Every year, hundreds of management graduates opt out of placement sessions and go on to set up own ventures. But of late, B-schools have been a witness to another trend - entrepreneurs joining an MBA course after founding a start-up. While learning new skills to run the business better and gaining knowledge are some of the advantages they look forward to, surprisingly, one of the biggest sources of value for most is the advantage of networks that a good B-school can offer.
But is it worth the risk? After all, most are in their early-growth phase and joining a B-school may slow things down. Also, matters could become complicated if there are partners involved. "Time is valuable. You have to balance the gain from the course against the loss of momentum in business during the year the founder is away. The gain when they return has to be huge to compensate for the loss in momentum for the business," says Sarath Naru, Founder and Managing Partner, Ventureast, a leading VC firm. His suggestion: "Set clear expectations with partners on how you run the business and how you intend to make up for the loss."
His batchmate, Shubhanshuk Sarkar, says: "During my years as an designer in the mobile gaming industry, I learnt how the right network can take your product or company to new heights. At IIM-B, I hope to cultivate a network of professional resourceful people for my future ventures. Holistic and overarching learning about organisations, product development, and managing human and other resources should prepare me for the unpredictable road of entrepreneurship." On what prompted him to opt for the course in the first place, he says: "Marketing was a major concern, severely underestimated by me. I received a brief introduction to marketing during my years as a professional in the industry. Only after starting a venture did I realise the scope of the subject. I made up my mind to get training on the subject and other considerations that go into running a studio."
Sandip Garg of the PGPM 2016/18 batch at MDI, Gurgaon, joined the programme in June 2016, when he was running a start-up called Raw and Ripe to eliminate the role of middlemen in the supply chain for fruits and vegetables in Delhi, Noida and Gurgaon. He says the start up was launched in December 2016 and had to be shut down as his partner left. He wants to get back to entrepreneurship again after the course, which it says will arm him with skills in marketing and managing cash flows. Most important, he says, the course will help him leverage the B-school network. He plans to pay back his `18 lakh loan he took up to pay the fee, build a financial cushion and then head back to entrepreneurship.
More power to him and his ilk.
@EKumarSharma