Getting Down to Business

As she talked about Springfield College’s new MBA (master’s in business administration) program to be launched in a few months, Kathryn Carlson Heler said that, in many ways, the school is going back to its roots.

By that, she meant a return to what was a strong focus on management of organizations such as YMCAs and other nonprofits — with curriculum grounded in business — that would match a concentration on athletics that would give the college its national and international reputation.

“When the college was founded 125 years ago, it was created to educate the YMCA secretary, who today we would call the executive director,” said Heler, professor of Business Administration at the college and director of the MBA program. “And when you look at the curriculum that these secretaries followed, it was business, and there were courses in bookkeeping, management, and reaching out to the community that you were to attract, or what we would call marketing.

“And of course, there was the athletic side,” she continued, “and the secretary could decide if he wanted to take the management track or the athletic track. But somewhere down the road, the management track fell away, and Springfield College became known for the athletic side. So we’re going to back to where we began.”

It is doing so with an MBA offering that comes with two concentrations, one in management and the other in nonprofit management, and the timing for bringing such products to the market couldn’t be better, Heler told BusinessWest.

Indeed, now more than ever before, nonprofit agencies must be run like businesses, and their managers must have the skill sets of a successful business owner, she said, adding that, in the business world, an MBA is becoming more of a necessity for managers looking to climb the ladder.

“The definition of a nonprofit today is that of a mission-based business, and those two words sum it up,” she explained. “They have to run like a business, they have to show a profit, and they are under many of the same rules and regulations that any small business is.

“Most nonprofits are selling a product,” she continued, “and they’re marketing a product. And for social entrepreneurs, they’re looking for new ways to raise money beyond the annual campaign.”

Meanwhile, with the economic picture still muddled, and many college graduates facing an uncertain job market, some individuals are choosing to stay in school and get a graduate degree rather than fight for jobs that are few and far between.

“This is a good time to be doing this,” said Heler. “Right now, there are roughly nine people for every job that comes available. People are being turned off by that, and they’re deciding to stay in school.”

Considering these and other factors, Heler, who came to SC from Indiana to get the new initiative off the ground, is generally optimistic about the prospects for the latest addition to the region’s roster of MBA programs. She told BusinessWest that there has been strong interest in the offering — from both those aforementioned college students looking to stay in school and those already working at area nonprofits and businesses who want to take their knowledge and skill sets to a higher level.

The nonprofit management concentration is fairly unique, said Heler, adding that the new, 30-credit program features an optional one-year track that will appeal to many, but also a two-year track that includes a corporate residency. Meanwhile, all courses are taught by full-time faculty members, rather than adjuncts, unlike many competing programs.

For this issue, BusinessWest looks at Springfield College’s entry into the MBA market, and why it does so with a large degree of confidence.

Course of Action

When asked about the factors that prompted SC administrators to become a player in the MBA realm and create a program specifically for nonprofit managers, Heler had some numbers ready to help make her case.

The first one was 5,200. That’s the latest unofficial count on the number of nonprofits in the Springfield-Hartford area that SC is marketing to. The next was 35,000 — the number of people who work in the nonprofit arena followed by 19%, or the share of the local economy that is comprised of nonprofits. And according to a nationwide study completed in 2006, there will be a need over the next decade for 600,000 new senior managers in the nonprofit realm as a result of new organizations coming online and the retirement of many current managers.

“So the market is there for such a program,” said Heler, adding quickly that, in addition to the quantity of nonprofit managers as a major consideration, the issue of quality is a matter as well.

In other words, the boards running nonprofit agencies want real business leaders at the helm of their organizations.

“In the past, educating nonprofit managers has been done through conferences and workshops,” she explained. “These managers have come up through the field. Now, there’s a real call for these people to be professionals. Nonprofit education now means making sure managers, supervisors, and executive directors have business knowledge, skills, and tools.”

All these factors indicated a strong need, and a niche that Springfield College, which has a proud reputation of training nonprofit leaders, could capitalize on.

It is meeting that need with those two MBA offerings, or concentrations. Both feature seven core courses, including ‘Economics of the Firm in Contemporary Society,’ ‘Research Methods and Statistics for Business and Nonprofits,’ and ‘Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics,’ but feature different concentration courses.

The Management option includes ‘Managerial Accounting,’ ‘Project and Information Systems Management,’ and ‘Organizational Behavior and Leadership,’ while the Nonprofit Management model features ‘Leadership and Governance for Nonprofits,’ ‘Accounting for Nonprofits,’ and ‘Fund Development and Philanthropy.’

Both packages are drawing some attention, said Heler, adding that she expects 15-20 students for the first classes, to begin this summer. These will be diverse classes, she continued, noting that she’s signed up some currently with area businesses and nonprofits, some current undergraduates (including a few from SC) who want to pursue an MBA now instead of slugging it out in a tough market, and a even a few individuals who joined the Peace Corps, have returned from various assignments, are experiencing difficulty finding the right job, and have chosen instead to seek a graduate degree.

“We’re going to have people ages 22 to 50,” she explained. “That’s going to be a fascinating mix that will make learning a great experience.”

Erin Vermette will be one of those students on the younger end. The Belchertown resident, who is currently wrapping up a bachelor’s degree in Marketing online from the University of Phoenix, decided to pursue an MBA now instead of entering the job market — or trying to gain entry.

“The way the economy is right now, I’m not saying I couldn’t get a job, but it would certainly be more difficult,” she said. “I think it makes more sense to get the MBA now, and have an edge when I do compete for jobs. An MBA is becoming more of a prerequisite for many positions today.”

Vermette said she did some comparing and contrasting of area programs, and decided that SC’s provided the needed flexibility — she currently works in day care and wants to continue doing that while pursuing her degree — and an attractive course mix.

“I’ve been talking courses online for 2 1/2 years, and decided I wanted to go back to the campus,” she explained, adding that her ultimate goal is to work in the fine arts, perhaps in marketing for a gallery.

School of Thought

Heler told BusinessWest that it will take perhaps five years for a program like SC’s new MBA to become established and reach stated goals for enrollment.

She believes that the offering has the right mix of qualities — from course selection to scheduling flexibility to that specific concentration in nonprofit management — to meet or exceed that timetable.

If she’s right, then the new program will represent a degree of progress — literally and figuratively — for the college, the students, and area nonprofit agencies.

George O’Brien can be reached at

[email protected]