Growing up, Lenny contributed to his family’s fruit farm by planting and harvesting fruit. As a teenager, he helped with marketing by starting social media accounts to promote their fruit and juice shop, where he also worked. After university, Lenny returned to help develop a brand by establishing B2B distribution operations to supply regional retailers as well as restaurants focused on using local produce. Lenny is now seeking an MBA to round out his business and leadership skills in anticipation of one day taking over and scaling the business operations. To earn admission, Lenny will need to talk about the value of his diverse experiences and show that he understands what knowledge and skills he will need to gain through an MBA to continue to build on the family business’s success.
This post will look at ways that MBA applicants like Lenny can prove the value and quality of their work for a family-run business.
A Junior MBA in Entrepreneurship
Growing up in a family that owns and operates a business can offer rare exposure to the inner workings of a company from a young age. Observing parents who worked long hours to make their enterprise successful would instruct one about the effort and dedication required to sustain and improve a business. Similarly, growing up around a well-established or legacy company might offer lessons about brand value, quality standards, and international trade. Spending time around an office or a shop could also potentially provide a real-world education in customer service, finance, operations, marketing, manufacturing or other departments and functions. Telling stories about these experiences can persuasively convey one’s preparedness for MBA studies.
Exposure to Many Roles
It is often true that those who have worked in their family business as a teen, young adult, or early in their career have contributed by filling different roles, as illustrated in Lenny’s case. This creates the opportunity to talk about familiarity with the many functions that make up one’s family business. For those who expect to return to the company post-MBA, involvement in an array of business functions will have informed them about many aspects of business operations and will reveal which areas they need to strengthen in order to take on a leadership role. Conversely, applicants who are seeking to pivot into a career outside the family business have built up relevant professional experience on which to make the case for their MBA readiness.
In-Depth Industry Knowledge
Working in a family business can cultivate a strong understanding of a given industry and/or region, a unique trait that can bolster one’s MBA profile. Highlighting one’s knowledge of the products, services, practices, regulations, supply chain, and/or customer relationships of a given industry can help create memorable essays. Applicants who are seeking to pivot away from their family business but potentially stay in the same industry will want to make their industry knowledge a focal point of their essay and interview strategy.
An Understanding of What the Company Needs
People who intend to return to the family company after their MBA should demonstrate a deep understanding of the company business and their future path. Depicting the company’s areas for improvement as tied to one’s own skills or knowledge gaps gives a proven reason for why this degree will be essential in achieving the applicant’s goals. The admissions committee wants to know that you truly need this degree, so don’t miss the opportunity to share real stories about what your company needs and how this degree will help you improve upon this weakness or unmet need.
Seek Out Your Recommenders
When it comes to the recommendation section of the business school application, those who have been working for a family business might face a quandary because family members are not acceptable recommenders since they cannot provide an unbiased opinion. While one or more family members may have been your closest supervisor, senior coworker, or mentor, you will want to seek out recommenders who you’ve built a professional relationship with and who can speak to your qualifications based on firsthand interactions. Ideally, you will be able to find a current or recent supervisor or senior member of the team who is not a family member to recommend you. A key client or business partner may also be an option.
Conclusion
Business schools often look favorably on people who have backgrounds or future plans involving a family business. Still, these applicants have to make a winning case for their qualifications and demonstrated needs for an MBA as a way to gain admission. If you’ve got questions about how to best leverage your family business experience or career plans as part of your MBA application, schedule a free consultation with Transcend Admissions today for an honest and unbiased discussion about your school list, fit, test scores, career outlook, and more.