Program Experience

Highlights and Key Outcomes

In CEO Academy®, you will:

  • Enhance your leadership and strategic decision-making skills
  • Gain new insight into some of the major issues affecting CEO decision-making today
  • Connect with peers in a dynamic setting
  • Hear from veteran CEOs leading their organizations at critical moments and what they learned

Experience & Impact

CEOs face increasing economic uncertainty, disruptive innovation, and activist shareholders. This unique leadership program brings together current and former chief executives from major companies, leaders from institutional investment and governance firms, and Wharton’s senior faculty members.

In sum, this program provides a unique learning experience for CEOs, in which they can elevate their thinking around leadership and strategy and learn from other successful leaders in a collaborative peer environment. CEO Academy® executives and faculty have collectively served on more than 50 major company boards.

Session topics may include:

  • Why CEO Continuous Improvement Is Critical
  • Case Studies of Successful CEOs
  • Why Capital Allocation Is Strategy
  • Ethics and Integrity: Setting the Tone at the Top
  • The Discipline of Getting Things Done
  • Continue to Innovate or Die
  • Placing Your Bets Around the World
  • How Best to Assess Your Team
  • The Changing Landscape of Shareholder Engagement
  • What You Need to Know About Media
  • Boards That Lead: When to Take Charge, When to Partner, and When to Stay Out of the Way
  • Transform Your Company Before Others Do
  • The Art of Delegation

Designed for both new and experienced chief executive officers, this two-day program builds on the highly successful program that since 2001 has brought CEOs together to learn from one another.


Due to our application review period, applications submitted after 12:00 p.m. ET on Friday for programs beginning the following Monday may not be processed in time to grant admission. Applicants will be contacted by a member of our Client Relations Team to discuss options for future programs and dates.

Agenda

CEO Academy: Sample Program Schedule

Day 1

2:00 PM Welcome
Dennis Carey – Founder, CEO Academy and Vice Chairman, CEO, and Board Recruiter, Korn Ferry
Michael Useem – Faculty Director of the Leadership Center and McNulty Leadership Program, Wharton School

2:05 Transforming an Iconic American Company
Introduction by Maggie Wilderotter, Co-Chair, CEO Academy and Interim CEO, DocuSign Inc.
Greg Brown – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Motorola Solutions Inc.

2:50 Developing Strategy in a Turbulent Environment
Raj Ratnakar – Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, DuPont de Nemours Inc.
Yael Taqqu – Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company
Facilitated by Harbir Singh - Mack Professor of Management; Co-Director, Mack Institute for Innovation Management; and Faculty Director, Huntsman Program, The Wharton School

3:30 Disclosure, ESG, and Sustainability
David McAtee – Senior Vice President and General Counsel, AT&T Inc.
Brian Dumaine – Founder and Editor in Chief, High Water Press and Contributor, Fortune Magazine
Elizabeth Pollman – Professor of Law and Faculty Co-Director, Institute for Law & Economics, University of Penn Carey Law School
Karen Fang – Global Head, Sustainable Finance, Bank of America Corporation
Facilitated by Richard Truesdell, Partner, Davis Polk & Wardwell

4:15 Break

4:30 Digital Transformation: Show Me the Money
Rodney Zemmel – Senior Partner and Global Leader of McKinsey Digital, McKinsey & Company
Facilitated by Peter Cappelli - George W. Taylor Professor of Management and Director, Center for Human Resources, The Wharton School

5:15 Unpacking Board Culture: How Behavioral Psychology Might Explain What’s Holding Boards Back
Paul DeNicola – Principal, Governance Insights Center, PwC
Leah Malone – Managing Director, Governance Insights Center, PwC

6:00 Cocktails

7:00 Dinner and Fireside Chat
Frank Blake – Former Chairman & CEO, The Home Depot
John Stankey – President & Chief Executive Officer, AT&T Inc.

