Educating the survivors. (executive education)(includes related articles)(Cover Story) Douglas A. Ready.

Abstract: Many companies are finding that sponsoring executive education is no longer optional but must be part of their strategy for survival. When used strategically, continuing education for managers can strengthen the competitiveness of business organizations and increase their chances of success in the future. In addition, executive education can serve as a means for transferring knowledge and encourage cross fertilization of ideas. To develop a world-class executive education program, companies must align their educational activities with their strategic objectives, win the support of top management, clearly define the roles and goals of the program, develop appropriate measures, and involve all major stakeholders in the effort. The continuing education programs of Philips Electronics, Kao Corp. and Daimler-Benz are described.

Full Text: COPYRIGHT Research Institute of America Inc. 1995

Executive education is no longer a perk. It's a company's most important strategic hope for survival - all over the world.

"We firmly believe that the future success of this company has everything to do with the cultivation of our human assets," says Willem Guitink, vice president for management education and training for Philips Electronics NV "I think maybe we forgot that for a while, but never again." Based in Eindhoven, Holland, Philips is today one of the world's largest electronics companies, with more than 250,000 employees and sales in excess of $25 billion. Yet just four years ago the company was on the brink of bankruptcy, a result of poor strategic decision making, staggering debt, and an onslaught of new and more agile competitors. Convinced that only a dramatic intervention would save the company. Jan Timmer, Philips' new president, challenged the entire organization to transform the company - a project he named Operation Centurion.

As Nigel Freedman, head of studies for Philips, describes the key facets of Centurion, "It was important, first, to realize that the company needed restructuring in order to improve operational performance. We had to improve quality, costs, and cycle time, and it was also necessary to reduce our head count. But it was important to do more than just restructure the company - we needed to revitalize it. We wanted to seek out new opportunities for growth and provide stretch goals for the entire organization. Central to achieving these goals was our capacity to develop the organizational and individual capabilities required for future competitiveness. It was also critical to communicate the key changes in strategic direction in an efficient and effective manner. This is where education served to support our strategic processes. Executive education at Philips was used as a vehicle for communicating vital messages and making informed decisions about our future, for building core capabilities and for leading continuous change."

When viewed strategically, executive education can play any or all of the following critical roles: a platform for organizational transformation; a mechanism for continuous organizational and individual renewal; and a vehicle for global knowledge transfer.

Catalytic Timmer

It was clear at Philips that Jan Timmer, as CEO, would have to orchestrate the process of creating a compelling future and serve as the chief catalyst for transformation. Timmer also knew that it was ultimately his responsibility to make sure that the organization had the core capabilities required to win in the future. Yet he also had the perspective to know that he could not and should not try to lead the transformation process alone. Central to the success of Philips' transformation would be the engagement of the entire organization in achieving the company's turnaround objectives. Timmer, one of only a handful of CEOs who has spent time rotating through the human resources function, was convinced that executive education would play a vital role in helping Philips set the agenda for transformation, debate the future, and provide the foundation for developing the critical skills, attitudes, values, and perspectives needed to sustain competitiveness in both good times and bad.

Less visionary CEOs would have seen education and training as an expense item to cut when times were bad. Timmer, however, positioned continuous development as perhaps the most important investment Philips could make in its future.

Philips created what top executives at the company called Centurion sessions, a series of executive education strategy forums that were made up of senior- and upper-level managers and facilitated by leading academicians and consultants. The main purpose of the Centurion sessions was to conduct a brutally honest assessment of the company's current competitive situation as compared to other industry leaders and key benchmark organizations. The Centurion sessions were also opportunities to create urgency, what Philips leaders grimly referred to as their "Valley of Death" seminars. During these sessions, no sacred cows were spared. The company established an environment of trust and openness and invited management to critique anything and everything that was flawed about the company. "Urgency was critical to the change process," says Willem Guitink, Philips' top education executive. Philips also used town meeting-style conferences to address massive numbers of workers and even employed interactive satellite links to capture the feelings of more than 120,000 employees on the subject of improving customer satisfaction.

Education Electrifies Philips

Then the sorting out process began by engaging teams of managers on more than 20 action learning projects to improve processes, strengthen strategic intent, and increase the passion for customer focus throughout the company. Executives at Philips believe that these projects were perhaps the most important foundation for creating a sustainable competitive advantage for the organization. Executive education was not the answer to Philips challenges, but it was the critical conduit through which the company's senior managers created urgency and focused organizational attention. Through this conduit, Philips' managers also identified vulnerabilities and opportunities, established trust and communication, cultivated new organizational and individual capabilities, and launched a strategic agenda for both short- and long-term transformation and change.

