EMP Class 30

Program Summary:
The Rensselaer Executive Masters Program is a 10-month curriculum focusing on Global Business Leadership and Enterprise-Wide Strategic Management. The program was specially developed by the faculty of the Lally School of Management & Technology for a cohort of high-level participants. Using a combination of interactive classroom sessions, special guest speakers, and visits to two important international venues, the program creates a full immersion experience. Practical needs of busy professionals are accommodated with most of the activities taking place conveniently on Friday evenings and alternating Saturdays. The curriculum stresses value creation for customers by using the resources afforded by a global enterprise to develop sustainable long term success. Its goal is to create visionary and ethical thinkers who can navigate the complex and changing global business environment.

International Trips and Guest Speakers
The trips to Singapore and Brussels will include visits to international, European-based and Asian-based corporations, public enterprises, and other industrial venues.  While on site at these locations, formal discussions and informal engagements will be arranged with executives representing a broad range of business and industry, including government infrastructure and economic development, aerospace, and consumer products.  While in Hartford, a number of expert guest speakers will be invited to speak on contemporary and important topics related to the program’s coverage.

Curriculum: Foundation Courses:

Organizational Leadership, Design and Change provides executive level exposure to the key leadership competencies needed to effectively lead contemporary organizations in today’s relentlessly changing environment. Participants will be equipped with the knowledge and skills required to accurately diagnose the need for organizational change and improvement. Topics will include familiarization with the different types of organizational design as well as organizational development interventions. The fundamental concepts that enable professionals to inspire a workforce will also be addressed. 

International Accounting & Finance concerns the nature and role of finance in a global enterprise. Topics include accounting for financial activities, financial statement analysis, capital budgeting, and pro forma financial statement construction.  Detailed discussions will take place on the convergence of United States accounting standards (GAAP) to International Financial Reporting Standards.  The primary emphasis is to help the student develop a working understanding of the major financial issues and investment decisions of today’s global corporation.  

Macroeconomics and Political Economy aims to teach basic techniques for managerial decisions in an international and macroeconomic context.   It will familiarize participants with global policy issues, such as the free trade, trade and inequality, public choice theory, and the interplay of development and corruption.  Participants will learn to apply this understanding to approach business problems in a critical and creative way, in particular by modeling decision problems and building credible economic arguments.

Global Value Networks will address the analysis, decision making, and measurement methods used to establish and manage global value networks that improve customer satisfaction, minimize all forms of waste, and strengthen market position.  The emphasis will be on lean management methods. Global supply chain strategies will be compared and contrasted, including various forms of offshoring and outsourcing, closed-loop supply networks (including “green” value streams), managing suppliers for quality, and the application of information technology.

Methods & Decision Making serves two purposes.  First, it provides background on the quantitative underpinnings for decision making under uncertainty.  Examples of the topics covered are data analysis, quantification of variance, regression analysis, and certain optimization methodologies, such as linear programming.  This background is provided on a “just-in-time” basis throughout the course of the program.  Second, it exposes participants to models used by global organizations to allocate resources and to maximize the efficiency of logistics activities.

Specialization Courses:

Strategic Innovation addresses how organizations can achieve competitive advantage by incorporating a framework that allows for the development and implementation of fresh ideas that add value using a systematic and disciplined, yet creative, approach. The course presents an integrated, holistic, multidisciplinary and practical framework to reducing or mitigating the magnitude of time, cost and risk associated with various forms of innovation ranging from evolutionary to radical and disruptive. Leading and managing the strategic innovation process involves finding opportunities for innovation and growth; building organizational innovation capabilities; crafting strategies for innovation; and managing the product development, technology and commercialization processes.  The impact of international government policies and the development of inter-company collaborations are also discussed.

International Relationships focuses on creating, building, and sustaining business relationships in the context of globalization, international markets, global supply networks, and sustainable development. The course modules are designed to examine and assess how businesses and their leaders develop and manage contemporary social, cultural, market, economic, and international business opportunities, challenges, and barriers pertaining to international relationships.  Main topics include building customer relationships, working with international stakeholder groups, creating inter-company collaborations, forming global strategic alliances, establishing multinational joint ventures, engaging in international research and development projects, and working with governments and their leaders and officials.  Special topics include understanding cultural norms and expectations, negotiating in international settings, dealing with legal mandates and social underpinnings international markets, designing global communications programs, building political connections, and participating in public policy.

Global Investment Strategies and Risk Management concerns how global companies use capital to create value and manage risk, a subject that the recent financial crisis has brought to the forefront of management thinking.   Differences in anti-trust, securities regulation, and tax laws are some factors that play a role in corporate investment strategies and risk mitigation; however, there are stark differences in how capital is raised and deployed by businesses in Asia, Europe, and North America.  Topics will include traditional financial topics, such as hedging currency and commodity risks, as well as more contemporary topics, such as how multinational companies finance their businesses, determine what to invest in, and how they measure the value they create.  Other topics to be explored include the impact of corporate alliances, mergers and acquisitions, dividend policy, and share repurchases as value creation strategies. The role of insurance, derivatives, and the law in protecting corporate assets and profits will also be discussed.

Strategic Management provides content, insights, and perspectives on the methods and techniques used for crafting and implementing strategies and action plans and achieving sustainable success in the dynamic 21st century. The insights and perspectives include the ecosystems of the natural environment, the social systems and structures of the human world, and underlying dimensions of the business environment, especially the social, political, ethical, economic, technological, environmental, and market considerations.  Discussions include the perspectives on strategic leadership, the strategic management process, market space development, extended enterprise framework, and sustainability.  Strategic leaders of today have to integrate their businesses internally and externally to ensure that all efforts are aligned and that the optimal results are realized from the whole enterprise.  The course provides insights into what leading companies are doing and can do to create extraordinary value, provide outstanding solutions for their customers, shareholders, employees and stakeholders, and achieve long term success.

Student Profile
Participants in the EMP are demonstrated achievers. EMP candidates must have at least six years of management experience and a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution. EMP participants are selected based on three criteria: (1) Professional Experience, (2) Academic Achievement, and (3) Motivation and Ability.

Group Forming
Applications are currently being accepted for the EMP Class 30 which is scheduled to begin in April 2010. Space will be limited, therefore those seeking consideration should inquire as soon as possible. An application PDF is available by clicking HERE.

The Lally School of Management and Technology
The EMP is associated with Rensselaer’s Lally School of Management and Technology, which focuses on the intersection of management and technology, and is built on the conviction that the effective use of technology can enhance competitiveness. The mission of the Lally School is to develop technically sophisticated business leaders who are prepared to guide their organizations in the integration of technology for new products, new businesses, and new systems.

 

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