Brand value describes the worth that a particular brands has based on a variety of factors. It essentially follows the notion that the owner of a well-known brand name can generate more money than another business selling similar products with a lesser known name. It is kind of similar to a common baseball statistic known as “wins-above-replacement” (WAR). WAR describes how many wins a particular player contributes to his team compared, to the wins his team would have if they were to be replaced with the league average player at that particular position.

While a brands numerical value is an estimation of multiple variables, it can be derived by following the International Organization for Standardization’s guidelines which maps out the appropriate process for determining brand value by utilizing six key requirements: transparency, validity, reliability, sufficiency, objectivity and financial, behavioral and legal parameters.

A brand is an intangible asset that identifies one seller’s product from another and is often a corporation’s most valued asset. A strong brand can influence customer choice and create loyalty; attract and retain motivate talent. It can also serve valuable by lowering the cost of financing. A lending institution would be more likely to fund a project for Google than they would for Skyview CFO, at least at the moment. Of course, Brands also play a key role in shaping public perceptions and purchasing behavior.

With all that being said, let’s take a look at which brands are considered the most valuable across the globe as of this year (2022).

10. Verizon – $69.6 Billion

9. Hauwei – $71.23 Billion

8. ICBC $75.1 Billion

7. Facebook $101.2 Billion

6. Samsung – $107.3 Billion

5. Walmart – $111.9 Billion

4. Microsoft – $184.3 Billion

3. Google $263.4 Billion

2. Amazon $350.3 Billion

1. Apple $355.1 Billion

It’s no surprise that Apple, Amazon and Google top the list as they have the most recognizable global brands. But when you look at this closely you can see a significant drop off between Amazon and Apple, followed by Google which has a brand value almost $80 Billion more than #4 Microsoft on the list. $80 Billion is a lot. In fact is more that ICBC’s brand value which ranks number 8 on this list.

Source: https://brandirectory.com/download-report/brand-finance-us-500-2022-preview.pdf

10. UBER – 5/9/19 – $8.10 Billion (NYSE)

Although Uber made this list, it’s IPO was one of the most historically worst market debut’s, posting the largest first day dollar loss in IPO history. At one point investors were valuing Uber at $120 Billion, which would have been the most valuable company to debut on a US stock market, however after the IPO it’s valuation was just $69 Billion. Since the IPO Uber has faced a number of backlashes in regards to their culture and surge pricing tactics. However, its recent acquisitions of Uber Eats and Drizzly have kept the company stable during the tumultuous pandemic during which the company posted huge loses.

9. Kraft Foods – 6/12/01 – $8.68 Billion (NYSE)

8. AT&T – 4/6/00 – $10.62 Billion (NYSE)

AT&T’s successful IPO came just in the nick of time before the dot-com bubble burst. While many tech companies were withdrawing their IPO’s AT&T went with it and raked in a then-U.S. record $10.62 Billion, more than their pre-offer value. Today, it is the third largest wireless provider in the world behind Verizon and T-Mobile. Yeah, I’m surprised they’re behind T-Mobile too.

7. Rivian Automotive – 11/9/21 – $11.93 Billion (NASDAQ)

The youngest company on the list (sorry for the spoiler), Rivian Automotive designs and manufactures electric vehicles and related items and services. With an IPO share price of $78 they raised close to $12 Billion. Their debut day on the market was remarkable as shares ended the day at $100.73 giving the company an astronomically high valuation of $86 Billion, which is more than Ford’s market cap at the time, which is one of Rivian’s main financial backers. Make sense? Well, no it doesn’t as todays Rivian’s shares are trading around $26 giving them a market cap around $24 Billion less than 35% of their opening day value.

6. Duetsche Telekom – 11/17/96 – $12.03 Billion (NYSE)

5. General Motors – 11/17/10 – $15.77 Billion (NYSE)

4. Facebook – 5/17/12 – $16.01 Billion (NASDAQ)

Although Facebook ranks #4 on the list, and still has the record for the largest IPO ever on the NASDAQ, the stock had a tumultuous debut day on the market following as shares dropped significantly on opening day and plummeted nearly 40% in the first several months. Part of the growing concern among investors came from the fact that 57% of the shares sold on the IPO day were from Facebook Insiders. Finding itself in the midst of numerous scandals and PR crisis’, Facebook (now META) has done fairly well for itself, some might say.

3. ENEL SpA – 11/1/99 – $16.45 Billion (NYSE)

2. VISA – 3/18/08 – $17.86 Billion (NYSE)

1. Alibaba – 9/18/14 – $21.76 Billion (NYSE)

Alibaba made the strategic decision to go public on the NYSE despite being the Chinese rival to Amazon. Not only did they do that, but they did it on the NYSE instead of the NASDAQ, which traditionally is used for tech companies. However, many believe they were skeptical over the handling of Facebook’s IPO on the NASDAQ. Since it’s IPO Alibaba has experienced tremendous exist and currently has a market capitalization of $278 Billion, ranking it the 25th most valuable company in the world by market capitalization.