The results thus far have been impressive. In just four years, Philips has reduced its debt significantly, delayered its organizational structure and breathed life back into the company, reduced personnel by 50,000, and doubled its share price - amid intensifying competitive activity and a worldwide recession. By all measures, Centurion has been a remarkable success, and executive education has played a vital role in a variety of ways. Not surprisingly, Philips is now making huge investments in executive and management education to support its future initiatives, both at home and abroad. Plans are underway to build corporate universities in The Netherlands and in Asia, an increasingly important market for this newly-revitalized electronics giant.

Executive Education as a Continuous Renewal Mechanism

The unfortunate part of the Philips story, of course, is that 50,000 people, presumably all of whom were dedicated to the company and its success, lost their jobs. And for those individuals and their families, the Philips story will seem, understandably, less successful. Yet for hundreds of companies throughout the world, deep reductions in human resources have become a harsh reality. In many instances, catch phrases such as reengineering have become code for downsizing, and it is no wonder that a trust gap exists in many of today's organizations between a company's workforce and its senior management. Yet powerful market forces such as technological innovation, new and increasingly agile competitors, and significant changes in scale economies brought about by globalization initiatives suggest that we have only just begun the race to sustain competitiveness.

To the extent that an organization's senior executives position change as a program or one-time event, they have effectively sown the seeds of failure and distrust in their companies. Forward-thinking leaders are beating the drum that continuous organizational and individual development are essential to remaining on top. The difference in perspective is a critical one. Reengineering is a program, while continuous development is a mindset. An organization that has embedded continuous development into its genetic coding will be far more likely to prosper in the future. Moreover, a company that has given more careful thought to the role and purpose of executive education with regard to its goals for continuous development will be that much more ahead of the game. Executive education, when utilized strategically, can certainly be leveraged as an important vehicle for strengthening competitive capabilities, whether the focus is on individual skill development or organizational revitalization.

Consider the examples of two companies that focus their renewal efforts squarely on the individual. The Royal Dutch Shell Group, one of the world's largest corporations, with revenues in excess of $100 billion, focuses its vast educational initiatives primarily on short- to mid-term individual development, both as a function of philosophy and business practice. Shell makes its training and educational strategy explicit in its course book, and it conveys how this strategy is to be implemented in comprehensive detail in what it calls MITRE - the Management and Interfunctional Training Review. United Technologies Corporation takes an approach that is highly compatible with Shell's. UTC, a $20 billion industrial holding company that includes companies such as Otis Elevator, Pratt & Whitney, and Sikorsky Aircraft, boasts an extensive catalog of course offerings at its internal corporate education facility, the UTC Leadership Center. The courses are focused almost entirely on the development of individual skills and competencies for managers and technical specialists within UTC's six businesses. The company tends to shy away from the "program of the month" syndrome and focuses its attention instead on keeping UTC's employees on the cutting edge of their respective fields. Both of these organizations excel at cultivating talent and both focus their attention on individual skills development.

In contrast, there are equally interesting examples of companies that are focusing their attention on the continuous development of their organizational capabilities. Motorola and Unilever are two leaders in this category. Each company runs active action learning programs, during which employees conduct competitor analyses and competence reviews. Participants are learning important skills and capabilities, but the companies are simultaneously strengthening their competitive capabilities. And, of course there is General Electric's Crotonville in New York's suburban Westchester County, home of Jack Welch's now-famous "WorkOut" initiative, and Philips' center in Eindhoven, "operations central" for Centurion, both of which are used as mechanisms for large-scale transformation initiatives.

Executive Education as a Vehicle for Knowledge Transfer

A somewhat different view is taken by Kao Corporation, Japan's leading consumer, household, and personal products company. Kao runs two educational facilities, which it calls Creativity Centers, with the stated objectives of producing wisdom and transferring learning capability. In fact, Dr. Yoshio Maruta, Kao's former president, often referred to the company as "an educational institution." It was Dr. Maruta's belief that the Arida and Kasumigaura Creativity Centers were opportunities for everyone to teach and for everyone to learn.

Another example of a company using executive education as a vehicle for global knowledge transfer is Daimler-Benz AG, the automotive, aerospace, and high-technology giant based in Stuttgart, Germany. For as long as anyone can remember, Daimler-Benz had been one of Europe's most respected companies and a global benchmark for excellence in a variety of segments. However, Mercedes Benz, the holding company's largest business, began losing market share significantly to foreign competitors just as other strategic investments made by the company started to go wrong. The company had too many organizational layers, and decision-making was hampered by a hierarchical structure and mindset. There was very little cross fertilization, as managers and specialists tended to remain within their functions or business units.

