The alumni magazine from my university arrived last week, and I was struck by the size of the “births” section that was allocated to my contemporaries.

Of course, that’s simply a function of age, but it was interesting to note that almost every alumnus’ message gives the impression that their greatest accomplishment is the birth of their latest child. All these intelligent, well educated, high-achievers, and yet not one highlights a single professional accomplishment of note. Is it significant that after 20 years of learning and another 20 of hard work, they’re most proud of simply doing what comes naturally?

Well, it seems so. A couple of weeks ago the Economist published an article on the lack of women enrolled in MBA programmes, and it elicited the following response ( see Economist – Letters – The family business):

SIR – As an MBA who left a career in economic research to care for my two young children, I can tell you why more women do not pursue the qualification (“Men’s work?“, June 14th). Business schools and the careers to which they lead mould one to be self-promoting, analytical, decisive and ambitious. Motherhood requires that one be self-deprecating, intuitive, patient and tied down.

I have had to develop hastily the skills for motherhood that I had repressed in order to succeed in the business world and now resent having spent so much time and energy developing exactly the opposite of the talents I need to do what I consider the most important job of my life. For business schools to attract women they would need to change the very nature of business itself.

Barbara Ross Epp
Port Washington, New York

That’s quite an indictment of the business world and executive education. It seems business requires cold-blooded warriors, whereas motherhood calls for, well … passionate mothers.

What seems most likely to me, however, is that people are simply listing their most rewarding accomplishments. In other words, these intelligent, well educated, high-achievers have simply found raising children to be much more fulfilling than any amount of previous job satisfaction. All of which presumably bodes well for the propagation of the human race, but what does it imply about business?