Building brands - Lessons from TFA
I did not know about TFA (Teach for America) until I started researching business schools for my MBA. While browsing the jobs database of the one of the so called top schools , I saw their job postings. How does an organization motivate MBA' from top business schools, arguably the top aspirators in the topmost capitalist society, to devote 2 years of their lives working for peanuts?
Answer : Branding
TFA is highly selective, rejects a high percentage of applicants. Teachers from TFA are regularly hired by top investment banks like Goldman and top consulting firms. Candidates flaunt TFA experience in their resumes for admission to top business schools.
What TFA offers in two years is a challenge of a lifetime, teaching kids in under-priviliged inner city neighborhoods in America. Anyone who has read "To Sir with love" knows how difficult this job can be for experienced campaigners, let alone fresh graduates with no teaching experience.
TFA gives rigorous training to its hires before they start teaching. Teachers are paid a stipend/salary, so it is not voluntary.
Wendy Kopp proposed the idea of TFA in her thesis at Princeton in 1989. Obviously it had no takers then and even as late as 2000 , TFA faced funding problems. But TFA's success shows that if an idea has enough takers in the people who matter, funding can't be a deterrent. And in this case, the people who mattered were the graduates from top American universities. Looking at TFA as an alternative to careers in number crunching ( spreadsheet modeling/presentation making) , the response has been amazing.
TFA is a powerful concept in social entrepreneurship. Can it replicated in India?
2 comments:
Nice observation Bipin.I would like to add that
a)it not that all top MBA school candidate alway look for fat salaries.What inspires us may vary from individual to indiviual.One of the most inspiring thing is to make a tangibale differnec in life of people.Some one get it my developeing best algorithm for google other teaching under TPA.
b)Purpose is very importnat aspect fo business and no one defines it more clearly thena NGO or a well run non-progit organisation.
It not branding but a very well defined purpose that attracts talent in NGOs.
Thanks curious mind for stopping by. Yes, you are right that not every MBA student looks for fat salaries. But I think branding serves the purpose of expressing that well defined purpose much better than any personal pitches. I have worked with an NGO in Bangalore and a lot of volunteers were attracted by Word of Mouth. This is branding at work.
Post a Comment