Advancing your education and building business acumen through a Master of Business Administration (MBA) can be a precursor to new career opportunities. Whether you are interested in leadership/management, accounting, human resources (HR), or nearly any industry in between, when it comes to careers for MBA graduates, this degree is among the most versatile.
Have you wondered, “What can I do with an MBA?” Read on to explore some of the boundless career opportunities* — both general and specialization-based — plus how Johnson & Wales University (JWU) has been delivering a quality business education since its founding in 1914 that allows students to tailor their education to their goals.
*Note: The following careers listed are not necessarily entry-level roles and, thus, may require work experience before one is qualified to pursue such positions.
Careers for MBA Graduates in Business and Management
An MBA could provide access to leadership and management roles across organizations, with examples of common roles outlined below:
Business Operations Manager
Business operations managers are responsible for overseeing the daily operations of a business, handling everything from strategic and operational planning to financial management and budgeting.
Management Consultant
A management consultant works with businesses to review their operations, finances, and processes. From there, they may make tailored suggestions to streamline operations and improve overall efficiency.
Project Manager
Project managers are hired to oversee projects of all scopes and sizes from start to finish. Common responsibilities include delegating roles/tasks, encouraging collaboration, budget management, and resource allocation.
Entrepreneur or Small Business Owner
Many MBA graduates go on to start their own businesses, turning their entrepreneurship dreams into reality. The responsibilities of a small business owner are vast, with duties ranging from hiring and strategic planning to securing startup funding and devising marketing plans.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
A CEO is the head executive of a business, taking on a critical leadership role and working to develop a company’s overall vision and long-term goals.
Careers in Accounting and Finance
An MBA in Accounting could prepare you for specialized roles in accounting and finance — especially if you’ve chosen a relevant concentration. In a specialized MBA program, you can gear up for analytical and leadership positions involving budgeting, compliance, and financial planning, such as:
Financial Analyst
Financial analysts help businesses make informed decisions through financial reporting, budgeting, and trend monitoring. In some cases, they may also provide investment guidance.
Controller
Controllers are senior-level executives who oversee a business’s accounting and finance functions. In addition, they may be responsible for performing internal audits and ensuring that businesses meet regulatory compliance.
Accounting Manager
Accounting managers play a central role in the day-to-day operations of entire accounting teams. This may entail hiring and training new accounting staff, conducting internal audits, and implementing new policies and procedures.
Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
CFOs are executive-level professionals in charge of the overall financial operations of a business, including long-term financial planning, reporting, risk management, and capital management.
Careers in Data Analytics
An MBA in Data Analytics or a related concentration can bridge the gap between business and data science, preparing graduates to lead data-informed strategies in the following roles.
Business Intelligence Analyst
Business intelligence analysts collect, analyze, and interpret business data to extract valuable insights. From there, they collaborate with stakeholders to help businesses make sound decisions.
Data Analytics Manager
Data analytics managers oversee teams of data analysts, ensuring that they are following proper procedures and best practices. They may also offer training, mentoring, and leadership while taking on project management roles as needed.
Operations Analyst
Operations analysts work to extract insights from data, too, but they tend to be more focused on data that can be used specifically to improve business operations through enhanced productivity or efficiency.
Careers in Marketing
An MBA with a marketing focus could prepare professionals for creative and strategic leadership roles that focus on brand development, market research, and digital engagement.
Marketing Manager
Marketing managers oversee entire marketing departments or teams, serving an important leadership function while ensuring employees follow organizational policies and procedures.
Digital Marketing Director
Digital marketing directors play a similar role — but they focus specifically on a company’s digital marketing strategy. This can include social media, email, content, and other types of digital marketing.
Brand Manager
These professionals are responsible for the overall image and marketing of a brand in relation to its audience and the general public. This encompasses everything from brand strategy and market research to individual marketing campaigns and campaign tracking.
Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)
In this executive-level role, professionals oversee the big-picture aspects of all of a company’s marketing materials and strategies. Often, these professionals focus on ensuring that a company’s marketing strategy aligns with long-term goals and objectives.
Careers in Event Leadership
Considering an MBA in Event Leadership or a similar niche? This type of degree could equip you to face the challenges and opportunities that accompany coordinating and managing large-scale events, meetings, and experiential marketing initiatives. A sampling of common MBA roles in this field is covered below.
Event Director
Event directors handle the logistics of planning and executing events from start to finish, working with vendors and staff to ensure the most enjoyable guest experience.
Corporate Events Manager
A corporate events manager takes on a similar role to an event director but specializes in overseeing corporate events like conferences, large meetings, and trade shows.
Venue or Convention Manager
Venue and convention managers work on the other side of the equation, often collaborating with event planners and directors to ensure a seamless experience. They may work alongside their own staff to help coordinate events of all sizes, manage client relations, and ensure compliance with safety regulations.
Careers in Hospitality Management
Meanwhile, an MBA in Hospitality Management combines elements of business strategy with service leadership — a synthesis that may be ideal for those managing hotels, restaurants, or travel organizations in the following positions.
Hotel General Manager
General managers of hotels oversee the day-to-day operations of an individual location. This includes such responsibilities as managing staff, overseeing finances/budgets, and ensuring efficiency in operations.
Director of Food & Beverage
Food and beverage directors are responsible for the operations of a restaurant or bar, taking on essential duties like ensuring quality control, training staff, handling guest complaints, ordering inventory, and managing finances.
Hospitality Consultant
A hospitality consultant may be called in by hotels, restaurants, or other hospitality businesses to provide personalized guidance for streamlining operations, improving profitability, or mitigating risks. These professionals conduct audits of business operations, assess performance, and consult with stakeholders to improve overall services and operations.
