In the Classroom I

Condensed, Intense, Business School Experiences Open Eyes and Expand Horizons

Moving up often requires more than a change of title and a new office. Some positions are more threshold than transition — they don’t simply expand previous responsibilities. Instead, they require new knowledge, capabilities, and a broadening of perspective. Executives facing such challenges often come from positions with a relatively narrow focus, including those with technical and scientific backgrounds, who now need a bigger picture. But how do these new managers acquire the business acumen and the skills it takes to succeed with implementation, while immersed in the day-to-day challenges of their organizations?

The two-week Essentials of Management program provides an intense experience that quickly increases an understanding of business fundamentals and extends knowledge of management. Larry Hrebiniak, Wharton associate professor of management and academic co-director of the program, notes, "Participants are coming to us looking for new tools, insights, and ways to develop different sets of skills. They have a common goal, which is to return to work as better managers."

Essentials of Management draws on the top-rated faculty and content of Wharton's MBA program, teaching core concepts including strategy, finance, human resources, leadership, marketing, and negotiation. But the program also has two unique strengths. The first is its focus on implementation of the knowledge it imparts. As Hrebiniak notes, "You must be able to go back into the workplace and use what you’ve learned. Growth in learning without implementation is of little value."

The first one-week session of the program introduces key concepts. Then, during a month-long break, participants apply what they’ve learned in their organizations, while engaging with faculty and classmates over a secure WebCafé connection (Wharton's customized collaboration platform). The second session at Wharton revisits the concepts, delving deeper and exploring the real-world situations participants found themselves challenged by during the break. Through this exploration, the executives gain a greater understanding of how to be most effective in their positions.

"The other strength of the program is its participants," describes Hrebiniak. "They come from different industries, all with a tremendous amount of experience. And faculty specifically draw out those experiences to use in the classroom. It takes case studies to another level." Instead of the typical case studies, which are often generic narratives that lead into "what would you do" discussions, participants’ experiences provide real, useful scenarios. They also shed light on those management responses that worked, and those that could have been more effective.

The real success of the program, however, lies in the experiences of participants once the program has ended. One executive described the results for her organization after sending a group to Essentials of Management: "We've seen a dramatic, positive difference in the way these managers operate. They are much more aware of the cross-functional effect of their departments and are much more sensitive to the roles played by other departments and divisions. In turn, their increased efficiency flows through to the company's bottom line."

Hrebiniak describes Essentials of Management as transformative. "Past participants tell us how they use the tools and techniques every day. Their skills are strengthened. They’ve become better managers."

The Business School for Senior Managers

Successful leaders with years of management experience can also find themselves at a threshold. Functional, country, and unit managers may be required to take on broader responsibilities, taking them beyond their areas of education and experience. While an MBA at this career juncture would be advantageous, these executives often need to expand and deepen their core business knowledge in weeks rather than years.

Wharton's Executive Development Program provides an intense two-week focus on strategy, marketing, globalization, finance, and negotiations. Experts in diverse business disciplines present in-depth knowledge using a multidimensional approach. Lectures, small and large group discussions, case studies, role playing, a leadership workshop, and a strategy simulation deliver essential information while giving participants ample opportunity to implement it. During daily application sessions, participants are encouraged to apply new insights to their own organizations.

The Executive Development Program creates a learning ecosystem that blurs the boundaries between leadership and management, according to the program’s director, Dave Heckman. "Learning groups form 'companies' for which they are responsible to run the full profit and loss of the organization, manage relationships with customers, competitors, suppliers, government and non-government organizations, and other stakeholders that often have conflicting interests," Heckman says. Most teams find that engaging in the standard business disciplines of finance, marketing, and strategy pale in comparison with managing the relationships of all the stakeholders. "Although participants tend to think that the discipline they are most familiar with is the most important, the EDP learning environment reinforces the importance of every discipline to the success of a business," Heckman adds.

The program attracts participants from around the globe (typically, fewer than half are from North America). Cross-industry leaders represent a balance of functions and cultures that allows each executive to benefit from the expertise of the others. Because many participants are already challenged with a range of issues associated with globalization, the opportunity to develop a multi-national perspective and to network and form relationships with peers and mentors from around the globe is an invaluable experience.

Academic director Peter Fader, Wharton professor of marketing, stresses the importance of the program’s three-pronged experience, combining faculty teaching sessions, peer learning opportunities, and a strategy simulation. "While much of the program is focused on the weighty, core business subjects, we respond directly to the need to integrate that knowledge. Many of our participants have not done simulation exercises since early in their careers. We help them place pretense aside and put their knowledge to the test." Past participants agree, often citing the simulation as one of the most valuable pieces of the program. Fader continues, "It’s an unusual and highly valuable way to bring the information to life. What we’re providing in the Executive Development Program is the critical balance of textbook learning and performance."

• Essentials of Management
• Executive Development Program