Large-scale Transformation at Daimler-Benz

As a part of a large-scale transformation effort, Daimler-Benz set out to break down its self-imposed boundaries. The company's executive education activity is now serving as an important vehicle for facilitating this transition to a more borderless organization. Convinced that managers throughout the company desperately needed to think and behave more strategically, be more flexible in their approaches to problem solving, and be more sensitive to a workforce that was increasingly diverse culturally, the company recently began what it calls its "Case Study Series."

The Daimler-Benz case studies are actual business challenges that the company's executives have faced during the past few years. Teams of managers from all over the world are presented with enough information to understand the reality of the situation, even though many of these decisions, such as those regarding joint ventures or strategic alliances, were viewed as highly confidential not long ago.

While the managers are learning, in real time, topics such as strategic thinking and financial decision-making, they are also learning to work in cross-functional and cross-cultural teams. But perhaps more importantly, the company is "learning" as well. Senior level Daimler-Benz executives participate in these sessions and learn how their new managers would respond to a managerial situation that was made only recently by the company's senior managers. "It's a win-win situation," explains Dr. Claudia Schlossberger, vice president for executive development. "We are transferring important cultural messages to our new managers, but we are also using this as an opportunity to test where we might need to change our culture and decision-making processes."

Unlearning Old Truths, Outlearning Competitors

Executive education can indeed be an effective vehicle in a variety of ways, depending upon an individual organization's specific circumstances and its most pressing strategic initiatives. If United Technologies needs to develop individual skills and competencies in order to remain at the top of its game, for example, then a focus on skill development is a strategic utilization of its educational resources.

On the other hand, as Sumiaki Sasaki, executive vice president of Kao Corporation of Japan, notes, "Kao is a very successful company throughout Asia with a very powerful culture. Yet for us to succeed in building Kao of America to its full potential we must first unlearn many of the things that we believe in so deeply today. . . . We must be able to remove our boundaries if we are truly to become a global company." Kao believes that its employees gain knowledge and wisdom through experience and that the collective experiences of its employees will be leveraged into a greater, more unifying wisdom by having everyone participate in team learning sessions at its creativity centers. Not surprisingly, individual skills development is not a high priority at Kao's Creativity Centers, yet the company views its efforts at Arida and Kasumigaura to be strategically vital to the company's future.

William Wiggenhorn, president of Motorola University, sees education and learning capability as a competitive weapon. "We figure if we can outlearn our competitors, we can beat them every time," he says. Learning as a vehicle to support Motorola's organizational competitiveness is a top priority for the company.

Focus on Strategic Objectives

In mapping out your company's views on how to optimize investments in executive education, it is often helpful to plot your organization's current emphasis on education and development against the emphasis that you believe would produce maximum leverage toward the achievement of your organization's strategic objectives. For example, if your organization is spending most of its education and training resources on short-term, individual skill development while the top management team is deeply engaged in a comprehensive transformation effort, then it is likely that your company is not using executive education strategically. Philips, for example, suspended all of its normal classes for two years and focused its educational resources squarely on the company's transformation initiative. In large, complex organizations it is possible to see multiple educational initiatives that might appear to be lacking strategic integration or even working at cross purposes, yet each might have a legitimate rationale for its activities. However, assuming that a strategic framework exists can be dangerous, which is why a simple audit can prove useful.

Whether you're using executive education as a vehicle for global knowledge transfer, a mechanism for capability creation, or as a platform for large-scale organizational transformation, there are five steps to take to make sure your organization is building a world-class executive education operation.

* Link your educational initiatives with your organization's strategic imperatives. If the relationship is cloudy, the enthusiasm level will be low. Today's executives are simply too busy to be involved in any form of low-leverage activity.

* Gain the enthusiastic commitment of your organization's CEO and top executive team. Be sure to differentiate between commitment and support. Support often translates into mere approval to run a program, while commitment demands the active engagement of top management in the learning process. The difference will become apparent when it is time to begin implementing changes of strategic significance or when cost and profitability pressures arise.

* Clarify the roles and objectives of executive education as a component of your organization's overall strategic learning plan. This is a "loaded recommendation" because it assumes your organization already has a strategic learning plan. If you don't, you're among the majority, but that shouldn't be comforting news. It will be difficult to ever truly optimize your company's investments in executive education if your organization is not examining how it selects its key candidates for development or how it will use education as an important supplement to an individual's experiences and job assignments - by far the most potent source for learning and development. Developing such a strategic learning plan and assessing issues such as why, when, what, how, and for whom with regard to executive education will result in improved impact and reduced frustration on the part of all individuals involved in the process - from the senior level on down to line management.

