What I Didn't Learn in Business School: How Strategy Works in the Real World

by Jay B. Barney, Trish Gorman Clifford

Meet Justin Campbell. He's a new MBA graduate who's landed a job with a strategy consultancy. His engagement team is on a mission: help HGS Inc., a specialty chemicals firm, define and execute a strategy for exploiting a textile technology the company developed.

Justin and his team deploy state-of-the-art strategy tools to analyze the attractiveness of potential markets for the technology. But they soon realize the tools don't help them grapple with the human side of strategy--including political forces swirling within HGS. Everyone involved in the engagement is biased and insecure, brilliant and hardworking, selfish and lazy, loyal and dedicated.

Justin and his cohorts aren't "real"--What I Didn't Learn in Business School is a business novel. But they're realistic: they're just like us. Their story reveals the limitations of strategy tools and demonstrates tactics for navigating the messy, human dynamics that can make or break a company's strategy efforts.

This engaging book uses the power of story to present potent lessons for anyone seeking to excel at strategy management. It's a compelling read--whether you're an MBA grad struggling to apply what you learned or in the fray and eager to see what MBAs get wrong when they land in the real world.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Buisness, Self Help, Management, Leadership

272 pages, Hardcover

First published August 17, 2010

About the author

Professor Barney's research focuses on the relationship between firm resources and capabilities and sustained competitive advantage. He has published over 100 articles and eight books. He has been on the editorial boards at the Academy of Management Review and the Strategic Management Journal, has been Associate Editor at the Journal of Management, senior editor at Organization Science, Co-Editor at the Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, and served as the editor-in-chief of the leading theory journal in the field of management, the Academy of Management Review.

He has been elected as a Fellow of both the Academy of Management and the Strategic Management Society and has won the Irwin Outstanding Educator Award, the Academy of Management Scholarly Contributions Award, the Eccles School of Management outstanding research award, the Penrose Award for Pathbreaking Management, the CK Prahalad Scholar-Practitioner Award, the Foundational Paper Award, the John Fayerweather Eminent Scholar Award, and the Distinguished Scholarship Award.

Reviews

[Anand Iyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I didn't learn in business school is a book every budding consultant should have read at least once, especially the ones hired from B-school. The B-school learnings that are thrashed have been elucidated: how Porter's five force can be bent to the shape of the manager or how NPV calculation varies with the managers' interest. But most important, how hydra-headed a client actually is and how important it is to address every head in the same "deck".

[Brian Keller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very light read, but still engaging. It gives a fine look at what a newly-minted MBA faces in the real world. It also serves as a textbook with references to core material that every MBA should grasp immediately. Curious as to what MBAs do and how they think? Got a few hours to spare? Then this is a cute read. But, if you're not an MBA student and you've got a bunch of other good books to read, I suggest you move on to more interesting material.

[Auggie Heschmeyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This turned out to be far more engaging than I ever could be imagined it would be. For a book that is basically a business school class in disguise, there are some moments of really lovely prose and even some unexpected twists and turns. As a work of high art, it's nothing special, but as a work of business education, this is a book you should buy for each and every one of your entrepreneur friends.

[Todd Cheng · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a few books in consulting. These books include the McKinsey Way, Succeeding at Consulting, McKinsey Edge, Top 100 Consulting Frameworks, The Goal, much Drucker, and much Deming. Occasional I work with consultants. I see the materials developed, the longer hours, and often seek to better understand the thoughts behind the glossy Power Points and intensities.

This is a great dialectic novella that in first person unfolds ten days as a first time consultant. It is a fiction about nonfiction consulting practices, frameworks, and methods. It covers peer reviews, pitches, analysis, coaching, and mentorship. Each concept or chapter of the journey closes with 2-3 retrospective questions. A pleasant fire side story to explore the profession and value they can bring in a transformation journey. I expect more mid-level managers need the object perspective.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally done with this book! It took me forever as the story didn’t capture me. Ironically, the book‘s intention is to make the topic of business strategy more tangible and relatable in real life business scenarios. While the idea is great, the approach fell too flat, imo.
I can however recommend „the adventures of an IT leader“ for those who are interested in a „novel style approach“ to business, which was a great read.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot can be summarized as "watch a new MBA grad stumble through his first job and mess up really obvious stuff." It was interesting but I didn't learn much.

[Tom Wakelin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very disappointed in this title - For a book that has ‘How strategy worlds in the real world’, there is an extreme lack of strategy discussed. The book follows a made-up story of Justin Campbell; a new MBA graduate who works in a strategy consultancy. In between a complete lack of understanding his job and talking to his girlfriend on the phone, there is a complete lack of new learnings throughout this book. I would strongly recommend that if you are interested in learning about business strategy, you take a read of business books such as: ‘Losing the Signal: The untold story behind the extraordinary rise and spectacular fall of Blackberry’, ‘The ride of a lifetime’ or ‘That will never work’. All of these titles give REAL examples of how business strategy must adjust over time in the face of competition and changing business environments compared to this book.

[Sreejith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short yet insightful peek into the strategy consulting world. Justin (the protagonist) in the story realizes the limitations of his highly-acclaimed MBA program study as he tackles his first ever real-world strategy engagement that is unlike any of his hundred odd MBA cases.

Justin goes further to appreciate the true value of his MBA learnings as tools that can provide additional perspectives while solving real world problems. In the real world, team work and organizational behavior play a bigger role - and of course burning the midnight oil through pure hard work!

