Top five reasons to enrol on an Executive MBA

Looking to climb the professional ladder? Ready for a new challenge? Thinking about heading back to the classroom mid-career? Be inspired to reach new professional and personal heights with the Kellogg-WHU EMBA Program

Published: Fri 19 Apr 2013 11:00 CEST
Top five reasons to enrol on an Executive MBA
Henrik Trygg/imagebank.sweden.se
Based at the Otto Beisheim School of Management – with campuses in Vallendar and Dusseldorf, Germany – the Executive MBA Program forms part of a global classroom. 
 
The Kellogg School of Management’s network of top business schools spans Europe, the Americas, Asia, and the Middle East. 
 
1. Acquire new skills and new perspectives
Grab the opportunity to an executive education and you will be in good company. 
 
You will find your fellow Kellogg-WHU participants have a range of academic backgrounds and come from all walks of profession life. 
 
Sharing a classroom with peers from Banking & Finance, IT, Consulting, Trade, Engineering, Science and Law brings new dimensions to learning.
 
With an average of 11 years of work experience, participants enter the program with established skills and expertise in mid and upper management. 
 
Students generally want to strengthen and build on existing management competences. For those coming from technical backgrounds it’s about expanding their toolbox so-to-speak, and obtaining new management skills. 
 
What’s more, the program is delivered by a global network of professors, whose profiles span the best in their field. 
 
Still very active in the business world today, they are ready to share their vast experience and expertise with students.  
 
2. Prove yourself with a personal challenge
You can’t lead others effectively if you don’t know yourself. It’s a philosophy that has long been a focal point of the WHU-Kellogg program, rather than a by-product of current trends. 
 
Best practise management requires the ability to communicate and to motivate. We understand that awareness of one’s own characteristics is key to working with and leading others.
 
That’s why a structured approach to the personal development process runs throughout the two-year program, which includes profiling, coaching and 360-degree feedback.
 
“We take great care in assembling the study groups”, say WHU-EMBA program director Hannelore Forssbohm. 
 
”It is extremely important to us that managers benefit in every way possible and absorb experiences and information from every source that is available to them – professors, fellow students and renowned guest speakers.”
 
Personal growth stems from the opportunity to discuss, debate and solve real-life business problems. 
 
By drawing on participants’ professional experience, an interactive learning environment is created that promotes a lively exchange of ideas. 
 
3. Distinguish yourself with professional development
Some students are promoted during the course of the program. Other make the move to change companies. There are those that even start new businesses. 
 
What is common among all participants is they experience an extra dose of self-confidence to be able to discuss specific issues with ‘experts’ within a company. 
 
This not only comes from newly learned knowledge but the new perspectives participants gain every time they entering the classroom. 
 
As Hannelore Forssbohm explains: “By stepping out of your daily management role, you have a great chance to gain a broader, more multi-faceted perspective into your business and the business world in general. ”
 
Furthermore, the EMBA time structure is flexible enough to ensure students can actively participate in the program in combination with pursuing their career and continuing with work obligations. 
 
4. Join an international network with diversity
It’s a program that thrives on diversity – professional, personal and cultural. 
Did you know over 55 percent of the class come from outside Germany?  
 
An international environment naturally lends itself to an enriched learning experience. 
 
It contributes to breaking down business boundaries and encourages new perspectives on the workings of global commerce. 
 
Study groups are reshuffled to ensure participants work alongside various global counterparts. As a student, you have access to over 700 WHU alumni and over 55,000 Kellogg alumni worldwide. 
 
Our network of professors, as well as visiting speakers, provide a sounding board to bounce off ideas, regardless of culture or professional background.
 
5. Reap rewards for you and your company
Of course, it’s not only students that benefit from the program. Companies profit from talent retention and all the new skills obtained as the program progresses. 
 
“EMBA students return to their offices and are immediately able to apply what they’ve learnt in the classroom,” Forssbohm adds. 
 
”This eye-opening and, in some cases, life changing, experience can only happen when you close the office door and immerse yourself in a new challenge,” she adds.
 
In today’s business climate there is a critical need to understand and respond to the growing number of challenges.  
 
Due to demographic change and globalization, life-long learning becomes a critical success factor for companies to sustainable competitive advantage. 
 
A top-tier EMBA Program always evolves to reflect the current business environment enabling participants to remain one-step ahead the management crowd.  
 
Article sponsored by WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management
 

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