| I'd offer six suggestions to young people | | | | leadership and teamwork-which makes us |
| thinking about a career in management. First, | | | | perfect for some, but not right for others. |
| make sure that management is right for | | | | Fourth, find a great mentor or supervisor and |
| you-that you really enjoy marketing or | | | | a good company to work for. Again, the point |
| finance or human resource management or | | | | is that you have choices-in graduate schools, |
| corporate communications and other aspects of | | | | in careers, in companies to work for. |
| organizational life and management | | | | Everyone entering any profession is eager to |
| responsibilities. Take the test by working | | | | find that wonderful first job and to get a |
| for a company or an organization to see | | | | fast break. But take time to be sure that you |
| whether it feels great-challenging but | | | | will be proud to say that this is where you |
| appropriate, hard but enjoyable. Management | | | | work and that you have an opportunity to |
| isn't right for everyone, so take the time to | | | | learn from people who you respect. You will |
| explore and invest in a couple of | | | | spend more time at work than with your |
| internships, even if they are unpaid, to see | | | | family, so make sure that the company you |
| what it's really like and whether it meets | | | | keep is one that you really enjoy, can growth |
| and matches your career aspirations and | | | | with, and learn from. Fifth, remember that |
| professional/personal needs. Second, get as | | | | management is basically about people and |
| much experience as you can before entering | | | | organizations, about doing things right and |
| graduate school and going for the MBA. This | | | | doing the right thing. Good management is |
| might mean taking three or more years off | | | | needed in every sector of our |
| between college and business school, or it | | | | society-business, to be sure, but also in the |
| might just mean packing a lot of relevant | | | | not-for-profit sector, which is 10% of our |
| management and leadership activities into | | | | economy, and in government, which is about a |
| your life at an early age. The point is that | | | | third. So think about applying what you know |
| you will be able to bring those experiences | | | | about management not only in a business, but |
| to the classroom, which will make the | | | | also in a public agency or in a community |
| learning more relevant-and will make you not | | | | organization where the demand and need for |
| just a student, but a bit of a teacher as | | | | skills is high. And, lastly, think about |
| well. Third, be discriminating about where | | | | using your management training to do well and |
| you decide to get that MBA. It's a buyer's | | | | also to do good. Peter Drucker, considered |
| market, which means that there are literally | | | | the founder of modern management and the |
| hundreds of schools to choose between. Find | | | | person for whom my school is named, asked: |
| the right fit in terms of not only location | | | | "What do you want to be remembered for?" Even |
| and reputation, but institutional culture. | | | | as you set out on your career, find a balance |
| Some schools focus on placement, others on | | | | and look for opportunities to not only be |
| finance; some on research, others mainly on | | | | successful but to do something significant. |
| teaching. We at the Drucker School, for | | | | Society needs your talent and ambition and |
| instance, offer an unusually intimate setting | | | | skills and energy; we also need your idealism |
| with small classes; a very diverse, global | | | | and creativity and commitment to leaving the |
| student body; and a values-oriented approach | | | | world better than you found it. |
| that emphasizes ethics, integrity, strategy, | | | | |