If your game plan is to quit finance, go to B-school, then perhaps get a job in marketing at some huge consumer products firm, listen up.

Underperforming consumer products firms (as defined by % of sales) were twice as likely to have MBAs in their ranks, according to this study. 90% of marketing execs at underperformers had MBAs vs. 55% at the better performing cos.

Here’s a similarly pessimistic theory which I found from in a Slate article dating back from 2004, about the Harvard factor and Wall Street. A consultant (and self-proclaimed grad of HBS) developed a basic “buy” or “sell” signal on the market based on the % of HBS grads that go into fields like investment banking, investment management, sales & trading, venture capital, PE and LBOs.

According to his pretty simplistic theory, if 10% or more of HBS’ graduating class goes into those select fields, than that means “Buy”. If 30% or more goes into these fields, that’s a “Sell”. 2005’s HBS Indicator was 30%, 2004 was 26% and 2003 was 25%. 2002 was 36%, 2001 was 32%, 2000 was 30%, 28% in 1999 and 29% in 1998. Meaningful? Meebe. Entertaining? Y.