ABSTRACT
This chapter shows that the MBA degree provides a valuable credential for academic business librarians by increasing subject knowledge and nurturing the development of interpersonal skills. For the purposes of academic business librarians, the curriculum within an MBA program should provide an introduction to various areas of specialized knowledge and enhance their abilities to engage effectively in their responsibilities as subject specialists. MBA programs focus upon enhancing communication skills and communication strategies of business students. The communication skills developed through the experience of the MBA curriculum provide the academic business librarian with tools to effectively engage in outreach to the business faculty. The need to produce group work within the curriculum provides experiences for the MBA student to create “deliverables” that require group interaction and cooperation. For many generalist reference librarians, encounters with patrons seeking business information are frequent.
