General Management is a broad function that covers talent management, strategy, finance, sales, law, operations and acts as a key liaison between the company’s leadership and functional teams. The roles and responsibilities in the function are defined by the formal and informal company structures, work culture, and business objectives that varies depending on the size of the company.
In this in-depth analysis of the Best MBA in General Management, we cover:
- What is a General Management MBA?
- Foundational MBA Courses for a Career in General Management
- Leadership Rotational Programs in General Management
- Top MBA Programs for General Management
- Top MBA in General Management - Percentage of Graduates Hired
- Top MBA in General Management - By Median Base Salary
- Top MBA in General Management - By Median Sign-On Bonus
- Post-MBA Jobs and Career Opportunities in General Management
- Roles and Responsibilities of General Managers
What is a General Management MBA?
The best general management MBA programs offer multidisciplinary courses with on-field experiences that develop leadership, team dynamics, and functional skills in Management.
General Management MBA programs also teach candidates to study the current global macroeconomic trends and maneuver strategies and decisions to accommodate them. The financial crisis and the pandemic provided opportunities for innovative customer-centric and cost-conscious thinking. To find gaps in the market and business offerings through superior data analytics, machine learning, and business intelligence tools and frameworks, Business Schools are providing rapid skill development through their integrated STEM-certified MBAs.
Foundational MBA Courses for a Career in General Management
We have created a curated list of sample courses chosen from top US MBA programs that provide a strong foundation in General Management.
Economics & Policy
All top US MBA programs provide foundations in economics, be it macroeconomics, managerial economics, or microeconomics, to analyze the variables that influence business strategy. Globalization is the most discussed topic as its impact is profound in determining innovations of scale. Analysis of consumer behavior, exchange rates, unemployment, international capital mobility, and the impact of government and central bank policies will offer candidates a critical lens to evaluate economies.
Technology Management/Technology Strategy
Technology Strategy and Technology Management are two relevant courses that help MBA candidates develop an end-to-end understanding of the choice of technology, integration challenges, and the overall impact the architecture has on customer experience. With automation and AI transitioning from a proof of concept to a strategic tool, management professionals would need a deeper understanding, often a technical foundation, to make choices on AI-led processes and platforms.
Leadership, Diversity, and Negotiation
Top schools have ensured that leadership courses don’t remain lecture-based or an analysis of leadership choices from history. The courses are experiential with a well-defined supervisory network, either leadership fellows (2nd year) or dedicated faculty with expertise in leadership. Building on the communication skills of the candidates, the courses provide real-time feedback on the communication and the strategies adopted for negotiations. The roleplay and the hand-picked teams with diverse backgrounds, nationalities, and outlooks ensure that the skills developed in leadership, communication, and negotiations are mindful of the global networks they are likely to work.
Finance & Financial Management
Finance and Financial Management course help candidates interested in leadership roles to develop the skills in interacting with the CFO on a broad range of financial decisions, from raising money, internal finance, monitoring investments, and developing a strategy to manage a portfolio of subsidiaries and investments for clients.
Operations Management
Operations Management primarily deals with the manufacturing businesses and service operations that have several moving parts from suppliers, factories, vendors, contractors, and distributors. The course provides a firm foundation in capacity planning, quality management, strategic partnerships and helps candidates think holistically with operations in mind while making decisions in strategy, finance, and marketing.
Ethics, Culture, CSR, and Social Impact
Ethics, Culture, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Social IMPACT are broad themes of the courses offered at top schools. The courses cover climate actions – investment and operations that mitigate Climate Change, ethical decision-making as an executive, corporate decisions with social impact goals, and developing cultures that improve the welfare of employees & stakeholders.
Strategy
Strategy function is the most sought-after specialization in Consulting. The course offered as core in top schools provides frameworks and tools to evaluate opportunities at business and market levels. The emphasis is on developing the leadership skills to decode trends, interpret internal and external sales data, and get a read on the market dynamics. The courses also offer candidates the tools for interpreting opportunities for mergers, acquisitions, and strategic partnerships.