Sources

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/111015/story-uber.asp#:~:text=Uber’s%20IPO%20was%20one%20of,dollar%20loss%20in%20U.S.%20history.

https://companiesmarketcap.com/

https://www.renaissancecapital.com/IPO-Center/Stats/Largest-US-IPOs

Higher education is very expensive in the United States. Therefore if you are debating whether it’s worth your time and money to further your education with a Master’s degree, being aware of which degrees often lead to the highest paying jobs is crucial in order to make your decision. While each school and program will have huge price discrepancies, determining whether or not the cost and time is worth it depends on a variety of factors.

For instance, I am currently in the process of acquiring my Master’s in Accounting (MSA) from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill (Go Heels!), and it wasn’t just the cost of the program that led me to it, but also the length of the program, the prestige of the university, and the flexibility of class scheduling, among others. I could have chosen to pursue an MBA, but an MBA takes twice as long to complete and is typically more expensive, so I concluded that an MSA would be more ideal for my life, time, and career.

When it comes to time, finding schools that will waive test scores and certain classes for you should be another huge consideration. I was quite dismayed when my own alma mater, Syracuse University would not waive a single class for me, let alone offer any scholarship money for their program that cost 3x more than UNC’s and is not ranked on ANY list (UNC’s online accounting is consistently ranked in the top 5). Not only did UNC waive two classes for me, but they gave me a small fellowship grant. Although miniscule, the grant money showed me that they were interested in me and my potential, more so than my alma mater at least.

“You know I took these classes here, right?” I said to the dismissive Syracuse admissions officer.

Anyway, enough about me! If you feel stuck in your current career, and are considering pursuing a master’s degree, lets take a look at some important facts.

Projected 2022 Starting Salaries by Master’s Degree Field of Study

1. Engineering – $85,096
2. Computer Science – $82,384
3. Math & Science – $78,937
4. Business – $71,021

While starting salary is an important stat, it doesn’t tell you the full story. Typically, engineers are paid the highest out of the gate, but it doesn’t have the highest career earning ceiling. You may get a higher salary to start as an engineer but if we take a look at mid-career earnings they paint a different picture.

Top Master’s Degree (by Median Mid-Career* Salary)

1. Finance – $125,208
2. Biomedical Engineering – $117,243
3. Computer Science – $115,730
4. Information Systems – $110,678
5. Statistics – $106,402
6. Physician Assistant – $100,108
7. Civil Engineering – $94,396
8. Nursing – $94,269

*Mid-Level career is approximately 10 years into one’s career. This data is using 2019 statistics.

While business ranked 4th in terms of starting salary, it yields the highest median mid-career salary, followed by a very niche engineering degree, and then Computer and Information Systems not far behind.

Of course, in order to earn a salary there has to be a job available for you in the first place, so something to consider is which degrees are currently in high demand.

Top Master’s Degree (by Demand)

1. MBA
2. Computer Science
3. Accounting
4. Human Resources
5. Mechanical Engineering
6. Software Engineering
7. Finance

While there are plenty of other factors that go into making a selection, from these numbers we can conclude that since both MBA/Business/Finance and Computer Science degrees are at the top of all three lists, they are the most valuable. Because there are so many different types of engineering degrees, it’s hard to just blanketly say that all engineering degrees are great, I mean they are but each one is very different. For example, Mechanical and Software engineering are in the highest demand right now, but Civil Engineering has had better mid-career salaries.

You should absolutely NOT pursue a Master’s Degree just because you think it will make you the most money. Going back to school takes up a lot of time, and if you are not interested in the subject or can see a future job you would enjoy after graduating I would implore you to reconsider your thought process. This list is intended to simply point out some variables that can help you decipher what you can possibly earn after earning a certain degree.

Nonetheless, I present to you…

Skyview CFO’s Top 3 Master’s Degrees of 2022:

1. Computer Science – There’s no doubt, if you’re able to understand computer, you’ll be a valuable asset so long as the internet is and it doesn’t look like it’s going away anytime soon. As technology continues to grow, being credentialed in the science of computers will lead to plenty of job opportunities with very high earning opportunities.
2. MBA – Finance – If you’re looking to make money, studying it is a good start. While starting salaries may not be as high as engineering or computer science, Finance graduates have the highest pay ceilings on average. So long as there’s a market, companies are created, merged and the likes, finance careers will have tremendous opportunity. Most MBA programs allow you to focus on one specific business area (marketing, supply chain, finance, accounting, etc.) of those specializations, Finance will yield the most opportunities, although an MBA in any subject does not hurt to have.
3. Software Engineering – I didn’t want to just say “Engineering”. Truth is any engineering degree is a valuable asset, regardless if you even wind up being an actual engineer. Hiring managers tend to like the way engineers problem solve, and all I know is while I was sleeping through my business classes, my engineering friends were in the library all the time. Software engineering, specifically, creates the highest potential at this point in time, again because the world is getting more and more digital and the demand for Software engineers continues to climb year over year.

Sources: Statista.com, NACE Winter 2022