Would your next career move be to a job in Europe, America or the emerging markets?

If you are attracted to working for a new player on the world business scene then you are in a minority. The reputations of key emerging markets, including Russia, Eastern Europe and Asia, discourage the best talent from working there, according to Hill & Knowlton’s annual Corporate Reputation Watch, a survey of MBA candidates at leading business schools.

Paul Taaffe, chairman and chief executive of Hill & Knowlton, says: “MBAs graduating in a postEnron world have a strong preference for the companies and countries with the best reputations. Some 86 per cent of our sample rated corporate culture and the working environment as extremely important and just 18 per cent were interested in working in Russia or Eastern Europe.”

Taaffe says that the priority for MBA graduates is to enhance their CVs and finances. “Working in more mature markets, at least initially, is more attractive because they can build their reputation and salary levels, which can then be translated into an emerging market.”

Professor Andrew Scott, an economist at London Business School, agrees that MBA graduates want to build their skill sets. “Working in a rich country offers more sophisticated technology with a greater emphasis on management so you can learn to handle cutting-edge issues, which makes you far more marketable.”

Countries in the emerging markets vary widely in their sophistication and reputation for business but for some MBA students, such as Karen Garaseferyas, an Armenian student at RSM Erasmus University in the Netherlands, the company is more important than its location.

He says: “Multinationals have very strict rules and their public exposure means that they are closely monitored. I worked in a nonprofit organisation in Armenia and now want to work in the energy sector. I’m carefully researching the corporate social responsibility and green credentials of international companies before applying to them for a job.”

Denis Kobzev, MBA operations manager at Warwick Business School, agrees that working for international companies ensures fairly standard business ethics and working practices across the globe. Before doing an MBA at Leeds University Business School, he worked for Procter & Gamble across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

He says: “There are huge differences in social, political and legal practices in these countries.” Kobzev recently turned down a job in his native Russia. “The UK’s reputation in higher education, my current area of interest, is very rigorous, while emerging markets are a long way behind,” he explains.

Pick your emerging market with care, advises Giovanni Calimani, plant manager at Prysmian Cables & Systems in China. The Italian would not jump at a job offer in Russia or India. “Their reputation, particularly in manufacturing, is not as good as that of China, which has worked on making itself attractive to Western businesses.”

However, Calimani would still hesitate to work in a Chinese-owned company. “I would want to know why a Chinese business wants to hire me, as it would be a very difficult challenge. Currently I am the only foreigner among 300 staff but I know my HQ bosses support me 100 per cent. In a Chinese company I’d be caught in the middle.”

There are, however, huge opportunities for MBAs in emerging markets, says Stephane Rodes, head of corporate banking at BNP Paribas based in Moscow, and a graduate of RSM Erasmus University. “Growth is double or triple the mature markets, with a shortage of qualified people. If you are ready for the challenge you will be given a lot of responsibility quickly.”

Calimani, who has done a Manchester Business School Worldwide MBA since going to China, advises: “If you have an MBA and can speak Mandarin there are no limits to your future.”

But the success of emerging markets will depend on their ability to attract the best.

My classmates did not appreciate thelure of the east

Joshua Tulgan, director of investor relations at Mobile TeleSystems, Moscow, worked in emerging markets before doing an MBA at McDonough Business School in America, where he was surprised at his classmates’ attitude.

“They were unadventurous. We had a programme where students did business consulting projects in emerging markets, but they did not follow this path and melted away into technology jobs in Washington and banking in New York.

“I had worked almost exclusively in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States and decided to return after graduation, but among fellow students there was a stigma attached to working in Asia and other emerging markets. People think they cannot be as advanced as more mature areas.

“Yet my job is directly comparable to that in any New York-listed company, and expectations are no lower. The difference is that I do it in an environment that has no antecedents and minimal infrastructure – not even a reliable phone system.

“But old perceptions linger and people ask me about political risks, which are no less in America with the presidential election approaching.

“The best way to learn about yourself is to step outside your comfort zone. If you are eager for challenges the pace of change in emerging markets is astounding and MBAs will be given opportunities far sooner than in Western countries.”

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