* Establish meaningful measures. Identify the key factors that will determine the effectiveness of your organization's executive education initiatives. No matter how high the motivation might be to show direct cause and effect between executive education and profitability, it is simply not possible to do so. However, this should not serve as cause to avoid impact assessment altogether. It is possible to determine whether a program increased the competency level required for an individual to perform various jobs or tasks effectively. It is possible to determine whether a program led to an increased identification with and commitment to an organization's mission and purpose. It is possible to assess whether an organization's top management team used executive education as an effective vehicle for strengthening its strategic focus or refining its core capabilities. The important point is to determine those factors that will influence the effectiveness of your organization's competitive capabilities and to identify how executive education helps strengthen them.

* Engage all key stakeholders in the process. The individual participant should be highly motivated and well suited to involvement in the learning activity. The participant's boss should be well informed and oriented about the goals and objectives of the program so that future job challenges can be designed to take the learner's new capabilities into account. The providers of the education should be able to articulate both the short- and long-term learning objectives of the course, enabling your organization to relate those objectives to your company's strategic learning plan.

The Power Behind the Throne

All of the companies mentioned in this article have at least one thing in common - they each have highly respected human resource development professionals who are helping their top management teams focus on the future and remain on top. As organizations continue to increase their emphasis on process excellence, knowledge transfer, capability creation and change management, it is easy to see why top-flight HRD professionals are becoming a commodity in high demand. These individuals understand their businesses and have more than likely rotated through other functional areas or business units. They are respected both as business professionals and as specialists in learning and change management. Perhaps Roger Enrico, the vice chairman of PepsiCo said it best: "I'll tell you why I believe so deeply in our development activities . . . . As vice chairman, I have two jobs . . . the first is to grow the business . . . the second is to identify and develop the people who will accomplish objective number one." With that statement, the bar has effectively been raised for us all.

RELATED ARTICLE: WHERE STRATEGY IS TAUGHT

Usually, schools offer custom-designed programs in addition to the courses listed. Longer programs are sometimes broken up with an interim between weeks or sessions. Most of the prices given cover tuition, room and board, airport transportation, and course materials.

BABSON COLLEGE, SCHOOL OF EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Babson Park, MA 02157; 800-882-EXEC or 617-239-4354, fax 617-239-5266

AUDIENCE: Middle- to upper-level management.

SAMPLE COURSES: Developing Managerial Effectiveness; Leadership and Influence; Crafting Strategies Through Competitive Analysis; Strategic Planning and Management in Retailing. The Executive Briefing Series offers one-day workshops - such as Strategic Execution: Some Alternative Perspectives - that focus on the very latest issues and events. There is a four-week Consortium for Executive Development program for upper-middle-level and high-potential managers from membership companies only.

LENGTH: One to ten days, plus the four-week member program.

COST: $3,600 to $5,600; $295 for one-day workshops.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Bank of Boston, Crate & Barrel, DowElanco, Dunkin' Donuts, GTE, Fidelity Investments, LEGO, Lotus Development Corporation, Pitney Bowes, Sony Electronics, Wal-Mart, Walt Disney World, Warner Lambert.

CENTER FOR CREATIVE LEADERSHIP

One Leadership Place, P.O. Box 26300, Greensboro, NC 27438 (with branches in Colorado Springs, San Diego, and Belgium); 910-545-2800 or 910-288-7210, fax 910-288-3999

AUDIENCE: All management levels.

SAMPLE COURSES: Developing the Strategic Leader: Thinking, Acting, Influencing (for upper-level managers and executives); Effecting Change; Leadership at the Peak (for top executives); Leadership Development Program (for middle-level managers); Looking Glass Experience: Leadership in Action; Executive Women Workshop; Leadership Program for African Americans; Family Business Leadership Program; Entrepreneurial Leadership Program; Leading Downsized Organizations: Individual and Organizational Healing; Service Leadership 2000 (for executives of nonprofit organizations).

LENGTH: One to ten days.

COST: $1,000 to $7,300.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Abbott Laboratories, BASF Corporation, Black & Decker Corporation, Carolina Power & Light Company, Clorox Company, Helene Curtis Inc., Internal Revenue Service, Junior Achievement Inc., Kimberly-Clark Corporation, March of Dimes Foundation, Pfizer Inc., Time Warner Inc., UGI Corporation.

