IESE MBA graduates continue to be in high demand from leading international companies, who value their ability to adapt to new industries, roles and cultures. That is the message from a new employment report released this week by IESE Career Services, which reveals the post-MBA destinations of the class of 2014.
The report confirms that the IESE MBA continues to be an effective vehicle for career mobility, whether in terms of industry, function or country. A significant 90 percent of MBA graduates received an offer of work within three months of graduating. A further 61 percent of grads found employment in a new industry, 63 percent assumed a new function and 33 percent changed their country of residence after graduation. Many students in the class of 2014 did all three, taking on new roles in a new industry away from their home country.
Who’s Hiring?
Consulting firms were the biggest recruiters, picking up 24 percent of the class of 2014. Meanwhile, 17 percent of graduates accepted offers in financial services.
The greatest trend change this year was in e-commerce, which recruited 12 percent of graduates, eight percent more than in 2013. Other top industries were technology and media (taking 13 percent), consumer goods (11 percent), and healthcare and chemical (nine percent). The remainder of graduates accepted offers in manufacturing, other services and energy. The average global starting salary was €89,898.
Linking Students and Employers
Every year IESE links dozens of companies with emerging talent. In 2014, 90 companies – including Eli Lilly, McKinsey & Company, Infosys, Uber, BASF, Bain & Company, American Express and Audi – extended four or more offers to students in this graduating class. Globally, placements are concentrated in Europe (excluding Spain) with 43 percent of graduates taking jobs there. Meanwhile, 23 percent of MBA 2014 is now working in Spain, 12 percent in North America, 12 percent in Asia, nine percent in Latin America and one percent in the Middle East and Africa.
The 17-member Career Services Department, working out of Barcelona, New York, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Tokyo and Shanghai, helped 61 percent of graduates to land their post-MBA job. One of the main tools for eventual job placement was IESE’s Career Forum, which took place this academic year on February 16 and 17. 19 companies came to the Barcelona campus to recruit promising talent, including BBVA, GlobalPraxis, Delta Partners and Google.