Are you currently studying an MBA or have you recently graduated from business school? While course work can take up much of your time, it’s extremely important to think about how you position yourself post-MBA. 

While it’s essential to tailor your résumé to the industry and position that you’re applying for, there are some key skills to highlight on your résumé as a result of your MBA experience. Whether you’re looking for a promotion within your current company, or you’re looking for a new opportunity, here are the key skills you need to consider including on your post-MBA résumé. 

1. Communication

The ability to speak, write and present ideas is valuable at every stage of your professional career. As an MBA graduate, you’ll be equipped with the latest communication theory and practice, enabling you to communicate effectively with your direct reports, your colleagues and senior leaders. With an intricate knowledge of theories on topics such as organisational hierarchies, culture and emotional intelligence, you’ll be able to select the best method and approach for communication within a variety of senior leadership contexts.

2. Analysis

Today’s organisations are not looking for leaders that simply stick with the status quo. They’re looking for leaders that can help them gain a deeper understanding of how their organisation is performing and where they could potentially make improvements. With a range of finely tuned strategic skills in finance, marketing and operations combined with broad organisational leadership knowledge, MBA graduates have mastered the art of analysing data and information from a range of sources to execute strategic decision-making.

3. Innovation

In a highly competitive business landscape, it’s essential that senior leaders have the ability to drive innovation in order to continuously improve productivity, create new efficiencies and unlock new competitive advantages. As an MBA graduate, you’ll be equipped to apply high-level strategies that leverage organisational resources in new and innovative ways that eliminate waste while quickly capitalising on opportunities in the marketplace when they appear.

4. Risk management

Every organisation knows risk management is fundamental to business success. MBA graduates are armed with the knowledge to understand the inherent risks within every function of an organisation, from finance to human resources through to compliance and the media. By understanding the organisation’s ethical obligations, its industry context and the implications of potential outcomes, an MBA graduate is able to develop robust risk management plans for implementation as well as crisis management strategies for when the unseen inevitably occurs.

5. Leadership

Organisational management theory remains valuable however organisations are looking for people with real leadership results on their résumé. By applying your MBA study to your career through practical assessments, you’ll be able to demonstrate a range of situations where you were able to apply strategy and theory to tangible results in the leadership of others. Leadership can be demonstrated in a number of ways on your résumé, whether that’s through a dedicated change management project you personally oversaw or any strategies you implemented that were designed to improve overall organisational culture.

The skills listed above are highly regarded by employers and should take pride of place on your new résumé when you design it as an MBA graduate. For each of these skills, we suggest adding an example, either to your résumé or in an interview, as this is the most tangible and credible method for demonstrating your possession of these key skills.

The AIM Business School MBA is designed to equip you with the theory, framework and skills to tackle challenges you may face in the complex business environment – be transformed and gain a qualification that provides you with the extensive business knowledge you require to excel in your career.

Our flagship program is innovative and practical, covering all significant aspects of business operations, from traditional areas of finance, HR and marketing to contemporary concepts of innovation, sustainability, and ethics. You will study with like-minded professionals, managers and leaders across a range of sectors in a practical and applied education environment.

With 9 core units and 3 electives, the AIM Business School MBA is ideal for the working professional. It will challenge you, enrich you and inspire you to take your career to new heights.