Leadership Rotational Programs in General Management
Candidates choosing the Leadership Rotational program find themselves in different functions every 2-4 weeks. During that period, they will acquire a fundamental understanding of each function, the challenges, and the opportunities to improve productivity. By the end of 10 weeks to 6 months, working through different functions, piecing together the network of information and decision flows, the management professional will have had a better overview of each business function and its impact on the organization.
Schools with an emphasis on leadership development are an ideal match for transitioning into Leadership Rotational programs. The focus in the curriculum is on thinking critically, fostering growth, innovation management, and flourishing in diversity.
Johnson Graduate School of Management provides 20 different coursework opportunities to study Design Thinking and Crisis Communication, as witnessed in the impressive 12% placements in General Management/Rotational/Development programs.
| School Name | Program | Percent Hired | Median Base Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson Graduate School of Management | General, Rotational/Development Program | 12.0% | $125,000 |
| Stanford Graduate School of Business | General Management / Rotational / Leadership | 6.0% | $140,000 |
| Columbia Business School | Development Program / Rotational | 5.1% | $130,000 |
| McCombs School of Business | Leadership Development / Rotational Programs | 2.8% | $122,500 |
| UCLA Anderson School of Management | Rotational Program | 2.5% | $120,000 |
Top MBA Programs for General Management
Top MBA in General Management - Percentage of Graduates Hired
Stanford Graduate School of Business dominates the top 10 MBA programs by the percentage of graduates hired in general management. Haas School of Business takes second place. HEC Paris, in third place, showed the highest transition of graduates from pre-MBA jobs in general management at 12% to 20% post-MBA – an 8% growth, second only to consulting that demonstrated a change of 15%.
| School Name | Percent Hired | Median Base Salary | Median Sign-on Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford Graduate School of Business | 23.0% | $142,500 | $20,000 |
| Haas School of Business | 20.8% | $140,000 | No Data |
| HEC Paris | 20.0% | No Data | No Data |
| Johnson Graduate School of Management | 19.0% | $130,000 | No Data |
| Tepper School of Business | 18.3% | $127,500 | No Data |
| Duke University: Fuqua School of Business | 18.0% | $132,881 | No Data |
| Darden School of Business | 17.0% | $125,000 | No Data |
| McCombs School of Business | 16.4% | $118,500 | No Data |
| Georgetown McDonough | 12.0% | $105,917 | No Data |
| Harvard Business School | 11.0% | $140,000 | $20,500 |
Top MBA in General Management - By Median Base Salary
Stanford’s Graduate School of Business graduates acquired the highest median base salary of $142,500. The second place is a tie between Haas School of Business and Harvard Business School, at $140,000, but Haas School of Business had 10% more graduates opting for General Management. The third, the fourth, and the fifth place were taken by Wharton, Duke Fuqua, and Kellogg.
| School Name | Percent Hired | Median Base Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Stanford Graduate School of Business | 23.0% | $142,500 |
| Haas School of Business | 20.8% | $140,000 |
| Harvard Business School | 11.0% | $140,000 |
| Wharton | 6.0% | $138,000 |
| Duke University: Fuqua School of Business | 18.0% | $132,881 |
| Kellogg School of Management | 9.9% | $132,500 |
| Foster School of Business | 9.0% | $130,850 |
Top MBA in General Management - By Median Sign-on Bonus
Columbia Business School graduates traditionally have secured the highest bonuses, but, in general management, the school ties with Yale School of Management at a median sign-on bonus of $40,000. In the second place, there is a 4-way tie between Kellogg, Ross, Tuck, and MIT Sloan with a median sign-on of $30,000.
Although Stanford’s Graduate School of Business MBAs secured the highest median base salary of $142,500, the lower median sign-on bonus of $20,000 pulled the total salary down by $7,500, compared to Columbia Business School’s total of $170,000.
| School Name | Percent Hired | Median Base Salary | Median Sign-on Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Business School | 9.8% | $130,000 | $40,000 |
| Yale School of Management | 9.3% | $124,250 | $40,000 |
| Kellogg School of Management | 9.9% | $132,500 | $30,000 |
| Ross School of Business | 10.8% | $130,000 | $30,000 |
| Dartmouth College Tuck School of Business | 10.0% | $130,000 | $30,000 |
| MIT Sloan School of Management | 5.3% | $125,000 | $30,000 |
| Harvard Business School | 11.0% | $140,000 | $20,500 |
| Stanford Graduate School of Business | 23.0% | $142,500 | $20,000 |
| NYU Stern School of Business | 3.9% | $110,000 | $19,375 |
Post-MBA Jobs and Career Opportunities in General Management
Project Management roles under the general management function were featured the most at Duke’s Fuqua, Johnson School of Management, UCLA Anderson School of Management, and McCombs School of Business.
