EMBA at Nottingham Business School: Alumni Interview

Nick Barker
CEO, Aware Monitoring
Nottingham Business School Executive MBA
Year of graduation: 2007

Entrepreneur Nick Barker talks to Ann Graham about his Executive MBA experience at Nottingham University Business School.

Nick Barker is CEO and co-founder of Aware Monitoring, an on-line website and application performance monitoring software startup. Barker and his business partner, Simon Oxley, recently won the Nottingham City New Enterprise of the Year Awards 2010 and they’ve also won contracts with some of the UK’s top web application providers, but Barker says he didn’t need an Executive MBA to achieve this.

“I didn’t need an MBA to start a new business, however the MBA has helped me see things differently. I now look at decisions more objectively. It has brought me a greater understanding of internal business structures and holistic competitive markets.”

A better understanding

Barker graduated with his Executive MBA from Nottingham University Business School in 2007. He had decided to pursue the business school qualification to gain a better understanding of how businesses work, and to prepare himself for a startup company. “The best part of going through the program was being challenge, learning new things and pushing my personal boundaries,” he says.

Barker worked in IT for over 20 years before establishing Aware Monitoring. After starting out in sales where he was instrumental in Business Systems Group Plc becoming the UK’s fastest-growing systems integrator, he worked as a regional manager for Novell Inc, one of the world’s leading software manufacturers, where he specialised in monitoring software applications. In his last role, Barker grew ComputerLand UK Plc’s remote management and monitoring service into a multi-million dollar global service and made it the company’s most profitable service.

Entrepreneurial skills

During his time in the industry, where he worked in sales, marketing and product management roles, Barker says he has seen the industry evolve into today’s internet services, and after finishing his MBA at the University of Nottingham, Barker decided the time was right to put his experience to good use and go out on his own.

As an entrepreneur, Barker says the social network of his Executive MBA has been invaluable. “The contacts I made on my MBA have been extremely valuable in supporting me and helping to grow my business,” he says. “After three years, I still regularly meet up with friends from my MBA cohort.”
Bark says an MBA brings professionalism and creditability to one’s career and company profile, and it’s something he would definitely recommend others pursue. “From my experience, I would highly recommend an MBA for those that want to extend their contact network, progress their career or are changing career path.

“An MBA says something about you – you’re willing to take on significant challenges, and undergo change and personal growth.”