Leadership at Swiss Finance, School of Business

Ask a hundred people what leadership means (we have asked) and there will be scores of irreconcilable answers, almost all wrong. Same would happen if you asked a hundred business school admission officers. Hardly anyone knows what it really means, and unfortunately it has become a major buzzword at many business schools that even claim to offer admission based upon these qualities, in management books (authors of which have rarely experienced challenges of entrepreneurship or business ownership) and even at many businesses (where misapplication of the buzzword is frequently harmful to the owners). Most people do not know that visionary leadership, as they understand it, rarely gets the job done. No wonder most startups fail.

In a peer setting, leadership to us is substantially about wanting to be productive and be of good use to others, and it is never about assuming you have the answers and telling others what they should do. In a hierarchical setting, it is frequently about telling others precisely what they should do to make or save money for the owners, which usually means taking care of the customers instead of playing around with Facebook, and exercising this authority irrespective of whether the subordinates would be happy or not -- they get paid for the job, they better perform it with excellence, or else. Frequently as business owner you have to take steps that may not seem "leader like" to many. You need leadership in most cases because you (as owner or as a person ultimately responsible for long term financial results) can not do everything on your own.

Unlike almost all other business schools, we do not focus on teaching "manager mentality"; rather, we teach owner mentality (to be distinguished from the "ownership mentality" buzzword), because you are the owner. If you wish to work for others all your life as a "manager" then you should consider other business schools; however, if you wish to own businesses, or work directly for those who own businesses and hold you accountable for the results (such as hedge funds, wealthy clients, and investment banking clients), then you should consider Swiss Finance, School of Business.