Each time I’m in an online bookstore or in Barnes and Noble, I see a new book that promises to give reader the equivalent of an MBA education in just a few hours time. Certainly most people would rather have one fairly short book that provides all the content of an MBA degree. So yesterday, while I was browsing the shelves at Barnes & Noble, I had a thought. Why not get together with some of our Russian Translation, Japanese Translation and Portuguese Translation workers and develop a ten minute MBA program for our new customers? This would provide all the information they need, thereby saving them time and money and putting them on the fast track to great earnings. But then, I had an even better idea. Why not offer a course that is even shorter in length?
Okay, we realize you can?t get an MBA from a textbook at Borders and we certainly can’t teach an MBA program in 5 minutes. But just as a sidewalk painter can quick make an outline of a painting before he completes it and sells it to a random person walking by on the street, we can quickly outline the key elements of an MBA education. In a nutshell, the objective of an MBA program is to help companies operate successfully, and we kept this in mind when we met with our translators to sketch out the common elements of all successful business organizations. Particularly, all highly profitable firms make their own demand and supply their wares in an efficient manner.
Creating Your Own Demand
Our Portuguese Translation team immediately began summarizing how to create demand. What they defined was that truly successful organizations are expert at identifying, creating and supplying products and services that bring new customers and keep old customers coming back. However, this can only happen when an organization provides more value than its competitors, either in the form of lower prices or with products and services that have provide more favorable features.
In Search of Profitability
Whereas the Portuguese translation group worked on defining how to create demand, the Russian Translation team researched creating profitability. The Russian translators suggested that successful businesses must sell their products or services at rates that will enable them to pay investors and cover fixed and variable costs. More often than not, it doesn’t suffice for a company to have the lead in market share and be only slightly profitable. It can be quite difficult when trying to make investors and customers both happy at the same time. The fact that all companies are not successful in this respect is a primary reason why managers enroll in MBA programs.
So far, I think we are still on track to providing the world’s first 5-minute MBA. I was encouraged by the Russian and Portuguese Translators reported and understand the difficulty faced by companies that must deliver customer and investor value. Indeed, this is a daunting task, but many companies are able to be successful at keeping customers and investors satisfied.
While all this was going on, we put our Japanese Translation professionals to work to determine the characteristics required for business success. The Japanese translators reported that the majority of successful businesses hire only the most talented individuals at every level. They iterated that business leaders must be able to create strong business strategy; managers must be able to motivate others and make sound business decisions; and employees must have the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to carry out their jobs. The Japanese Translators also indicated that successful organizations develop strong relationships with external suppliers, customers and other stakeholders. To wrap up, the Japanese stated that success in business relies on sufficient capital to conduct operations and put plans to work.
And here we are, coming full circle, having put together a 15-minute graduate business course that can easily be taken in five minutes. And, the best part is that it is free.