What can you do with an MBA?
In an increasingly tech-driven business landscape, where marketing platforms are proliferating as fast as industry entrants, it can feel daunting to know how to maintain a competitive edge as an aspiring leader. But if you’re reading this asking what you can do with an MBA, chances are you’re already on to a viable strategy.
Whether you’re looking to solidify a top-tier salary, pivot industries or simply future-proof yourself in an ever-changing industry, a Master of Business Administration can help you stay ahead of the rapidly-evolving game that is business.
Here, we break down some of the top MBA careers, and how an MBA can accelerate yours.
What are the top MBA career paths?
It’s fair to say an MBA opens many impressive doors. From C-suite executives on the frontier of finance, to history-making tech entrepreneurs, to life-changing leaders in the non-profit industry and every pioneer in between, there are many top tier roles that MBA students succeed with.
Here’s a sample of what you can do with an MBA.
C-suite executive
Are you driven to elevate a business by making critical decisions that determine its trajectory? Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Information Officer (CIO) are a few of the C-suite positions an MBA could set you up for.
These positions are prestigious, well-paid - the median cash pay for ASX100 CEOs was $2.8 million in 2022 - and highly sought after.
Management consultant
This innovative role involves identifying business problems and strategising highly-effective solutions to improve performance and increase profit. Consultants can specialise in a number of industries - including tech, health, finance or business - to name a few. The role requires outside-the-box thinking and a future-focused mindset, which are central in an MBA.
Revenue for management consultants in Australia is estimated to increase to $47.3 billion between 165,000+ employees in 2023, thanks to the diverse nature of consulting services.
Director of marketing, sales or advertising
An MBA is the perfect primer for a director position in marketing, sales and/or advertising, and RMIT Online students have the opportunity to dive into courses specifically about marketing for managers during their studies.
As social media increasingly shapes consumer behaviour, a robust understanding of marketing is a non-negotiable for forward-thinking business leaders. The average salary for marketing directors in Australia is $140,000+, and an MBA will only make you more valuable.
Entrepreneur / start-up founder
The ability to challenge conventional thought, take strategic risks and adapt to continuous change are central to the sustained success of any entrepreneur. They’re also central to an MBA. As an entrepreneur, your industry, business structure, and earning potential are completely up to you. Australia ranks among the leading countries for startups due to our physical infrastructure, internal market dynamics and commercial and legal infrastructure.
The ABS reported a 7.0 per cent increase in the number of businesses operating in the Australian market in 2022 - will yours be one of them in years to come?
Non-profit executive director
A non-profit executive director is responsible for managing the strategy and resources of organisations to meet their not-for-profit mission. These positions can be hired by financial firms, agencies, or consumer brands with a non-profit arm, spanning industries from travel to beauty to education and everything in between.
In Australia, non-profit executive director salaries can range from $120,000 to over $200,000 with an average of $160,000 - but the rewards of a role like this go well beyond monetary. And with a growing need for a high-performing not-for-profit sector in Australia, leaders in this field will be increasingly valuable.
Senior financial analyst
Financial analysts play an integral role in the forecasting, planning and budgeting of a company’s monetary resources. Strategic analysis and further research are required in senior positions, which RMIT Online’s Financial Analytics for Managerial Decisions course can help you with.
Financial analysts can be employed by big financial institutions like investment banks, hedge funds and venture capital firms, as well as government agencies and other large corporations in the private sector. Salaries average at $130,000+ in Australia but can go much higher with extra qualifications in certain industries.
This is just a sample of the many roles MBAs can unlock the door to. This cutting-edge online qualification, designed for the leaders of tomorrow, can also lead to positions like environmental analyst, social scientist, human resource management - and many more.
But what can you do with an MBA if you’re already in the workforce? Is it worth it?
How can studying an MBA program help my career?
If you’re already in the workforce but want to take your career to the next level - perhaps boosting your position on the payscale, trying your hand at entrepreneurship, or even pivoting professions without losing your step on the ladder - an MBA is worth considering. In the face of accelerated change and technological disruptions, equipping yourself for the new world of business can put you miles ahead of competition.
Here are some of the many ways an MBA can help you reach your career goals.
Earn a higher salary
The top-tier strategic thinking and industry knowledge honed in an MBA are highly valued in the workplace - and highly compensated. RMIT Online’s 2020 Student Experience Survey found that our MBA graduates’ salaries increased by an average of 50 per cent, and a 2019 ABS study found those with an MBA degree have the best chance of landing in the top 2 to 3 per cent of income earners in Australia.
Not only can an MBA boost salary in your current position, but it can help secure higher-paying leadership and strategy roles such as C-suite executives, marketing directors, financial analysts and more.
Accelerate your career path
An MBA cultivates influential thinking, dynamic leadership skills and industry expertise - all of which make you a leading candidate for promotion.
An MBA not only gives you access to cutting-edge content and industry-leading thought across tech, marketing, finance and more - it also connects you with peers in either your current or adjacent fields who can help to expand and accelerate your own growth.
Build your business network
While success may not be entirely all about who you know, many accomplished business leaders will tell you it certainly helps to have contacts in your industry and outside of it. Undergoing intensive study with like-minded big thinkers is a great way to forge lasting connections. And contrary to what some might think, online study makes networking easier than ever - and transcends borders.
RMIT Online’s learning platform not only gives you access to current, industry-informed content, but also connects you with academics and students across time zones for lasting business relationships, without limits.
Change industries without going backward
After spending years climbing the ladder in one career, you may be craving a change but reluctant to let that precious time go to waste. An MBA can be the perfect bridge to progress you into a future-focused field of work, without setting you back. Online MBAs are equipped with the contemporary course content and activity-based learning to help students hit the ground running in new industries, without missing a beat.
Specialise in an industry you love
Your MBA should be customised to your career ambitions. Unlike more traditional MBAs in Australia, RMIT Online’s Master of Business Administration allows you to tailor your degree to an area you’re passionate about and grow your leadership capabilities. These include:
Design thinking
Design thinking is a customer-centric problem-solving approach centered on empathy, ideation and experimentation that’s becoming increasingly valuable to contemporary businesses who adopt it. Applicable across all industries, leaders who master this approach can improve products, services, processes and strategy in their organisations.
Technology and Innovation
Expertise in data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence will propel graduates into some of the most important and significant work of the future. This skill set has applications that go well beyond the tech sphere, and can be leveraged in current and future workplaces across all industries.
Leadership
As technology and the future of work evolves, so too does the shape of impactful leadership. This specialisation arms graduates with the ability to inspire, influence and motivate in an era defined by digital disruption .
Project Management
Project management is a highly sought-after skill that holds high value across a growing number of industries, including IT, engineering and construction. This specialisation opens some of the most influential doors of businesses building tomorrow.
You came here asking what you can do with an MBA, but the more apt question is what can’t this qualification help the right graduate do? RMIT Online’s Master of Business Administration is a contemporary online MBA for contemporary leaders, arming graduates with accelerated knowledge and the cutting-edge skills to thrive in the rapidly changing business landscape.
With fast-paced 100% online delivery, borderless networking opportunities and continually-updated course content, RMIT Online’s MBA is the new MBA for the future.
Learn more about studying a Master of Business Administration with RMIT Online. To learn more, get in touch with one of our Student Enrolment Advisors or call 1300 701 171.