CENTER FOR MANAGEMENT DESIGN/GENERATIVE LEADERSHIP GROUP

155 West Main Street, Somerville, NJ 08876 (with an additional branch in Oakland, CA); 908-722-5100, fax 908-722-5103

AUDIENCE: Middle-management level to top executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: CEO Forum (three three-day sessions); Executive Excellence Program (four four-day sessions); Leadership and the Future (three days); Women, Leadership and the Future (three days).

LENGTH: Three to 16 days.

COST: $2,150 to $50,000.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Bell Atlantic, Englehart Corp., Polaroid, Royal Bank of Canada, Volvo.

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Armstrong Hall, 4th Floor, 2880 Broadway, New York, NY 10025; 800-692-EXEC or 212-854-3395, fax 212-316-1473

AUDIENCE: Mostly middle- to senior-level managers from mid- to large-size companies.

SAMPLE COURSES: Courses with a strong strategic focus include the Business Strategy Program (covers strategy formulation and strategy implementation), Managing Strategic Innovation and Change (six days), Marketing Management (six days), and Market Analysis for Competitive Advantage (six days). The four-week Columbia Senior Executive Program covers Global Strategy and Management, Achieving Organizational Excellence, Managing Innovation Across Organizational Borders, and Personal Leadership and Renewal. Other courses include Mastering Negotiation Dynamics, Creating the Customer-Oriented Firm, General Management Workshop, Leading and Managing People, Sales Management, Human Resource Management, Building and Managing Brand Equity, and Finance and Accounting for the Non-Financial Executive.

LENGTH: Three days to four weeks.

COST: $2,900 (three days) to $15,500 (four weeks): most six-day courses are $4,250.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: American Savings Bank, Arthur Andersen & Co., British Airways, Burger King Corporation, Exxon Company, House of Seagram, Merck & Co. Inc., Oshkosh B'Gosh Inc., Polyken Technologies, Ryder Truck Rental Inc., Westinghouse.

CORNELL UNIVERSITY, JOHNSON GRADUATE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Statler Suite 509, Ithaca, NY 14853; 607-255-4251, fax 607-255-0018

AUDIENCE: Middle- to upper-level managers and executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: Strategic Decision Making and Critical Thinking; Formulating Marketing Strategies; Creating and Managing High Performance Teams; Family Businesses Forum; Executive Program for Midsized Companies; Reengineering; Creating the Sustainable Turnaround; Manufacturing Executive Program. The four-week Executive Development Program is a general management course that covers Improving Individual and Organizational Productivity, Enhancing Your Decision-Making Skills, Managing in the Global Environment, and Strategy Development and Implementation.

LENGTH: Weekend courses to four weeks. Most courses are three days or one week.

COST: About $875 (weekend), $2,500 (three days), $3,600 (one week), $13,700 (four weeks).

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: AT&T, Brooks Brothers, Holiday Rambler, IBM, Polaroid, Spalding Sports, Xerox.

DARTMOUTH COLLEGE, TUCK SCHOOL, OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

100 Tuck Hall, Hanover, NH 03755; 603-646-2839, fax 603-646-1308

AUDIENCE: Middle- to upper-level executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: Courses focusing on business strategy are Leveraging Core Competencies (revitalizing companies for global competitive advantage), Update 2000: A Senior Management Forum (interactive program covering the latest concepts in general business management), Market-Driven Management, Managing in Hyper-Competitive Industries, Strategies for Business Success in China, and the four-week Tuck Executive Program (emphasis on a broad strategic focus). There is also a Minority Business Executive Program.

LENGTH: Three days to four weeks.

COST: About $3,500 (three days) to $17,500 (four weeks).

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Atlantic Richfield Company, Boeing Aerospace, Chemical Bank, Digital Magnetics, Gillette Company, Honeywell Inc., Price Waterhouse, Teradyne Inc., U.S. Postal Service, Volkswagen of America Inc., Weatherford International Inc.

EMORY UNIVERSITY, GOIZUETA BUSINESS SCHOOL, OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE PROGRAMS

Lenox Building, Suite 850, 3399 Peachtree Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30326; 404-848-0500, fax 404-848-0510

AUDIENCE: middle- to senior-level managers.

SAMPLE COURSES: Management Development Program (two weeks; general management study focusing on Managing for Organizational Effectiveness and the Learning Organization); Marketing Strategies and Analysis For Competitive Analysis (one week); Creating Value Through Logistics (one week); Investor Relations: Issues, Strategies and Techniques (three days). The three-week Executive Development Program Consortium covers Strategy and the Senior Executive, Corporate Transformation and the Global Context, and Leadership and Organizational Dynamics.

LENGTH: Three days to three weeks.

