Episode 471: How Do You Stay Competitive When Everyone’s Qualified? The MBA Advantage in 2026
Thu Feb 05 2026
In this episode of the Clear Admit MBA Admissions Podcast, we begin at a crossroads: the point many professionals quietly reach—the moment where experience alone no longer feels like enough, and the question becomes not whether you can keep succeeding, but how you want to grow next. To tackle this challenge, host Graham Richmond welcomes special guest Keith Niedermeier, a Clinical Professor of Marketing at the Indiana Kelley School of Business. In this episode, Keith discusses the value of leadership development as a differentiator; how the MBA experience equips business leaders with relevant skills; the influence of the MBA community; how the MBA expands students’ exposure to industries, roles, and employers; and more about how the MBA can shape not just what you do next, but how you think and lead over the long run.
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In this episode of the Clear Admit MBA Admissions Podcast, we begin at a crossroads: the point many professionals quietly reach—the moment where experience alone no longer feels like enough, and the question becomes not whether you can keep succeeding, but how you want to grow next. To tackle this challenge, host Graham Richmond welcomes special guest Keith Niedermeier, a Clinical Professor of Marketing at the Indiana Kelley School of Business. In this episode, Keith discusses the value of leadership development as a differentiator; how the MBA experience equips business leaders with relevant skills; the influence of the MBA community; how the MBA expands students’ exposure to industries, roles, and employers; and more about how the MBA can shape not just what you do next, but how you think and lead over the long run.