Managers not MBAs by Henry Mintzberg

Managers Not MBAs: A Hard Look at the Soft Practice of Managing and Management Development

Author: Henry Mintzberg
Binding: Paperback
Paper Quality: Black White Paper
Category: Business & Management / Leadership / Organizational Studies
Recommended For: Business professionals, educators, MBA aspirants, and anyone interested in rethinking management education and real-world leadership.

Key Points

• Critical Perspective – Challenges the conventional MBA model, arguing it produces analysts rather than effective leaders and managers.

• Experience Over Theory – Emphasizes the importance of real-world experience in shaping effective managers rather than relying solely on classroom theory.

• Practical Management Insights – Offers fresh insights into how real managers think, act, and grow—based on Mintzberg’s decades of research and case studies.

• Alternative Model Proposed – Suggests a new vision for management education focused on learning through doing, reflection, and peer engagement.

• Globally Influential – A landmark book that reshaped the debate around business schools and inspired new models of executive education.