How an MBA is Likely to Be Helpful for Digital Media Start-up CEOs
When wanting to create a digital media start-up, it goes beyond being an operator (as the E-Myth Revisited book describes most founders) While traditionally, companies look to bring on MBAs, startup founders can also benefit from studying for this high-level qualification too.
In this article, we examine how you can study for an MBA while getting your business off the ground and how it can be of benefit too.
Why MBAs are Now Possible to Study Part-time
A master’s degree used to be something that required several years of full-time study at college. They were expensive and difficult for people to undertake if they already had other responsibilities like a mortgage or a family. Now that’s all changed.
With a distance learning MBA, it’s possible to take classes over the internet at your own pace now. This lets busy founders find the time to watch pre-recorded lectures or review subject materials when it’s most suitable to do so. Many distance learning MBA courses also don’t require attendance at a campus either, which saves time for people out of town or who don’t wish to lose more time commuting to the college campus.
Funding the Start-up
The majority of start-ups require more working capital than what they thought. This can be because of inaccurate budgets used from the beginning or failing to achieve positive cash flow in the time expected.
When studying for an MBA, there’s typically a financial module or two. These tend to cover corporate finance including topics like raising capital to fund expansion, different forms of credit available and how to negotiate successfully for them.
Drawing up detailed financial plans and understanding financial statements clearly enough to plan well is part and parcel of what’s covered in these modules. This is extremely helpful for founders who have less of an understanding of accounting than they would prefer.
Strategic Planning
Many new businesses fall down when it comes to strategic planning. Pursuing the wrong things can lead to money drying up before projects come to fruition and sufficient sales are achieved. This causes many startups to fold because they fail to plan many steps ahead and consider all the possibilities.
With founders who learn to think in a strategic manner about their markets, competitors, products and services, and how best to market to prospective customers, they tend to perform better than ones who essentially operate without clear strategic goals in mind.
When studying for an MBA, it puts founders behind the scenes with case studies of other businesses, students also look closely at operations too. This helps confirm how successful businesses are run, which informs the way forward in their own company too.
Studying for an MBA while working through the planning and launch phases of a start-up allows entrepreneurs to acquire key knowledge and skills that are difficult to get on-the-job. Without this knowledge, business mistakes along the way can prove extremely costly.