There’s so much bile on the web debating the value of MBA qualifications to creating a successful business that I’m reticent to add to it.You probably know how it goes. MBA grads extol how the qualification broadened their business vision, while those running multi-million pound empires without so much as a GCSE sneer and dismiss MBAs as ‘for managers not real entrepreneurs’.The reason the subject’s been debated so comprehensively without satisfactory conclusion is, of course, that there’s no evidence either way. How can there be?Rank the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs and out of the top 100, possibly two or three will have a business qualification. Out of the latest Forbes 400 rich list, four had MBAs. In turn, statistically MBA grads see significant increases in earnings, whether running their own businesses or not. And besides, knowledge is power, right?So... they can be worthwhile but certainly aren’t compulsory. Wow, hardly enlightening analysis and evidence only that I’ve succeeding in doing what I set out not to.Anyway, by way of explanation: Applications for full-time MBA programmes are up 77%, the Graduate Management Admission Council revealed today. Uptake of flexible part-time MBAs has also increased.Make of that what you will...Image: Flickr

“KATIE PRICE TOPS ENTREPRENEURS POLL”Perhaps pre-empting both non-recognition of who Katie Price was and state of sheer disbelief (no, not at the missing apostrophe), it continued:“Jordan is a model businesswoman says BT Tradespace survey”It really wasn’t necessary, but further impact was then provided:“Katie Price has pipped easyJet founder, Stelios Haji-Ioannou, Oprah Winfrey, the late Dame Anita Roddick and Simon Cowell in a business poll of most admired entrepreneurs. The glamour model tied in fourth place with Sir Alan Sugar in the bttradespace.com survey.”Next we had BT’s Jennifer Mowat, crowing about how Jordan has made a ‘transition from pin-up’ to ‘go-getting businesswoman’ due to a ‘keen business sense’ and ‘unique approach’ that has made her ‘an inspiration to many’.Stone the crows, where to start? First, let’s get this clear: I’m not judging Jordan for making her name by taking her clothes off. Why shouldn't she and she’s exploited her talents no more than, say, David Beckham.And credit where it’s due. She has certainly made the most of what for many page three girls is a short and not particularly lucrative flirtation with fame. She’s a best-selling author, has had her own TV series and released her own range of lingerie and haircare products. She’s sculpted a brand that irrespective of snobbery is highly successful.I admit it, she’s entrepreneurial. The ultimate business model, though? Perhaps the voters misunderstood the question...Actually I find it quite hard to stomach that entrepreneurs could rate pretty much anyone a better business model than the brilliant late Dame Anita Roddick, let alone Katie Price. I don’t think I need to explain that one. Perhaps if Dame Anita had spend three weeks at the Playboy mansion and illegally sacked her nanny on TV she’d have featured higher.Ah but I’m overacting it’s only a silly survey and BT is just looking to get as much (cheap) publicity as possible for Tradespace with a shock headline. After all, as the press releases finally deems it appropriate to clear up, Kate Price didn’t actually ‘top the poll’. Sir Richard Branson did, followed by Bill Gates and Peter Jones.Phew, it was just a nightmare.

Know your rogan josh from your dupiaza? More of a CTM (chicken tikka masala) fan?How about a balti GPS? That’s what will soon be on the menu at Mohammed Ali’s innovative Maliks Indian restaurant in Chesterton, Staffordshire.Using webcams and GPS navigation technology, customers will be able to watch their food being created then track its delivery to their door.“I believe we are the first in the world to do this,” Mohammed told local paper The Sentinel. "This is a traditional Indian takeaway. We are proud of our facilities and our hygiene, so we are happy to invite customers to see the kitchen on camera, and watch the food being prepared.“Then the GPS tracking system will allow people to follow their food over the internet, so they know exactly when it is due to arrive."What better way than to reassure new customers, especially following the BBC's recent Rogue Restaurants programme exposing into the UK's dirtiest kitchens?Mohammed has whetted Smarta's appetite and no doubt a whole army of curry-craving punters after the media gobbled up this story. Worth the £25,000 investment alone, surely?Image: Flickr

Entrepreneurs: Good losers? Great at handling rejection? Don’t take this the wrong way, but no.Rewind four months to Apprentice fever and Sir Alan’s helper Karren Brady, MD of Birmingham City FC, was singing the praises of finalist Clare Young.‘If you don’t employ her, I will,’ said Karren joining in the drama and perhaps not quite expecting Sir Alan to ignore her advice and hand the job to eventual winner Lee McQueen.Good to her word Karren duly offered loser Clare a sales role at Birmingham for a salary reportedly in excess of the £100,000 a year she missed out on.After initially expressing her delight at the role, it seems Clare has now made a u-turn and decided to start-up on her own.Judging by her column in Saturday’s Sun, I think it’s fair to say Karren isn’t best pleased:“CLARE YOUNG, of The Apprentice fame and wannabe WAG, is not a Bluenose. She has decided to start her own business and not take a job at my club. I send an e-mail to all staff to let them know the heart-rending news. Later I hear the sales team have all gone to the pub for an all-day celebration but I never did find out whose birthday it was?”Ouch... I guess only time will tell if Clare's made the right decision to go it alone or has foolishly bitten the hand that was willing to feed her.

