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of business but it basically boils down to a dozen disciplinary areas； each
with a number of ponents。 The disciplines contain the tools with
which you can analyse a business situation effectively； drawing on both
internal information relevant to the business and external information on
its markets； petitors and general business environment as a prelude to
deciding what to do。
The emphasis here in the contents of this book is on the terms ‘concepts’
and ‘tools’。 The business world is full of conflicting theories and ideas on
Introduction 3
how organizations could or should work； or how they could be made to
work be。。er。 They e in and out of fashion； get embellished or replaced
over time。 In business； for example； there is no such thing as a universal
optimal capital structure； or the right number of new products to bring to
market； or whether or not going for an acquisition is a winning strategy。
What’s best in terms of； say； a debt to equity ratio varies with the type of
organization and the prevailing conditions in the money market。 That ratio
will be different for the same organization at different times and when it
is pursuing different strategies。 Layering an inherently risky marketing
strategy； say diversifying； with a risky financing strategy； using borrowed
rather than shareholders’ money； creates a potentially more risky situation
than any one of those actions in isolation。 But whichever choices a business
makes； the tools used to assess financial and marketing strengths and weaknesses
are much the same。 It is the concepts and tools to be used in those
disciplines that this book explains； and it shows you how to use both of
these individually and to assess a business situation prehensively。
THE MBA DISCIPLINES
These are a dozen or so core disciplines that prise the subject ma。。er of
an MBA programme。 Many business schools eschew some vital elements
within these disciplines as they are considered either too practical； unsexy
from a research/career prospective or more skill or art oriented than
academic。 A prime example is the field of selling； which fits naturally into
the marketing domain but； much to the surprise of MBA students； o。。en
fails to appear on the syllabus。 There are thousands of professors of marketing；
distribution and logistics； market research； advertising； industrial
marketing； strategic munications and every subsection of marketing；
but there are no professors of selling。 Yet most employers； and students
for that ma。。er； feel that their MBA’s value would be enhanced by a sound
grounding in selling and sales management。
Some business schools miss out personal development； social responsibility
and ethics； entrepreneurship； business planning or even quantitative
methods。 Almost all of them miss out business history – a core subject at
Harvard – and business law – essential at all top schools。 You will find all of
these disciplinary areas covered in this book。
Accounting
This covers the basic assembly and interpretation of raw financial data；
from double…entry bookkeeping through to the construction of the key accounting
reports – profit and loss； cash flow and balance sheet。 It continues
through to the accounting concepts and ground rules and the auditing
4 The Thirty…Day MBA
process and the tools required to access a business’s financial health and
performance。
Business history
This is a brief review of the processes that led to the creation of the types
of business enterprise we have today； showing how they came about；
their significance and development。 The main area covered is the development
of modern industry from 1800； but the trading laws and business
structures created in Babylon and the activities of mediaeval merchants
are also relevant to an understanding of the pedigree of today’s business
environment。 The watchword here is： ‘Those who cannot remember the
past are condemned to repeat it。’
Business law
From intellectual property； employment and legal structures； through to
the laws governing contracts and corporate governance； organizations are
constrained in their actions by local and international laws。
Economics
In the 1990s there was a prevailing view that globalization and technology
would check inflation and keep prices so low that consumers would keep
consuming。 The death of the economic cycle was announced alongside the
birth of the ‘long boom’。 Today； those same forces are credited with creating
a more volatile world with more violent economic swings。 For the
manager； a grasp of elements of macro and microeconomics is essential to
making sense of the business environment。
Entrepreneurship
Until the late 1980s entrepreneurship was a paragraph or two in an economics
textbook。 The discovery by David Birch； a researcher in the United
States； that small and new businesses accounted for over 80 per cent of new
jobs propelled entrepreneurship from a footnote to a core discipline important
equally to potential participants and government policy makers。