COST: About $1,875 (three days), $2,875 (one week), $5,300 (two weeks), $10,350 (three weeks).

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: American Cancer Society, AT&T, Digital Equipment Corporation, IBM, Kimberly Clark, New York Times Company.

INDIANA UNIVERSITY, GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Bloomington, IN 47405; 812-855-0229, fax 812-855-6216

AUDIENCE: Entry-level managers to senior-level managers.

SAMPLE COURSES: The one- to three-day seminars include Strategic Marketing Plan: Path to Maximum Growth and Profits; Becoming an Effective Manager; Strategic Advantages of Communication Technologies: Using Internet to Gain Competitive Advantage: Managing Employee Involvement Processes for Increased Performance and Service; Strategic Marketing for Medical Practices: Prospering in a Changing Marketplace; The Multiple Dimensions of Leadership. The two-week Indiana Executive Program for middle- to senior-level managers covers topics such as Best Business Practices. Strategic Marketing, Understanding and Building Leadership Competencies, Developing a Global Mindset, and Competitive Analysis. The four-week Indiana Partnership for Management Development program is for partner companies.

LENGTH: One day to four weeks.

COST: Seminars range from $250 to $700. The two-week program is $7,500; the four-week program is $10,500.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Amoco, Bristol Myers Squibb, Dow Chemical, Philips Electronics, Xerox.

MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, SLOAN SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

50 Memorial Drive, Room E52-126, Cambridge, MA 02139; 617-253-7166, fax 617-258-6002

AUDIENCE: Mostly senior executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: The four MIT Executive Short Courses are Management of Change in Complex Organizations, Corporate Strategy, System Dynamics: Modeling for Organizational Learning, and Negotiation: Theory and Practice. The eight-week MIT Program for Senior Executives focuses heavily on strategy; its three phases examine the current forces affecting organizations today, the responses to such forces, and the organizations of the future.

LENGTH: One-week short courses and the eight-week Program for Senior Executives.

COST: About $3,000 to $4,000 for one-week courses; $31,900 for the eight-week program.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Alabama Power Co., Apple Computer Inc., Caterpillar Inc., Coca-Cola Co., General Motors Corp., Japan Energy Corp., Pacific Bell, Texaco Corp., World Health Organization.

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY, KELLOGG GRADUATE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, EXECUTIVE PROGRAMS

James L. Allen Center, Evanston, IL 60208; 708-491-7000, fax 708-491-4323

AUDIENCE: Varied levels of management.

SAMPLE COURSES: Many strategy courses are offered in different fields, such as Corporate Financial Strategy, Managing Cost Information for Effective Strategic Decisions, Merger Week: Creating Value Through Strategic Acquisitions and Alliances, Strategic Financial Planning, Business-to-Business Marketing Strategy, Communications Strategy: Managing Communications for the Changing Marketplace, Consumer Marketing Strategy, Pricing Strategies and Tactics, Negotiation Strategies for Managers, Creating World-Class Quality: A Strategic Evaluation, Business Process Reengineering: A Strategy for Breakthrough Performance, and Changing Strategic Direction. General management courses are the Advanced Executive Program, Executive Development Program, Managing the Closely Held Company in Changing Times: The Owner-Manager's Program, and the Kellogg Management Institute (meets once a week for nine months).

LENGTH: Two days to four weeks.

COST: $1,700 to $15,600. The Kellogg Management Institute is $10,200.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Ameritech, Blue Cross/Blue Shield Association, Deloitte & Touche, Ernst & Young, Hyatt International Corporation, Moore Business Corporation, Warner Lambert, Wisconsin Bell.

PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY, EXECUTIVE PROGRAMS

310 Business Administration Building, University Park, PA 16802; 814-865-3435, fax 814-865-3372

AUDIENCE: Mostly upper-middle and senior-level executives,

SAMPLE COURSES: Program for Strategic Leadership; Executive Management Program, Program for Executive Development: Managing the Global Enterprise; Engineer/Scientist as Manager; Financial Analysis for Strategic Management; Human Resources Management Program; Marketing Strategy in Business Markets: Manufacturing Strategy and Technology; Strategic Purchasing Management Program. There is one program for middle-level managers called Developing Managerial Effectiveness.

LENGTH: One to four weeks.

COST: $3,550 to $14,900.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: AT&T, Chevron, Dupont, General Motors, IBM, Northern Telecom, Polaroid.

TOM PETERS GROUP LEARNING SYSTEMS

555 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301; 800-333-8878 or 415-326-5774, fax 415-326-7065

AUDIENCE: Typically senior executives, from CEOs to director.