We all know that value doesn’t necessarily equate to price and, in business, there are many different ways (other than price) to provide value and secure sales.That said, there’s nothing more fascinating to watch than a start-up significantly undercutting the competition with a product that holds mass appeal. Budget airlines are the best example and Jamie Murray Wells’ Glasses Direct the most recent.I fancy John Treharne’s budget health club operation The Gym Group (TGG) to be the next.TGG’s first gym opened in Hounslow in June offering a flat membership rate of £14.99 per month with no contracts. Having secured £1m backing from Bridges Community Ventures, today it announced plans to open three more gyms this year and another 10 in 2009.Treharne, who previously launched and floated Dragons Health Clubs, is clear TGG is a ‘no frills’ offering. While the 160-station gym provides high quality exercise facilities you’d expect elsewhere, there’s no sauna, steam, spa or pool.The thinking is to “offer quality fitness facilities to a wider selection of the local community than can currently afford it”, says Treharne. Sounds like a plan in the current climate.

Two thirds of people are miserable at work and half think about quitting their jobs on a daily basis, according to Caterer.com.That’s fairly depressing, no matter how you look it. Have a glance around you; is half your workforce wishing they were elsewhere?I’m not so sure everyone is that miserable (even on the first back after a bank holiday). What’s definitely true, however, is that we now live in a culture geared to achieving fulfilment – even if that’s left many feeling, well, unfulfilled.No longer is a job simply a means to an end; it’s an opportunity to push yourself, contribute to something meaningful, build positive relationships, learn new skills etc. Even when we’re not working we’re increasingly seeking ‘experiences’ and enhanced life satisfaction.A whole industry exists telling people they don’t have to settle for their lot. And why not? After all, people rarely start businesses simply to get rich quick, but more often for a better standard of living.Coffee Republic founder Sahar Hashemi insists what she valued most about running her own business was the purpose she felt for the day ahead when waking up. Everyday could be different; a new challenge. It’s also what she missed most when she sold, in her own words, ‘too early’.It’s no coincidence for me that entrepreneurs are morning people. Or that unmotivated staff struggle to get to work on time. If you want to know which of your employees are down in the dumps, take a look at who consistently turns up late. Then ask yourself why.

‘You show me yours and I’ll show you mine’ is the principle behind Glassdoor, the US site where employees anonymously share salary details and review the companies they work for.It’s been lapped up across the pond by staff frantic to find if they’re paid enough and dish the dirt on their bosses. In two months, 50,000 employees have revealed all on 110,000 companies in 80 different companies.Glassdoor officially launches in the UK next week – and we’re not sure whether to revel in its entrepreneurial web 2.0 brilliance or act all responsible and damn it for prompting a salaries debate at the worst possible time.Ahh, what the heck. It’s a cool site that can’t fail. Founded by Benchmark Capital partner Rich Barton, and former Expedia executives Tim Besse and Robert Hohman, Glassdoor notably also lists TripAdvisor chief Stephen Kaufer on its board.Most important, the site stands up to scrutiny as well. ‘How do you know people are telling the truth?’ is the obvious reaction to Glassdoor, and the truth is, like all review or user-generated sites, you don’t, but this one goes further than most to ensure validity.All entries are checked for anomalies and unusual salaries are flagged. Users are required to give a verifiable e-mail address and malicious entries are challenged. Multiple entries from one computer are also barred and libelous statements are not allowed.So how much does a Microsoft software development analyst earn? $92,641. A Deloite consulting manager? $125,969. Google software engineer? $96,146.Watch this one grow and grow.What to do? Who knows. It’s sure to be big firms that get hit first and hardest, but it’d be naive to think your staff won’t soon be showing it all to Glassdoor. How about pre-empting the whole situation by making all salaries transparent and bonuses performance-related?

Smarta founder Sháá Wasmund took part in a live web chat yesterday about why more women aren’t setting up their own businesses.If women matched men's start-up levels an extra £32bn could be added to the economy, according to government stats.Tessa Lyndon-Skeggs of Natwest and RBS’s pioneering Women In Business service joined Sháá to discuss the challenges facing women starting-up.Succeeding in a male dominated environment, the need to delegate and sacrificing TV and sleep for quality time with loved ones were all on the agenda - but according to Sháá, if you get the balance right and you're passionate about what you're doing, it shouldn't feel like a sacrifice.I could go on, but it’s probably better if I let Sháá do the talking:Click here to watch the show.

The modern entrepreneur is a picture of tech wizardry. BlackBerry in one hand, laptop in other, company data is never more than a thumb scroll away.Surely it’s only a matter of time before the office becomes obsolete and we’re working from Starbucks?How about some geek chic to replace the pinstripe then?This t-shirt by ThinkGeek detects and displays the strength of wi-fi signal in your vicinity. Perfect. Maybe...

Is eBay about to turn its back the small traders that made it?Selling £30bn worth of goods globally and visited by two thirds of UK online shoppers every month, eBay justifies its billing as a heavyweight of the internet age.I’d also argue its fostered UK entrepreneurship more effectively than any other single organisation, with 178,000 Brits earning a second living or running a business via its site.But that could be about to change. A rocky year of legal action and complaints by sellers over its pricing structure has seen eBay announce a major revamp with changes that could signal a cultural shift in its positioning.The key change sees increased prominence given to fixed priced listings, while up-front fees will be reduced and taken instead on sale with discounts for companies selling high volumes. For all the changes, visit: www.ebay.co.uk/buyitnow08Critics suggest eBay is clearing the decks to attract more corporate sellers to compete with the likes of Amazon and Tesco. It insists both big and small seller can sit happily alongside one another.Clare Gilmartin, Director of Marketplaces for eBay in the UK, says: “We now have a more tailored offering to fit every size of seller and business model, from a mum cashing in on some old baby clothes, to an ‘at-home entrepreneur’ building an SME business, to a retailer with a large and varied stock.”eBay’s argument that 43% of all sales are already Buy It Now transactions is compelling, but it remains to be seen if it can keep the small man happy once it’s opened the door to large suppliers.Let us know what you think.