By Paul D. Rosevear

Online MBA Program Offers Him Opportunities for Continued Career Enhancement

With three bachelor's degrees in finance, marketing, and accounting, and a dual MBA in finance and international business, the last thing John M. Mayer needs is more academic credentials. However, no matter how many letters he stacks up after his name, his appetite for knowledge and continuing education remains insatiable. Currently, he is pursuing two additional online master certificates in international business and marketing, from Thunderbird University - The Garvin School of International Management.

"People always ask me why I'm doing it," says Mayer, who has put his extensive education to use at large consulting firms, investment banks, corporations like AT&T and General Electric, and now runs his own global finance company called LeaseForce International. "In the global business world, it's constant learning that will keep you on top. I can say that when I graduated in 1988, I had a great set of skill sets, and I have certainly built upon them, but things change and you always want to do anything you can to sharpen those skills."

According to the Mayer, he's not alone, claiming there are plenty of people who have already earned an MBA, but now want to hone in on a specialty. "If I have an MBA, the last thing I'm going to want is an eMBA," he explains. "I didn't need another MBA, and I think there are a lot of people like myself who are searching for something specific to accent the education they already have. Thunderbird had the specific international niche I was looking for."

As you might imagine, a busy international businessman who is constantly traveling might find it impossible to sharpen those skills in a traditional classroom environment with a rigorous and demanding schedule - which is why eLearning was Mayer's vehicle for advancement. "For an executive, online learning is the only way to go," he says. "You're still able to do what you need to do in the office, and at the same time you can continue down the path of personal self-fulfillment - and fit it into a very hectic schedule."

Mayer's enthusiasm for online learning wasn't always there. "I was extremely skeptical of the online format," he explains. "I had earned my education in a brick-and-mortar setting and I didn't believe it could work any other way. But I did plenty of research on the Thunderbird program and the content is incredibly strong - and actually superior in some ways," he says.. Mayer's career responsibilities meant no extra time for "side notes or extraneous conversation,." which is why he sought a format in which he could control the pace.

But even with his whole-hearted endorsement of eLearning, Mayer won't sugarcoat the reality of the workload. "I'd say I log in around 15 hours a week," he says. "I get frustrated plenty of times - usually when job-related pressure comes into play. When I've got six deals going, I'm flying all over the world for meetings, I'm on timeline for my business, and I find myself doing homework in a hotel room at 3 a.m. That's when I begin to question whether or not I need to be doing this."

Ultimately, his passion for bettering his business, expanding his knowledge, and some good old- fashioned stubbornness keeps him fighting the good fight. "It comes down to the individual - I made a commitment, and I will follow through," he asserts. "Also, the content is just that good. It gives me incentive to get through it."

Not only is Mayer a convert when it comes to believing in the validity and power of online learning, but he thinks it is the way of the future - and perpetual doubters will inevitably be left behind.

"Take me as an example - I'm a guy who would have flat-out rejected this method of learning, even if someone had offered it to me for free. But change is inevitable, and every university today is doing it," he says. "If you're someone who is worried about going online to learn, look into an eLearning program from a traditional school that you trust - because any executive who continues to shun the online format is going to get left behind."