What is the ROI of an MBA beyond salary? Why it pays to invest in yourself

It is little wonder that people ask what is the ROI of an MBA? After all, an MBA degree represents a significant investment of both time and money. For those thinking about full-time MBA programs, there is also the career break to consider, while for those considering part-time MBA programs there is the question of how to juggle your job and your studies. 

With all that in mind, it is understandable that people want to be sure they are making the right decision and that there will be a return on their MBA investment. But what exactly does that mean? 

One way to answer the question is by looking at post-graduate salaries. Here, you can look at our Full-time MBA employment report with measurable results. But what about the benefits that go beyond numbers? 

Return on MBA investment is a personal metric

At first, looking at MBA ROI through an expanded lens can seem like a difficult task. While ROI metrics usually rely on hard data, the wider benefits of doing an MBA are not necessarily quantifiable. The trick is to come at it with a very personal approach. Maybe you want to move to a new country, or make a career transition, or grow your personal and professional network. There's no wrong answer here: it is about what you prioritize, and what you want to change. 

So how can you decide what your MBA ROI is? 

To help us find the answer, ESMT hosted a webinar between the directors of our Career Development Center (CDC), and three of our alumni, who know firsthand what life is like after an ESMT MBA. 

Together, they shared their open and honest insights on the ROI of an MBA from ESMT and what they see as the less quantifiable, more personal benefits.

You can watch the full video of their discussion below or scroll down to read the highlights. 

The hosts of our webinar were Marcel Kalis and Sophie Schaefer, the Director and Deputy Director of the CDC, ESMT's career guidance and development team. 

They were joined by three alumni of our Full-time MBA (FTMBA) and Executive MBA (EMBA) programs:

• Farah Wehbe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2019.  
  Lead Engineering Manager, Iberdrola 
   
• Mike Tekabe, Full-time MBA Class of 2022 
  SR Partnerships Manager, Raisin, and Program Advisory Committee (PAC) member for the ESMT Master in Entrepreneurship & Innovation 
   
• Simon Gademan, Executive MBA, Class of 2016.  
  Head of Strategy and Products, Zalando

The journey to an MBA in Germany was different for each webinar participant: Farah was based in Dubai and wanted to build a career in Europe; Mike was working in finance in New York yet hoped to explore the startup scene in Germany (where he originally grew up); and Simon, who had already made the move from South Africa, hoped to switch careers without uprooting his young family in Berlin.

Five ways an MBA gives you an ROI beyond your salary progression

Together, our alumni discussed what drew them to the MBA programs at ESMT, and how that shaped their answers when considering what the ROI of an MBA really is. We share five of their most interesting conclusions below:

ROI #1: An MBA can help you switch locations

Before their MBAs, Mike and Farah were facing the challenge of proving their professional credibility in a new city, country, and continent. 

Today, both have successfully established themselves in Berlin, with careers going from strength to strength. This goes to show the power of doing an MBA in your target city or country: it can help legitimize your knowledge for a local audience. The return on your investment is the provable, localized skills that open doors.

Mike: "I'm a Full-time MBA from 2022. Joined the MBA (was living in the US at the time), then moved to Berlin. I then did a program at ESMT called the Responsible Leaders Fellowship that took me to East Africa, spent three years there – so extended that quite a bit – and recently came back to Berlin and went back to the roots where I started in finance. I'm currently a senior partnerships manager at a company called Raisin here in Berlin"

- Mike Tekabe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2022

Farah: "I'm an alum from the Full-time MBA at ESMT, Class of 2019. I've been in Germany now thanks to the MBA for almost eight years, and my background is in engineering. Right now, I'm working as a lead engineering manager in the renewable energy industry."

- Farah Wehbe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2019

Location is not the only thing you may want to change about your career. For Simon, who was already established in Berlin, his most-wanted career change was to move into a new industry.  

In his case, the Executive MBA was the bridge that smoothed his transition out of education and into strategy and product management at Zalando. The return on his investment was gaining the credibility to switch into a new area – easing friction as he explored new opportunities.

Simon: "I was the principal at an international school here in Berlin when I was still in my twenties. So actually, had that been my chosen career for life, it was going incredibly well. But I realized at that time "I don't want to stay in education for life" and hence the need for a career transformation.

The Executive MBA worked for me. But the idea there was exactly that: how do I give myself the credibility on paper, but also kind of practically for myself, to make this career transformation work?"

Simon also noted another important point to consider when thinking about MBA ROI: it is a long-term investment, with long-term dividends. That means you should consider not just the doors that open instantly after the MBA, but instead about how those doors lead to so many others in the years to come.

Simon: "I presume many people that are looking into doing an MBA are wanting to either develop in their own career, or make a switch, and I think it is a very valuable step in that direction. But it unlocks the next step, and that should be sufficient. I think that's also the way I would position it for my children. Take this step and then see what that unlocks as the next step." 

- Simon Gademan, Executive MBA, Class of 2016

Throughout the webinar, our MBA alumni noted another important metric: the way the MBA can shift your mindset. This is not necessarily about the exact topics that you learn, although our alumni did cite specific classes they remember (and still draw on to this day). Instead, it is a case of developing the kind of communication and collaboration frameworks that stand the test of time.

So, what is the ROI of an MBA in this case? It is not simply that you collect a new degree. It is that you become a problem solver. This can apply across your entire career, and outside of work as well. It is equally relevant when working with both projects and people. In other words, it is an ROI that remains relevant long after graduation. The investment is the MBA, and the return is an upgraded skillset that lasts a lifetime. 

Simon: "In the case of the Executive MBA, it’s two years of hard work. You need to learn how to prioritize; you need to work with other people, and I think those are skills that transfer and stand the test of time.