Operations were the third most popular role under General Management at Stanford Graduate School of Business, McCombs, and Columbia Business School.
Product Management, Corporate Strategy, Business Development, and Data/Business Analytics were among the other popular niches in General Management.
The mean total salary offered at companies that have a consistent presence in top US MBA programs was in the $170,000 - $180,000 range. Microsoft tops the list at $191,034, followed by NVIDIA and Intel. Google features at the bottom of the top 6 in the list at $170,959.
| Rank | Company | Average General Manager Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Microsoft | $191,034 |
| 2 | NVIDIA | $183,642 |
| 3 | Intel | $179,439 |
| 4 | Adobe | $179,342 |
| 5 | General Electric | $178,944 |
| 6 | $170,959 |
The jump between the salaries for those holding a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in general management is $40,000 debunking the myth that work experience and performance in job interviews alone are sufficient to even out the compensation.
| Education | Salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $178,441 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $137,144 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $110,020 |
| High School Diploma or Less | $109,652 |
Roles and Responsibilities of General Managers
Entry-level
Entry-level jobs for General Managers are primarily in product manager jobs with a salary range of $75,000 to $126,000. The role demands the ideation of product strategies and the implementation of tactical plans. More often, it also involves project management, managing stakeholder buy-in, and keeping senior management in the loop on product development.
The pre-requisites for such a role are a thorough understanding of market pressures that drive product performance and knowledge of analytical & statistical tools. Typically for such roles, a minimum of 2 to 3 years of experience is required.
Mid-senior Level
At the mid-senior levels, the roles demand a combination of strategic and managerial skills with titles that include Brand Marketing Manager, Senior Product Manager, or a Technology Strategist. An ability to think strategically, communicate succinctly, and build efficiencies within current processes is preferred. Financial Management and Stakeholder engagement are two other key responsibilities in the role. The salaries for such roles vary between $100,000 and $150,000 with a minimum of 5-7 years of experience.
Executive/C-Suite Level
Director of Product Management, Chief Operating Officer, Vice President of Technology are some of the job titles in the executive or C-suite level. The role typically requires over 8-10 years of experience where the emphasis is on people management, establishing positive professional relationships with internal and external stakeholders, excellent presentation skills, a strong influence over managers, problem resolution, and negotiation skills. The salary is typically between $140,000 and $180,000.
The average salary of a CXO role varies between $150,000 to $250,000 in the US.
| Job Title | Average Salary |
|---|---|
| Chief Executive Officer (CEO) | $225,378 |
| Chief Operating Officer (COO) | $194,402 |
| Chief Financial Officer (CFO) | $151,651 |
| Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) | $234,646 |
| Chief Strategy Officer | $154,701 |
| Chief Operations Officer (COO) | $204,201 |
| Chief of Staff | $129,379 |
Are you a good fit for a General Management role?
General Management function continues to hold steady in a few top schools despite the pressure from Technology and Consulting companies to poach the talent pool. Only time will tell if Stanford, Haas, HEC Paris, or Cornell Johnson MBA program will succumb to the specialized skills that the market demands. The curriculum has pivoted to incorporate the functional, technical, and people skills that the role demands.
For anyone considering an MBA with a CXO role as a long-term goal, schools with a General Management focus should be in your top 5 list. If you are unsure which schools are ideal for your short-term and long-term goals, subscribe to F1GMAT’s Career Planning service. We develop customized 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, 1-year, and 3-year career plans for you.
If you are applying to top schools, including Stanford, and Haas, check out the Winning MBA Essay Guide
Reference
2. PayScale MBA Salary - General Management
