Ahead of the Curve

May 12, 2008
This debut by a former journalist at the Daily Telegraph
of London chronicles the author's love-hate relationship with the Harvard Business School, where he spent two years getting his M.B.A. Beginning with a confessional account of his disillusionment with journalism and conflicted desire to make money, Broughton provides an account of his experiences in and out of the classroom as he struggles to survive the academic rigor and find a suitably principled yet lucrative path. Simultaneously repelled by his aggressive fellow capitalists in training—their stress-fueled partying and obsession with wealth—and dazzled by his classes, visiting professors and the surprising beauty of business concepts, Broughton vacillates between cautious critique and faint praise. Although cleverly narrated and marked by a professional journalist's polish and remarkable attention to detail, this book flounders; it provides neither enough color nor damning dirt on the school to entertain in the manner of true tell-alls. The true heart of the story is less “b-school” confidential than a memoir of Broughton's quest to understand the business world and find his place in it.

June 15, 2008
Broughton, formerly a reporter and bureau chief with London's "Daily Telegraph", describes his experiences as a student at Harvard Business School from 2004 to 2006, providing a needed update to other entries in this genre of students turned authors (e.g., Francis J. Kelly and Heather Kelly's "What They Really Teach You at Harvard Business School"). Broughton offers an entertaining tale with a mostly positive spin on the school and its faculty, describing both the curriculummade up of case studies drawn from real-life business situations to engage students in teamwork, leadership, and problem-solving exercisesand his own personal struggles coming from a "no-numbers" background and competing with students who studied finance at the undergraduate level. As he finishes up his degree, the job search leads him to an unsuccessful interview with the Google Book Project and then to consulting jobs, as he continues seeking stable employment. Broughton reconnects with former classmates to see what impact Harvard Business School had on their own work, then ends with his own reflections on and recommendations for the program. Of potential interest to a broader audience but recommended especially for undergraduate and business collections.Mark McCallon, Abilene Christian Univ., TX

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