for a master’s in business administration programme. This was a thought, desire or an idea I considered perennially but discarded every single time. This year, 2023, I decided to take the plunge. The modular executive MBA of the Lagos business school seemed to be the answer to all the important questions that bedevilled the decision process. The rigour of preparing for the entrance examination and the interview process was a fore taste of what has now become a new way of life. I am happy and very proud that I was accepted into this world class school in Nigeria.
I am learning and experiencing new things every day . One lesson that the MBA is reinforcing is the necessity of technology in this digital age. Technology has introduced new ways of doing things. This is my first experience of attending classes online. This virtual world requires a new level of self-discipline and regulation to thrive and take complete advantage of the opportunity. In this new world, your phone is a mini technological tool that must be deployed. You learn the fluidity of switching from your phone to your laptop depending on the task. The data analytics class demands you listen to the lesson as well as practise on your spreadsheet at the same time. It helps that our lecturer is patient and always willing to explain concepts more than once.
One of the indirect but very strong lesson I am learning from my MBA is that Nigeria can be great and excellent in every sphere and Nigerians can make this happen. The Lagos business school flaunts excellence right from the entrance gate with its polite security men, well-manicured lawns and fountains to the clean classrooms and toilets in the building. The technology deployed in all the classrooms can rival any institution of learning anywhere in the world. Everything runs like clockwork. It gladdens my heart that more than ninety percent of the workforce of the Lagos Business school are Nigerians. This is a mini example of what Nigeria can be.
So far , I am learning to question everything I think I know and to go back to the fundamentals. I must unlearn and relearn. My classmates are as diverse as can be. I am learning the art of collaboration especially at the group level. The class has been divided into four different study groups. We all need each other, and we must cooperate to succeed at our different tasks. The interactions with my group members are reacquainting me with the different stages of forming a team. The intensive lecture weeks of school on campus are teaching me how to sit through two and a half hours of paying attention to a particular subject. There are four courses for the first semester- management communication, data analytics, analysis of business decisions and corporate financial accounting. All courses are interrelated, and you cannot afford to neglect any subject.
To be continued….
