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Education for
the Seasoned Manager
Executive MBA programs help experienced business leaders take
their skills to a new level
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Business New Haven
12/4/1995
By: Lori Green
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It's not that a garden-variety MBA isn't “good enough” for executives or entrepreneurs. But if you already have high-level responsibilities for running a business, you no doubt know a thing or two about making decisions, managing their application and assessing results. The only problem is: The rate of change keeps accelerating.
The sheer speed of information age transactions and data flow demands adaptations that managers don't have the time to think about. Even when you make the time, you may be uncertain as to how to think about it. Clearly, this is a problem you'd rather leave behind for the competition.
“Managing change effectively is the major issue executives face today,” says Robert E. Hoskin, director of the University of Connecticut's Executive MBA Program. “The EMBA Program teaches participants to think analytically, see change as an opportunity, view problems as challenges and generate creative solutions.”
Hoskin believes that to do this requires rigorous training in a dynamic environment where ideas and solutions to real business problems can be expressed and explored with other professionals.
EMBA programs at UConn and the University of New Haven have built their curricula on six cornerstones of future managerial success: teamwork, quality, the global economy, communications skills, technology and integration. All demand proficiency in the visioning process, setting objectives, and following through with strategic and tactical plans.
In order for managers to master these essentials, UConn emphasizes developing the skills and tools necessary for setting long-term direction as well as making complex short-term decisions.
UConn has designed its EMBA program to provide intensive education with a minimum disruption of work and personal responsibilities. UConn's 21-month program is offered in Farmington and Stamford, beginning in late August and running through the following summer with class meetings on Fridays and Saturdays of alternate weeks. Participants are advised to plan to spend an average of 20-25 hours per week of study time throughout the program.
At UConn's Farmington campus, many of the program's participants are employed in the engineering and aerospace industries, while Stamford participants hail from a broad range of enterprises. Class sizes range from 30-35 students. The average age of student is 36. Two-thirds are from larger companies; one-third comprises of a mix of entrepreneurs, small or family business owners, or other professionals such as attorneys and physicians. Women account for a third of the student body.
The price tag of an EMBA at UConn is $31,500, compared with less than $20,000 for the MBA degree. However, the higher cost not only includes all university fees, books and the program's field trip abroad (destinations have included Singapore, Mexico and Europe) but also buys you your own laptop computer.
UNH's Executive MBA program is designed to providing executives with the proper level of focus and perspective. To ensure the curriculum currency and sophistication, EMBA Program Director Phil Rice works closely with a curriculum review committee of a dozen regional business leaders and UNH faculty members. The committee holds frequent meetings throughout the year to improve the university's ability to stay ahead of business in formulating new ideas and new approaches.
“Businesses have left universities in the dust as they've had to adapt to changes in the environment and in technologies; why should universities not respond to changes in the marketplace?” asks Rice. “We have to find ways to develop our curriculum so that it is more fully integrated.”
UNH also wants to focus on specific needs of the regional business community, which means greater attention to service-sector management issues and processes, including those facing the health-care and financial-services industries, as well as addressing concerns of smaller growth-oriented firms.
It takes two years to complete the required 20 modules at UNH, excluding summers. Participants have a choice of the main West Haven campus or a Stamford location at GTE. Classes meet one evening each week between Monday and Thursday, and class sizes average 13 students. Cost of the EMBA is $23,000.
Selection criteria for applicants include background, work experience, career goals and other individual factors. Both UConn and UNH require a minimum of five years' management experience to qualify for admission to the EMBA programs, but UConn candidates also need to take the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT).
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