Andrea Gets Schooled

Great question – I’ve been asked this a lot since I decided to pursue an MBA. After building The ScoliClinic over the past six years, it may seem like an odd move. I’m 35, in the middle of the growth phase of my career and my company, and far from being financially independent. I’m also hard-pressed to believe my boss will give me a promotion after I get this designation….

In sharing my decision, I observe mixed reactions; some people are encouraging of my pursuit of continued learning, while others almost seem defensive, with projected judgements like ‘why would you spend money on that’ or ‘oh I think real life experience would be better’.

So, let me share why I’m doing my MBA, in point form, because I’m too lazy to write eloquent paragraphs:

1. The ScoliClinic is finally at a point where we’re ready to grow, and we’re deciding IF we want to grow, or stay our current size and execute beautifully at this small scale. IF we do want to grow, we need to decide if we want to grow in breadth (open more locations) or depth (invest in research, content development, other projects). I want to learn about the various factors to consider when making decisions about The ScoliClinic’s growth. I’m currently only exposed to Physio clinic models, and want to learn from other companies.
   
2. In Physio school, we learned the anatomy of the body as a foundation to build our knowledge on. In the business, although I’ve learned a LOT through trial and error, coaching, reading, podcasts, and more, some of the lessons were challenging/expensive, and possibly avoidable. Before we make our next leap as a company, I feel it’s a responsible choice to learn the anatomy of business in the form of basic accounting and finance principles, growth strategies, negotiation tactics, international business considerations, and more. We have a sister scoliosis clinic in Australia which would benefit from my deepened understanding.
   
3. ‘But you could hire consultants to teach you that’. Yes, I sure could. However, I hold very particular values and philosophies about leadership and how I run my business. Working with past consultants required me to interpret the information and re-package it through my own lens anyways. So instead of paying for a consultant, my business partner Madison and I agreed that it would be worth it for us to hold and integrate that knowledge directly, without the middle party.
   
4. My initial plan was to work part-time while going to school to allow others to take on more responsibilities. However, after much discussion with my coach, she suggested taking a full hiatus because my founder energy is inevitably dominant. By stepping back from day-to-day operations for at least one full year, I can ‘get out of everyone’s way’ to truly let the leadership team explore their leadership styles and make decisions without my micromanagement (and get schooled in their own ways).
   
5. I want to meet people. Particularly after COVID, my extroverted side has been craving new connections. My network in Vancouver is largely populated with fellow Physiotherapists and healthcare providers since I moved to the city for Physio school, and while that’s appreciated, I want to learn from those in other industries to allow an opportunity for sharing of different experiences and cross-pollination of ideas
   
6. I’m feeling up for an adventure. I have an opener tendency: I love learning new things, generating new ideas, exploring various options. One small regret I have from my early 20s is that I wish I ventured geographically farther for my undergraduate degree. Thinking of combining my love for travelling with learning, I felt there might be programs in BC, across Canada, or internationally that could feel adventurous.

So which MBA program did I pick?

After researching many options, I landed on applying to the Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) program at Simon Fraser University’s Beedie School of Business.

Reasons for the SFU EMBA:

• The Executive level program is a small cohort of 45-ish people across many industries (meet my cohort soon!), many of whom are at the height of their careers thus far. I want to create connections and learn from people who are ‘ahead of me’, and being one of the youngest in the cohort, I trust that I’ll have much to absorb from my peers:
  • Average age: 43
  • Average experience: 21 years, with 10 years in management
    
• Program class structure: full day in-person (I’m sick of zoom) classes on Fridays and Saturdays, bi-weekly (leaving time for other pursuits like special projects, voice/piano lessons, artistic exploration, and dog cuddling); it’s designed for people in high-demand jobs, with families
  
• In second year, there’s an opportunity to complete the Americas MBA certificate, where students travel to sister schools in Sao Paolo, Mexico City, and Nashville to meet other EMBA students and learn about international business – this would satisfy my itch to travel
  
• The EMBA admission highly weights experience in addition to academics, and doesn’t involve standardized test scores. In other words, I didn’t have to complete the GMAT (if you don’t know what it is, google ‘sample GMAT questions’)

I haven’t applied for anything personally in ages. Like, since 2008 when I applied to UBC Physio.

I’ve also never had an interview for a position (seriously!). All my experience was either through volunteer-turned-job-offer, or through the very structured Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) process for the Physio progam.

So – follow along as I figured out how to a) make a resume, and b) learn how to convince a panel to give me a seat in their program.

– Andrea

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Join me in the classroom of life!