Have you noticed that most of the heads of today’s most successful companies are engineers? Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, Lisa Su, Mary Barra and Jensen Huang…

What do they all have in common? Technical origin! Why is this really the case?

In the past, completing an MBA (Master of Business Administration) was the most popular path for those who wanted to become CEOs of a company. However, this situation is starting to change.

Published by Harvard Business Review in 2018 The list of top 100 CEOs includes For two years in a row, the number of CEOs with an engineering degree exceeded the number of CEOs with an MBA.

Studying for an MBA can be quite expensive. For example, earning an MBA from prestigious schools such as Wharton of the University of Pennsylvania or Harvard Business School up to over $200,000 It may cost.

But some CEOs advise against spending that money. Elon Muskin an interview with the Wall Street Journal “I think too many MBAs run companies.” he said.

According to Musk, business people spend too much time in meetings and PowerPoint presentations, focusing on financial matters rather than product-oriented thinking. But If the product is good, the profit will follow.

Engineers; They can design, develop and improve products thanks to their knowledge of mathematics, science and technology.

Technically, Elon Musk has a degree in physics and economics, not engineering, but he himself got a degree in physics and economics by reading books. learned rocket science an engineer.

When Satya Nadella took over Microsoft in 2014, he reorganized the company. He had to bring it back to life. Under former CEO Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s products were not revolutionary.

Surface to iPad; Windows Phone was a response to the iPhone. In his first email as CEO, Nadella wrote: ‘Our industry Does not respect tradition. It just respects innovation.” He wrote. The engineering spirit brought the innovative approach that saved Microsoft.

We see a similar way of thinking in Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon. He once personally attended job interviews. He wouldn’t ask stupid interview questions. He observed the analytical approach of each candidate and recruited them personally.

Can we say that their problem-solving skills are successful?

It is an undeniable fact that solving problems is an advantage in business. So to be a CEO have only technical knowledge It is not enough. Innovative approaches and product-oriented thinking are indispensable building blocks of being a CEO.

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