I think there's a lot of components of the way that the MBA is structured that [remain] very valuable. If you're wanting to learn Economics 101 – maybe not the most valuable thing – but if you really are wanting to develop yourself, then I think the MBA makes sense."

- Simon Gademan, Executive MBA, Class of 2016

Farah: "Being in those groups with people from different backgrounds, different industries and so on is so, so enriching and so valuable.  It really taught me a lot...last year I was having some problem at work with some colleagues and I was like wow this reminds me of my group in Module Two during the MBA, and how I learned to work with people with different ways of thinking. 

So there are lessons that you for sure carry on throughout the years. And that makes you realize why it actually pays off."

- Farah Wehbe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2019

Mike: "There's a consulting project that's one of the capstones in in the MBA...it would be an understatement to say it really changed the way I look at opportunities or challenges. Being able to use that with the work experience I had has really changed the way I approach my own career, but also the challenges within each job that I've had since. 

If you do invest the time, the benefits of that will last not only your 18 months or 24 months at ESMT, but many, many years afterwards as well " 

- Mike Tekabe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2022

The ROI of an MBA is not just about gaining new frameworks, but also about gaining new connections. We regularly see this at ESMT, where our diverse MBA cohorts graduate into a supportive, global alumni network, and where our staff and faculty know our students well enough to keep them in mind even long after graduation.

As our webinar participants have reached different career stages, they have been able to experience this ROI from different angles. Simon, for instance, has been able to see what ESMT alumni bring as employees. 

Simon: "We [Zalando] have about 7,000 people in the headquarters, and I would say well north of 50 ESMT grads. I was on a call this morning with a finance counterpart, and she finished three years ago at ESMT. So, I definitely see the value."

Simon has also been in a position to offer advice and connection to multiple students. This was something he particularly took note of after he gave a speech to ESMT students during a recent Full-time MBA class visit to Zalando.

Simon: "20 percent of them then reached out to me directly, which then also makes sense because in 6 to 12 months, they're going to be graduating, and chances are I would then be able to help them if they want to come into Zalando. And I think that is then the opportunity, right? You do have these inroads. I certainly wouldn't normally accept cold calls, but if it's an ESMT alum, then for sure I do."

- Simon Gademan, Executive MBA, Class of 2016

Farah and Mike are examples of how this process can work. Both mentioned times when they have reached out to alumni (or even the Career Development Center) for post-graduation advice and opportunities. Today, they are in a position to return this favor. 

Farah: "What I like about ESMT is there is this sense of community. The school invests in it, but also the alumni... As Simon was saying, I would take a cold call from an alum, and from someone who is a student. I noticed that if I reach out to ESMT alumni, I've never had a negative experience. Everyone at least will have a chat with you, they will share whatever they can, they will even refer you without knowing you – just having a chat first, understand what you want, and refer you.

There is a strong sense of community, and even if you reach out to Sophie or Marcel six years later, [saying] "can you send me a list of people who are in this industry because I'm looking for a change or for a new job?" They will even send you this list of people and always be there to help."

- Farah Wehbe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2019

Mike: “When it comes to MBA there's always the element around network, and when I went to Kenya for this (initially 6-month) engagement, obviously the first thing you do is "who do I know in this city or this country?" I was super surprised to find multiple alumni from ESMT in Nairobi as well.

So I would say, to summarize a bit, [the MBA gives you a] paradigm shift but then there’s this serendipitous connection element around the depth of the network that the school has." 

- Mike Tekabe, Full-time MBA, Class of 2022

An MBA is a significant investment in yourself. So far, we have mostly discussed how the pay offs can relate to your career and professional development. However, as our participants pointed out, the ongoing ROI of an MBA can also mean personal rewards. This is the kind of experience that forges life-long friendships – and maybe more.

Simon, whose Executive MBA was conducted in modules, said that even though his cohort were not together every day, they still managed to bond over the course of the eighteen months they spent together:

Simon: "I think the setup is such that you do still develop a sense of camaraderie of being part of something because everyone is in the same boat. So you're working the 40-plus hour week, plus the MBA, you're a little bit stressed. So are your 50 classmates. I think there's a lot of bringing together that comes from that system."

For Mike, who chose the Full-time MBA, the intensity of taking on a life-changing experience with the same small group of people has led to the kind of friendships that you want beside you for life's biggest moments:

Mike: I'm getting married this year and creating a guest list of people that have been instrumental in my life, and you just realize "there's a significant portion of my MBA class in in attendance on this special day"...they have made an incredible impact in in my life."

Farah, who also graduated with her Full-time MBA, has what is perhaps the most memorable MBA ROI. She didn't just graduate with a degree; she graduated with a husband-to-be. 

Farah: "Well, I have the funniest payoff...So, one of the other intangible things that you get from an MBA is for sure the lifelong friendships and the personal relationships you make. At least that was true for me, and I think it was true also for other classmates of mine who actually are my very, very close friends.  

And eventually I met my husband. So yes, I can say the day of my wedding I was like, "Wow, that paid off." And it was a joke actually, that was made [at the wedding]. And in our cohort there were three. Yeah. Three couples.

I would do it again. [laughter] I have a big return on investment. " 

At the start of this article, we asked the question: what is the ROI of an MBA beyond salary progression? The answer to that question depends on your priorities, which school you choose, and what you are willing to put in.  

For our alumni, their MBA ROI includes successful changes in geography, industry, and function (the so-called “triple jump”); expanded mindsets; career advice and support from a global alumni community; friendships; and even love.  

So, what is your ROI? Where could an MBA from ESMT Berlin take you? 

Our thanks go to the ESMT Career Development Center, and to ESMT Berlin MBA alumni Farah Wehbe, Mike Tekabe, and Simon Gademan for generously sharing their insights in this webinar.