SAMPLE COURSES: The focus is on business leadership, such as the Leadership Challenge Workshop, Leadership Is Everyone's Business, the Challenge Continues, Walking the Talk, Values in Action, the Tom Peters Seminar: Skills and Strategies for the Chaotic '90s, Service with Soul, and Teambuilding.

LENGTH: A half day to five days.

COST: About $5,000 to $25,000.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Bank of America, Frito-Lay Inc., Head Start, Honeywell, Levi Strauss & Co., MTV Networks, Ralston Purina, Sega, 3M.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY, HAAS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, CENTER FOR EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT

Berkeley, CA 94720; 510-642-4735, fax 510-642-2388

AUDIENCE: Middle- to senior-level executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: General management programs are the Berkeley Executive Program (one month). Managing in a Global Economy (two weeks), and spaced-residency programs (five two-and-a-half-day sessions for five months) such as the Advanced Management Program and the Program for Technology Managers. The seminar series include Competitive Marketing Strategies for High-Tech Products, Competitive Marketing Strategies for Service Businesses, Advanced Marketing Strategies, Building Market-Focused Organizations, Strategic Value Creation and Financial Management, Crafting the Winning Organization, Managing Managers and Professionals, and Strategic Planning Under Uncertainty: Beyond Core Capabilities.

LENGTH: Two and a half days to five months.

COST: About $1,000 to $15,000.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: American Airlines, Bell Laboratories, Compaq Computer, Fluor Daniel, McGraw-Hill, Pepsico.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES, ANDERSON GRADUATE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024; 310-825-2001, fax 310-825-3340

AUDIENCE: Entry- to senior-level management.

SAMPLE COURSES: General management programs include the "MBA Light" Executive Program (one night a week for nine months; covers a wide variety of topics, including strategic management), Advanced Executive Program (two weeks; focuses on global strategy), Enhancing Managerial Creativity and Problem Solving. Functional management programs include the Advanced Program in Human Resource Management, Corporate Financial Strategy, Purchasing Executive Program, Medical Marketing, Managing the Information Resource, Operations and Technology Management. Most of the programs look at strategy from different perspectives.

LENGTH: One night to nine months.

COST: About $500 (one night) to $10,500 (the nine-month program). The two-week program is $8,000.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Aetna Life and Casualty, Burlington Northern Railroad, Dole Food Company Inc., Intel Corporation, Merrill Lynch, Purina Mills Inc.

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION CENTER

700 East University, Room E2540, Ann Arbor, MI 48109; 313-763-1003, fax 313-763-9467

AUDIENCE: New managers to senior management executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: Job Analysis and Compensation; Pay Program Strategy and Design; Program for Management Development; Strategic Marketing Planning Program: Business-to-Business Marketing Program. Courses cover a wide variety of fields such as accounting and finance, corporate strategy, general management, human relations, international business, labor relations, marketing, and operations management.

LENGTH: Two days to four weeks.

COST: About $980 to $17,000.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: AT&T, CXS Corporation. Florida Power & Light, Upjohn, Westinghouse.

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Davidson Conference Center, Suite 107, Los Angeles, CA 90089; 213-740-8990, fax 213-749-3689

AUDIENCE: Middle- to senior-level management.

SAMPLE COURSES: Advanced Management Program (developing strategic decision-making skills); Management Development Program (twelve nights over three months; deals with business ethics and strategy, current trends in the market); Leadership Development: Increasing Your Executive Edge; Marketing Management: New Practices for Changing Times. The Executive Breakfast Series includes topics such as High-Impact Issues Affecting the Business Community, Organizational Change Initiatives, Empowerment as a Management Tool, and Self-Directed Work Strategies.

LENGTH: Two and a half days to three months.

COST: About $1,350 to $9,750. Individual, team, or corporate prices are available for the lectures in the Executive Breakfast Series.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Aerospace Corporation, Boise Cascade Corp., Dart Industries Inc., Farmers Group, Houston Lighting & Power, John Hancock Financial Services, RCA, Unocal.

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN, GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

P.O. Box 7337, Austin TX 78713; 512-471-5893, fax 512-471-0853

AUDIENCE: Generally, lower- to middle-management. Usually managers in high-tech companies.

SAMPLE COURSES: Business-to-Business Marketing Strategy; Marketing Strategy for Competitive Advantage; Pricing Strategy; Developing Advocacy Skills: Selling Yourself and Your Ideas; Leadership Skills for the Year 2000. The Management Challenge program is a general management program coveting comprehensive topics such as strategic management, global competition, and leadership and decision making. It meets for two and a half days each month for nine months. The Management Institute for engineers and high-tech professionals also meets over a nine-month period.

