6 ms·

This needs to be solved demand-side, not supply-side. If you graduated a class of TechMBAs right now they wouldn't have any jobs to use their new skills. Flip

This needs to be solved demand-side, not supply-side. If you graduated a class of TechMBAs right now they wouldn't have any jobs to use their new skills. Flip it around: if Google opened up a new role for "Active engineers with MBAs", and presumably a few others followed suit, a top school or two (GSB/HBS/CBS/etc) would create the curriculum & recruiting plan to fill it. (Most likely Google could do this together with a school, they tend to have very close relationships.)

nekopa 10y ago
Is this not a classic chicken-egg scenario? I think if you graduated a class of TeMBAs right now, they would have jobs just because of the MBA side of the equation. And, I think they would kick-ass in what ever job they take because of their tech skills. Even stooping as low as to say that their Excel skills would rock because they know how to masterfully program macros. But WOW, yes, if someone like Google got behind a program like this, it would take off like nobodies business. But I think we really need to get regular businesses (Davids, not Goliaths) behind this. And somehow, show them the benefits of a well rounded TeMBA graduate.
- roymurdock 10y ago
  An MBA doesn't really confer any skills that couldn't be acquired from 6 months of actually working/managing at your target company - it's seen as more of a networking tool, and a way for someone to hit the reset button and shift into a different field, or to get a raise within a traditional consulting/corporate migration path. So I have to agree with DelaneyM that the crux of the issue is demand-side: where is the need for specific managerial jobs that require a baseline technical understanding (to estimate timelines, speak intelligently about the product with clients, etc.) as well as basic business skills (negotiation, project management, strong network for potential clients) that is worth the salary that an individual who just invested $200k and 2 years worth of time will be asking?
nostrademons 10y ago
This is basically the APM program in Google. Google stopped hiring PMs without a technical background (either CS coursework, or professional experience as an engineer) in 2008, because they found that the PMs they did hire with no technical experience universally sucked. They also have (had? it's been 2 years since I was there) an active rotation program between eng and PM roles, with the opportunity to transition permanently. A number of my friends did it; I'd seriously considered it, but my manager was willing to let me do PM-type roles without formally switching job titles.

nekopa 10y ago

Is this not a classic chicken-egg scenario? I think if you graduated a class of TeMBAs right now, they would have jobs just because of the MBA side of the equation. And, I think they would kick-ass in what ever job they take because of their tech skills. Even stooping as low as to say that their Excel skills would rock because they know how to masterfully program macros. But WOW, yes, if someone like Google got behind a program like this, it would take off like nobodies business. But I think we really need to get regular businesses (Davids, not Goliaths) behind this. And somehow, show them the benefits of a well rounded TeMBA graduate.

roymurdock 10y ago
An MBA doesn't really confer any skills that couldn't be acquired from 6 months of actually working/managing at your target company - it's seen as more of a networking tool, and a way for someone to hit the reset button and shift into a different field, or to get a raise within a traditional consulting/corporate migration path. So I have to agree with DelaneyM that the crux of the issue is demand-side: where is the need for specific managerial jobs that require a baseline technical understanding (to estimate timelines, speak intelligently about the product with clients, etc.) as well as basic business skills (negotiation, project management, strong network for potential clients) that is worth the salary that an individual who just invested $200k and 2 years worth of time will be asking?

nostrademons 10y ago

This is basically the APM program in Google. Google stopped hiring PMs without a technical background (either CS coursework, or professional experience as an engineer) in 2008, because they found that the PMs they did hire with no technical experience universally sucked. They also have (had? it's been 2 years since I was there) an active rotation program between eng and PM roles, with the opportunity to transition permanently. A number of my friends did it; I'd seriously considered it, but my manager was willing to let me do PM-type roles without formally switching job titles.