Day 2

8:00 AM Informal Breakfast

8:30 Emerging Conflicts East and West
Ambassador Joe Westphal – Senior Global Fellow, Joseph H. Lauder Institute of Management & International Studies, The Wharton School, and Former U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Ram Charan – Business Advisor and Best-Selling Author
Claire Ngo – Managing Director, Private Equity Fund Investments and Managing Director, Americas, Temasek International
Dinesh Paliwal – Former President and CEO, HARMAN International and Board Director, Raytheon Technologies Corporation and Nestle SA
Facilitated by John Zhang – Tsai Wan-Tsai Professor; Professor of Marketing; Director, Penn Wharton China Center, The Wharton School

9:15 People and Money: That’s All You Have to Work With
Tim Richmond – Executive Vice President and CHRO, AbbVie Inc.
Dantaya Williams – Executive Vice President and CHRO, Raytheon Technologies Corporation
Cecilia McKenney – Senior Vice President and CHRO, Quest Diagnostics Inc.
Katie Lawler – Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resource Officer, ITW Inc.
Facilitated by Martine Haas - The Lauder Chair Professor of Management and Anthony L. Davis Director, Joseph H. Lauder Institute for Management & International Studies, The Wharton School

10:15 Break

10:30 Cyber Security: If You Think Your Data Is Safe, Think Again
Ida Kristensen - Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company
Mark Fields – Former CEO, Ford Motor Company; Lead Director, Tanium; and Board Director, Hertz Global Holdings Inc., TPG Pace Beneficial II Corporation, and Qualcomm Inc.
Facilitated by– Maggie Wilderotter – Interim CEO, DocuSign and Board Director, Tanium

11:15 Pivoting to Board Service from the C-Suite and Why Diversity Matters on Boards
Melissa Arnoldi – Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer, AT&T Consumer and Board Director, NASDAQ Inc.
Denise Morrison – Former President and CEO, Campbell Soup Company and Board Director, Quest Diagnostics Inc., Visa Inc., and MetLife Inc.
Martha McGarry – Partner and Co-Head, M&A, Mayer Brown LLP and Board Director, Organon & Company
Linda Addison – Former Managing Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright and Board Director, Globe Life Inc. and KPMG
Facilitated by Maggie Wilderotter - Interim CEO, DocuSign and Board Director, Sana Biotechnology, Lyft Inc., Costco Wholesale, DocuSign Inc., and Tanium

12:15 Lunch: Looking Back and Seeing Ahead
Don Gogel – Chairman, Clayton Dubilier & Rice

1:15 CEO Excellence: What the Research Shows About Who Excels or Fails
Carolyn Dewar – Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company and Co-Author, CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest
Facilitated by Mike Useem - Faculty Director of the Leadership Center & McNulty Leadership

2:00 What’s Required from CFOs in Today’s Environment
Frank D’Amelio – Former Executive Vice President, Global Supply and CFO, Pfizer Inc. and Board Director, Zoetis Inc. and Humana Inc.
Tom Liguori – Chief Financial Officer, Avnet Inc.
Michael Roberts – William H. Lawrence Professor and Professor of Finance, The Wharton School
Facilitated by Emilie Feldman - Michael L. Tarnopol Professor and Professor of Management, The Wharton School

2:45 Break

3:00 Balancing Growth and Convergence of Multiple Risks
Celia Huber – Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company
Ram Charan – Business Advisor and Best-Selling Author

3:45 Succession from Both the CEO and Board Perspective
Greg Garland – Executive Chairman, Phillips 66 and Board Director, Amgen Inc.
Mark Turner – Former Chairman, WSFS Financial Corporation

4:30 Break

4:45 Working Together: Investors/Management
Ed Breen – Chairman and CEO, DuPont de Nemours Inc. and Board Director, International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. and Comcast Corporation
Ed Garden – Founding Partner and Chief Investment Officer, Trian Fund Management and Board Director, Janus Henderson Group plc and General Electric Company
Facilitated by Abe Friedman, Partner and Head, PJT Camberview

5:45 Key Takeaways and Presentation of Wharton / CEO Academy Certificates
Dennis Carey – Founder, CEO Academy and Vice Chairman, CEO, and Board Recruiter, Korn Ferry
Michael Useem – Professor of Management and Faculty Director of the Leadership Center and McNulty Leadership Program, Wharton School

