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and decided not to proceed。 I thought either my boss had made a poor
presentation of my facts or the board had failed to grasp the nature of the
opportunity。 Either way； I’d lost the chance of an order and big payout。
A few months later； during an evening around the bar at a pany sales
conference with the chairman’s son； who was wisely to pursue a career as
a distinguished playwright； I discovered the truth of what happened to my
irresistible opportunity。 Though profitable； in a modest way； the pany I
worked for was strapped for cash。 In fact the chairman had recently had to
sell his Rolls and buy a Bentley on hire purchase； using the balance to help
pay the wages for a month。 The ‘modest’ tweaks I was proposing called
2 The Thirty…Day MBA
for new moulds from a supplier to which the pany already owed a
small fortune。 I was shortly to discover that the technology on which our
products were based was already about to be overtaken by an international
petitor with a global reach and that the economy was about to go into
one of the UK’s then all…too…frequent economic troughs。
It was at this point that I realized that； in mon with millions of others
in business； I had li。。le knowledge outside my own narrow discipline。
My cash…starved employer had no real incentive to train me； or any of
his employees； in any subject that didn’t have a reasonably immediate
payback。 I had spent two years at Sandhurst being trained thoroughly。 I
had a rudimentary grasp of what engineers； infantry and artillery could
do； as well as the abilities and role of the navy and air force in any task in
which I was likely to be involved。 But now in business； outside of sales； in
which I had been given just two days of instruction； I was totally ignorant。
Accounts； production； supply； global petitors； substitute products and
the economic climate were all a closed book。 I wasn’t even aware that the
client whom I thought was so large and powerful was about to be swept
away in a maelstrom of technological change。 I le。。 the pany； took an
MBA； and went on to line and staff positions around the world and then
to running businesses； small at first and eventually quite large。 A spell in
consulting was followed by a return to the business school world； this time
to teach and research in some great schools in the UK； mainland Europe；
the United States and Asia。
Anyone who wants to play a more rounded role in shaping and implementing
the direction of the organization they work in； but are inhibited
by their lack of fundamental business knowledge； needs MBA knowledge。
Reading this book will equip them to take part in strategic decision making
on an equal footing with MBA graduates； while feeling at ease in the process。
It places MBA skills within reach of all professionals in large and small
organizations in both the public and private sectors； providing them with a
petitive edge over less knowledgeable colleagues。
WHAT IS MBA KNOWLEDGE？
Business schools have tended to plicate and intellectualize the subject
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