Yes and no. No, an MBA is not a prerequisite to success. No, not everyone in management needs to spend two years on an expensive post-graduate degree. However, over the years the value of an MBA has remained remarkably high for one particular segment of the marketplace: Investment banking. Before I was a senior client partner at Korn Ferry, earlier in my career I worked at Goldman Sachs. I rose up the ladder in internal investment banking, global management and strategy — without an MBA.