All in all, a pleasant read that tickles and mildly ridicules the MBA program study; a good way to prepare for the real world post-MBA.

[Matthew Mechtly · Rating 3 out of 5]

While these narative style didactic books tend to be corny, this one was on the less corny side of things. All things considered, I believe the narrative actually helped reinforce many of the points and to do so in a more readable manner.

However, perhaps this books should be called "What I Knew Before Business School," since--as someone who doesn't have an MBA--the majority of things covered in this book were business basics that anyone with a rigorous undergraduate and couple year of corporate experience would already know. I think this book should have been a more technical to better address the target demographic.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

My professor made me read this book. Meh... interesting and a quick read but a lot of the insights were obvious and nothing was truly surprising. I suppose this is a result of having a protagonist that embodies several dumb mistakes new MBAs make. In actuality a new MBA would only make 1 or 2 of the mistakes in this book and they wouldn't be so glaringly simple. This also does nothing to encourage me to want to become a consultant ever in my life. I enjoy problem solving but the lifestyle seems terrible in terms of work/life balance.

[Shraddha Amritkar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could easily relate to this book. Being a fresher and a current student of B-School, my thinking was also to apply the concepts learnt in B-school to the real life scenarios. But, the book has given me the heads up that this is not going to work this way and have already prepared my mind for the challenges.
Liked this book. Would recommend it to all the current B-school students (especially freshers) and aspirants.

[Surya Teja · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, the book certainly hits properly with the target market - MBA students. Being one myself and a consultant, I can directly connect to this and the various tools talked about in this book.

The characters were kept professional, as the discussions do not go over 2 weeks and it takes longer than that to understand and bring out personal matters for anyone.

This book was so interesting that I stayed up past my usual bedtime to finish reading it despite having an early class tomorrow.

[Joshua Giles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wowzer this was one of the best business books I have read. Not many business concept books can be told in story form and done so well that someone reading it purely for pleasure and not business insights could enjoy

[JJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a basic book on some strategic tools; however, it's fun to read. As it is engaging, it lacks on substance. I wish the engaging prose had been used for more in-depth strategic thoughts. Good read for an afternoon by the beach side.

[Gaurav Tale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book linking b-school learnings to reality. B-school will only provide tools but how & when to apply them while understanding the organisation dynamics will decide the growth of a person and organisation.

[Nikilesh Krishnakumar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read overall. Very dramatic and detailed storytelling that really helps visualize emotions. However, felt that the ending was rushed. Would have loved to get more insight into the latter half of the team's work and how the protagonist learned new insights.

[RA · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading philosophical novels, historical novels, psychological analysis novels, I found this was the first economic novel I ever read. Not very dense in strategy info as claimed, but interesting as a lecture.

[Olivia Ireland · Rating 3 out of 5]

For MBA required reading, this was a fun novel and was a not so subtle reminder of the various concepts I’ve learned in my strategy classes. For someone who is simply interested in business, there are better options out there!

[Aw Wen Xin Benjamin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read with business undertones

Overall a fun way to approach the topic and gain insight into the life of a management consultant. Would have liked a deeper look into the know-how’s, tools and techniques of doing the work but it still serves as a good introduction.

[Delasa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned so much from this book. I’ve been working in industry for a couple of years. This book taught me so much about how to think about strategy in a real world setting, and how to problem solve as an independent outsider individual.

[Kevin Schafer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was alarmingly readable and goofy in a good way (characters simply only speaking as if they were waiting to deliver next monologue on best method to create value).

Would not recommend to gen pop but alas.

[Hayli · Rating 2 out of 5]

Assigned for a class... definitely not a real novel... not written very well... mildly informative

[Eleanor Gravestock · Rating 3 out of 5]

The reflection questions saved this read. It was an amusing story but not particularly applicable to everyday life.

[Shashwat Anand · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for people starting in consulting. Especially MBA grads! Last-mile knowledge delivery prepares you to meet your consulting manager, your teammates, and most importantly your client.

[Chipo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book for class. It was okay!

[Sparsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly engaging

[Kirsten Painter Conard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Actually, in my MBA program... 🤓☝️

[Ashe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this for one of my business classes.

Justin is probably one of the most frustrating characters I've ever had to read about.
While I understand the premise of this book, and I know he's a recent MBA graduate, he seemed to not know much outside the classroom. I mean. Assumptions all over the place.

[Gabriel Le Gall · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book that makes you think beyond NPVs, 5-Forces, PESTEL and all the generic tools/frameworks we generally study in strategy, sometimes without reflecting too much. This book brings a refreshing perspective on corporate strategy

[Andre · Rating 3 out of 5]

[AUDIOBOOK]
So, maybe I shouldn't be so harsh of a critic for a book that I picked because I liked the narrator. However, I don't believe that this book accomplished what it's intention was - to provide insight into the business world. I was keen to get some input into some practical decision making skills, given modern political climates in organizations.

The book was more of a novel than a textbook, which made it engaging and easy to get through. However, the writing felt like it was written by business folks. Further, Justin (the main character) made countless cringe-worthy comments and decisions. However, maybe that is an accurate view of a young, inexperienced, professional.

I loved the reflection questions as the end of the chapter. They helped keep me engaged. I would have liked if they supplied some brief answers to these questions, so as to help me learn about how I'm analyzing the situation versus another person.

It was a fun and easy read, but I didn't feel like I really gained much from it. This is why I rated it so low.