Ethics and social responsibility
One of the primary goals of business is to make the world a be。。er place。
Until recently this was something that business moguls did a。。er a lifetime
of being responsible for oil spills； deforestation and generally polluting
Introduction 5
the planet。 Sure； Exxon can’t solve the world’s energy problems and Wal…
Mart and Nike can’t solve the poverty experienced by the 250 million
child workers and their families。 But increasingly businesses are being
required to work within accepted guidelines and to take part in the debate
about morals and responsibilities。 Monsanto alone can’t decide whether
genetically modified crops are safe or desirable and stem cells and cloning
are not subjects where it can be le。。 to industry alone to set boundaries。
But those working in an industry have a wider constituency than their
shareholders and their own careers。
Finance
Finance covers the vital areas of where a business gets its money from and
the risks and responsibilities associated with each of those sources。 Debt；
equity； bonds； debentures； IPOs； private equity and business angels are
part of this area’s vocabulary； as is appraising capital investment decisions。
Marketing
The outward face of a business is addressed to its customers and its success
or failure is the measure of how well it performs in the marketplace。 Markets
have to be identified； product a。。ributes accessed； petitors understood
and advertising messages developed to reach chosen markets。 Marketing
is perhaps the discipline with the largest number of misunderstood and
misapplied business tools of all。
Operations
This discipline is concerned with how products and services are got ready
for market （production）； delivered or executed； and the management information
system designed to track performance。
Organizational behaviour
Organizing； inspiring； motivating； rewarding and managing both individuals
and teams is the enduring challenge in organizations as they grow
and develop。 O。。en people are the defining advantage that one organization
has and can sustain over its petitors。
Personal development （and lifetime learning）
Techniques for improving career prospects are an increasingly important
aspect of MBA curricula。 This is hardly surprising； as the success of
6 The Thirty…Day MBA
acquiring MBA skills is measured； in part at least； by increases in salary
and improved job prospects and satisfaction。 Business schools offer some
of these topics during the programme but many form part of their repeat
business portfolio。 This area is one that should be constantly revisited and
in this book it appears as an appendix。
Quantitative and qualitative analysis
This is where it all began。 Fredrick Winslow Taylor； author of The Principles
of Scientific Management （1911）； set out to ‘measure each and every task and
establish a system of work’。 The first person to have on his business card the
title ‘Consultant to Business’； he was the pioneer of the school of ‘ge。。ing at
the facts’。 This is also where many business schools started out。 Cranfield
School of Management was born out of the Work Study Department； itself
part of the School of Production。
Strategy
This is the unifying discipline； o。。en called business strategy。 It deals with
the core purpose of an enterprise and how it should respond to the challenges
of a fast…changing environment。 It centres not just on how strategy is
shaped； for example using Porter’s Five Forces； but on the recognition that
no organization can be truly great in the absence of shared goals； values
and a sense of purpose – a shared picture of the future of the enterprise。
WHERE CAN YOU GET MBA SKILLS AND
KNOWLEDGE？
The most obvious answer to this question is – at a business school。 There
you will find talented teachers （some！）； eager； self…motivated； likeminded
students and a wealth of teaching resources； including books； journals；
case studies and library facilities。 In fact； for most people in most cases
this will be the wrong answer and； if pursued； will prove an extravagant
disappointment。
A brief history of business schools
The claim to being the world’s first business school is； like everything
else in business； hotly disputed。 The honour is usually said to rest with
Wharton； founded in 1881 by Joseph Wharton； a self…taught businessman。
A miner； he made his fortune through the American Nickel pany
and the Bethlehem Steel Corporation； later to bee the subject of the
Introduction 7
earliest business case studies。 The school is based in an urban campus at
Philadelphia’s University of Pennsylvania。
It wasn’t until 1900 that Tuck School of Business； part of Dartmouth
College； began conferring advanced degrees in management sciences。 In
1908 the Harvard Business School opened； with a faculty of 15 and some
80 students； and two years later it was offering a Management Masters programme。
By 1922 Harvard was running a doctoral programme pioneering
research into business methods。
Today； over a thousand business sch