6:00 Cocktails
Entertainment: Benjamin Levy, renowned mentalist and dubbed "The King's Magician" by Fortune

7:00 Dinner
Prium Prize: Awarded to David Taylor, Former Executive Chairman, Procter & Gamble Company and Board Director, Delta Air Lines Inc. and Nexii

Board Representation

Participants of CEO Academy® serve as members of boards across a wide range of industries and geographies. Representing virtually every sector of business, below are some of these companies:

  • American Express Company
  • BlackRock Inc.
  • Boeing Company
  • DreamWorks Animations SKG Inc.
  • Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
  • Motorola Solutions Inc.
  • Proctor & Gamble Company
  • Viacom Inc.
  • Wyeth Inc.
  • Yum! Brands Inc.

See the complete list of companies on which CEO Academy® participants serve.

Who Should Attend

CEO Academy® is designed for both new and veteran CEOs from all industries. The program is limited to 50 attendees, who must be a sitting CEO, Chair, or have been publicly announced as CEO or Chair designate. To further leverage the value and impact of CEO Academy®, participants can bring a board member for an additional charge. (Contact Kelly Bradley at 856.693.5074 or dgregor@ceo-academy.com for more pricing details.)

Participants leave the program with an expanded peer network and powerful insights on how to lead their organizations while managing external pressures, from global competition to shareholder activism.

Fluency in English, written and spoken, is required for participation in Wharton Executive Education programs unless otherwise indicated.

Faculty


Michael Useem

Michael Useem, PhDSee Faculty Bio

William and Jacalyn Egan Professor of Management; Professor of Management; Director, Center for Leadership and Change Management; Editor, Wharton Leadership Digest

Research Interests: Catastrophic and enterprise risk management, corporate change and restructuring, leadership, decision making, governance


Peter Cappelli

Peter Cappelli, DPhilSee Faculty Bio

George W. Taylor Professor of Management; Director, Center for Human Resources, The Wharton School

Research Interests: Human-resource practices, public policy related to employment, talent and performance management


Dennis Carey

Dennis Carey See Faculty Bio

Vice Chairman, Korn Ferry International


Thomas Donaldson

Thomas Donaldson, PhDSee Faculty Bio

Mark O. Winkelman Professor; Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, The Wharton School

Research Interests: Business ethics, corporate compliance, corporate governance


Martine Haas

Martine Haas, PhDSee Faculty Bio

The Lauder Professor; Professor of Management, The Wharton School; Anthony L. Davis Director of the Joseph H. Lauder Institute for Management and International Studies, The University of Pennsylvania

Research Interests: Global collaboration, human and intellectual capital, information technology use, knowledge sharing, teamwork


Harbir Singh

Harbir Singh, PhDSee Faculty Bio

Mack Professor; Professor of Management; Co-Director, Mack Institute for Innovation Management; Wharton School Faculty Director for the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business, The Wharton School

Research Interests: Corporate governance, corporate restructuring, management buyouts, strategies for corporate acquisitions

Date, Location, & Fees

September 6 – 7, 2023San Francisco, CA$20,000Wharton San Francisco fees are not inclusive of accommodations.

November 15 – 16, 2023New York, NY$20,000


Hotel Information

Accommodations in New York City and San Francisco are not included.

Dinner is included on the first day and breakfast and lunch on the second day.

The cost of the program is $20,000 for the CEO. A member of the board and/or one or more of a company’s top executives for an additional $10,000 per person, up to three people per company, is allowed.

Prices are subject to change.

International Travel Information »


In Partnership With

CEO Academy - 20th Anniversary

Contact Us

This two-day program will be held at The Harold Pratt House, 58 E. 68th St., New York City.

To register, please contact:
Kelly Bradley or visit the CEO Academy website.

 215.656.5348

 dgregor@ceo-academy.com


By CEO Academy FacultyEngage deeper with the topics directly from the program. Visit Wharton School Press for books by program faculty member Dennis Carey, vice chairman, Korn Ferry International — Go LongTalent Wins, and Boards That Lead.Visit Wharton School Press to purchase a book

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