LENGTH: Two and a half days to nine months.

COST: About $1,150 (two and a half days) to $6,400 (nine months).

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Austin Chamber of Commerce, Caterpillar Inc., Horizon Industries, IBM Computer Corporation, Novell Inc., Proctor & Gamble, South Texas Women's Clinic, Western Atlas International.

UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, DARDEN GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

P.O. Box 6550, Charlottesville, VA 22906; 804-924-3000, fax 804-982-2833

AUDIENCE: Middle- to senior-level executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: Developing Managerial Excellence (new high-potential managers); Managing Critical Resources (general managers); Leadership for Extraordinary Performance (middle level); Strategic Management for Line Managers; Building the Learning Organization; Creating the Future: The Challenge of Transformational Leadership; Managing Individual and Organizational Change; Sales Management and Marketing Strategy; Strategic Marketing Management; Managing Individual and Organizational Change; Strategic Negotiation. The six-week Executive Program for senior executives focuses on strategic thinking, leadership development, and decision making.

LENGTH: Three days to six weeks.

COST: About $2,100 (three days) to $21,000 (six weeks).

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: AlliedSignal Inc, Burlington Industries Inc., Ford Motor Co., Ohio Art Co., Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp., Scott Paper Co., Westpac Banking Corp.

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON, SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE

975 University Avenue, Madison, WI 53706; 800-292-8964 or 608-262-2155, fax 608-262-4617

AUDIENCE: Middle- to senior-level executives.

SAMPLE COURSES: Areas include Basic Management Certificate Series; Mid-Management Development Certificate Series; Executive Development; Total Quality Management Certificate Series; Leadership Development Programs; Human Resource Management and Development; Manufacturing Systems and Processes.

LENGTH: One to five days.

COST: $275 to $1,495.

PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS: Abbott Laboratories. Avery-Dennison Corp., Discover Card, Harley-Davidson Motor Co. Inc., Lands' End Inc., Steelcase Inc., Wausau Insurance Co.

RELATED ARTICLE: THE MBA TODAY: STRATEGY'S KEY

Two years ago, when we looked into MBA programs around the country ("Raise Your Hand if You're Sure Strategy is Being Taught in American Business Schools," Business Strategy September/October 1993) we were concerned that students weren't being taught the basics of strategy or being given much access to real-world planning issues, let alone real-world strategists. A recent visit to the Stern School of Business in New York, to attend a class from that MBA program's required "Business Strategy and Policy" course has put our worries to rest.

"I've got plenty of scar tissue," says Professor David Liebeskind, referring to his career as the former manager of strategic planning for Union Carbide. Liebeskind is one of nine instructors who teach different sections of the year-long course.

More students also sport their own scare tissue compared to two years ago, when many MBA-takers had come straight from business degrees at college. Some, like Brad Schiller, have run their own small businesses for several years (in his case a record company); others like Marianne Chao and Brad Spivack spent several years at Fortune 500 companies (Citibank and IBM respectively).

All this work experience showed, at least in the portion of the class dedicated to up-to-the-minute real-world strategic issues. Just a few of the topics hotly debated: Ameritech's positioning against NYNEX, Big Six accounting firms developing into investment advisors; banks getting out of ancillary businesses; MTV's shifting focus away from music and into merchandising; Japan's opening its market for cable and how TCI is positioning itself to enter; Taco Bell's fat-free menu; and GM's use of an anthropologist to study the personality of 4-wheel-drive owners.

The case study section of the course was more rooted in basic strategic-planning theory. The class looked at a Harvard Business School write-up on Coors (from the founding to about the mid-'80s) using lots of tried-and-true methods from identifying core competencies to a SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) analysis.

The last section of the class was devoted to the issues of technology's affect on business strategy. Here, another basic tool, S-curves, played a role in getting the message of the curve of market penetration across.

So, how do the students find strategy when it's taught this way? "It's a discipline to think strategically," Chao concedes. "It's tough to think logically and analytically and still 'outside the box.' "This kind of course, adds Spivak, "gives you the tools to use when you're faced with these issues in a real-life situation."

Schiller takes the long view: "The whole idea is to get us to think strategically, and that makes sense to me. Strategy is sort of what ties everything in business together."

- Bristol Voss

Douglas A. Ready is founder and executive director of the International Consortium for Executive Development Research, a partnership between 20 of the world's leading business schools and 30 global corporations. Based in Lexington, Massachusetts, ICEDR focuses its attention on leadership development and organizational competitiveness.