Careers in Human Resource Management
An MBA in Human Resource Management can establish a foundation of knowledge for professionals wanting to align their people strategy with business goals through recruitment, training, and culture management. Check out these common job titles:
HR Director
HR directors oversee all aspects of human resources within an organization, including individual HR team members and entire departments. They handle strategic planning, talent management, recruitment planning, and other big-picture objectives.
Talent Acquisition Manager
A talent acquisition manager focuses on the strategies and procedures in place to attract and retain quality talent within a business or organization. They may assist with recruitment, talent development, retention strategies, and similar duties.
Compensation and Benefits Manager
These managers work specifically to research and build competitive compensation and benefits plans that will attract and retain top talent. This entails choosing retirement plans, health insurance plans, and making recommendations for employee compensation to remain competitive.
Careers in Operations & Supply Chain Management
The field of supply chain management needs knowledgeable leaders who have a strong sense of business acumen, efficiency, logistics, and production strategies that drive organizational success. With an MBA in Operations and Supply Chain Management, you could be better prepared for the following roles.
Supply Chain Manager
These professionals assume the vital role of overseeing every aspect of the supply chain, from supplier and vendor management to production, logistics, and demand forecasting.
Operations Director
An operations director is more in charge of the day-to-day activities — focusing on tasks such as strategic planning, performance monitoring, and operational management.
Procurement Manager
Procurement managers are tasked with purchasing or procuring the goods and/or services a company needs to create its products. A key function of their job is to ensure that they obtain the highest-quality products for a fair price and in a timely manner.
Careers in Organizational Leadership
With an MBA in Organizational Leadership or a similar specialization, professionals may be better prepared to guide teams, drive meaningful change, and optimize performance at every level. Common careers for MBA grads in organizational leadership include:
Director of Operations
Directors of operations are responsible for researching, developing, and implementing a company’s operational strategies and approaches as well as overseeing daily functions to optimize efficiency.
Leadership Development Manager
Leadership and development managers are in charge of designing and managing company-wide programs to develop leadership skills among its employees.
Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Those in this executive-level position oversee not just day-to-day operations but also work to ensure they align with the company’s vision, mission, and long-term objectives.
Careers in Organizational Psychology
Last but not least, an MBA in Organizational Psychology helps professionals integrate business management skills with behavior science to improve workplace culture, boost engagement, and maximize performance in the following roles.
Organizational Development Consultant
These professionals work with businesses to assess organizational structure, processes, and other key components. From there, they may make recommendations to address issues and improve overall performance.
Employee Engagement Director
Businesses often hire employee engagement directors in an effort to enhance employee satisfaction, engagement, and productivity on the job. Often, they implement practices and initiatives to build a more positive company culture.
People & Culture Strategist
A similar role to that of employee engagement director is a people and culture strategist. Such a professional focuses on improving company culture and maximizing the employee work experience as much as possible.
Benefits of Earning an MBA Degree
In today’s competitive job market, having an MBA could help you set yourself apart from other candidates while building career-ready benefits:
- Leadership growth – MBA programs include dedicated coursework in leadership and management principles, which could prepare you for progression into such roles.
- Career mobility – Having an MBA on your resume could help you differentiate yourself and elevate the chances of advancing in your career.
- Networking opportunities – An MBA program offers valuable outlets for professional networking and growth. During your program, you may have the opportunity to network with not only your peers but also faculty and industry thought leaders.
- Strategic thinking – The curriculum of an MBA program often includes coursework to stimulate and improve strategic thinking skills, equipping graduates for dynamic roles with more responsibility.
- Increased earning potential – 2025 research has suggested that MBA graduates can expect approximately a 70% salary increase in roles that require an MBA versus those that do not require one. Of course, numerous factors can affect earning potential, so do your own research on industry/role averages.
Industries That Value MBA Degrees
MBA graduates are in demand across a wide range of sectors, largely because of the leadership, analytical, and strategic skills they tend to possess. Likewise, employers in many fields value the versatility of an MBA and graduates’ ability to adapt to complex business challenges.
Some examples of industries where MBA graduates are frequently hired (other than business) include:
- Consulting
- Finance and banking
- Healthcare
- Hospitality and tourism
- Manufacturing and supply chain
- Marketing and advertising
- Nonprofit and government
- Technology
Specialize Your MBA to Match Your Career Goals
Many schools offer MBAs with specializations, enabling students to focus on an area of interest while building a solid foundation in management and strategy. At JWU Online, our MBA program is offered with 10 different concentrations:
- MBA in Accounting
- MBA in Data Analytics
- MBA in Event Leadership
- MBA in Finance
- MBA in Hospitality
- MBA in Human Resource Management
- MBA in Marketing
- MBA in Operations & Supply Chain Management
- MBA in Organizational Leadership
- MBA in Organizational Psychology
Not interested in a specialization? Our general MBA degree may be the better fit for you. We also offer an accelerated MBA program that can be completed in just one year for students who qualify.
What Can I Do With an MBA? Find Out at JWU’s College of Business
From roles in accounting and finance to marketing, human resources, and everywhere in between, an MBA can prepare you to reach your potential while building valuable leadership skills and business acumen.
If you’re still seeking the right MBA program to suit your needs, explore the variety of MBA concentrations offered through JWU Online, or look into our general MBA for a more rounded approach. No matter which program you choose, our convenient online format lets you pursue your degree without putting your life on hold. With a history dating back to 1914, JWU’s College of Business is where it all started — and continues to serve generations of students looking to advance their skills.
For more information about completing your degree online, fill out the Request Info form, call 855-JWU-1881, or email [email protected]. You can also get started with your online application for admission here.
