Three Horizons for the same vision

The programme is divided into three horizons that form part of executive tasks: the challenges brought about by globalisation, leadership and integration of the different elements that form a company. The philosophy starts off from the complexity of an environment like today's world of business to reach another more personal, although no less complex one: the executive leadership needed to carry out transformation.

Executives support these different horizons and people in the company's day to day. They move from a vision centred on the day to day to a global one and vice versa, paying close attention to the opportunities created at every moment. This perspective makes the programme a turning point in the course participants' careers. They travel the path from a functional view of their companies to reasoning in terms of top management.

• Horizon 1: The company and its environment
• Horizon 2: Twenty first century companies
• Horizon 3: Company leadership

Deusto Business School seeks to set up joint work agreements between the firm, the participant and the School through firm-participant contracts. This allows candidates taking part in Deusto Business School programmes to define a specific innovation, entrepreneurship or development project which they will carry out for their firm while they complete the programme at DBS. Firms take full advantage of the knowledge and skills that candidates acquire during the programme from the very beginning.

The firm-participant contract means knowledge, tools and skills are immediately applied in real business and/or market situations.

Participants on the Executive MBA will prepare a final project and they will choose between two options that cover a wide range of subjects:

• Consultancy (Innovation or Development)
• Entrepreneurship (Intra-firm or external)

Consultancy

An innovation project

The last option requires participants to work individually to prepare an innovation project for their own business organisation. The firm and the participant must reach mutual agreement on improving an area in the firm where innovation is vital. The project will be monitored by practising professionals and faculty as participants apply all the knowledge they have acquired during the programme. The firm will also supervise all the project development stages.

Upon completion, the project results and recommendations will be presented to the General Management.

Development project

Participants who chose this option will work in groups for real firms, focusing on developing the business. Faced with a real strategic problem, the groups will be guided by a team of strategy consultants to find the correct problem-solving methodology.

Participants benefit in the following manners, among others;

• Understand the strategic challenges that companies face.
• Become capable of identifying and solving problems.
• Become more visible and recognised within their company.
• Become proficient at making presentations to the General Management.

The advantages for companies centre on the possibility of making progress in meeting their strategic challenges assisted by a group of professionals who offer an external perspective and a proven problem-solving methodology.

Upon completion, the project results and recommendations will be presented to the General Management.

Entrepreneurship

Either within the firm (intra-entrepreneur) or as an external project (entrepreneur), participants must create a business opportunity, develop it and build up a feasible business. 

Advantages for the project participants are as follow, among others;

• Understand the entrepreneurship ecosystem (regional development agencies, venture capital, partners, etc.).
• Identify and apply various tools to build up their business plan.
• Present their initiative to an expert panel and possible investors and eventually launch the project.

Course participants attend several personal coaching sessions, helping them to better understand their personal potential and develop it throughout their career. They are posed different challenges such as how to respond to the following:

• How can I, as a course participant on the Executive MBA, use my academic background, my knowledge of management and leadership together with my personality and years of experience to achieve optimal career and personal development?
• What else do I need to reach new goals in life?

“Value Innovation”
INSEAD, Fontainebleau (France)

 
Competition has been key to many companies' strategies in the last 20 years. Competitive strategy, benchmarking, competitive edge--- are the most widely used terms in strategy. Companies that want to have a sustainable edge have to rethink their strategies and focus on value innovation. They must overcome the concept of competing on familiar markets and serving their regular customers. They have to move on to create new markets and higher value for those who are not yet their customers.

This module is taught at INSEAD (France) and focuses mainly on learning to identify ideas that create value for the customer and the company and how to develop the skills to innovate.

Information about INSEAD

INSEAD is one of the world's largest and most prestigious business schools. A leading executive education institution, the school brings together people, culture and ideas from across the world to help transform companies. This diversity is clearly reflected in every aspect of its research and training. Its two campuses, one in Fontainebleau (France) and another in Singapore are staffed by 138 lecturers from 32 countries who provide training to the 1,000 participants on their different programmes (MBA, Executive MBA and PhD courses). Over 9,500 executives from international companies have studied at the school.

Value Innovation:

• Review and critique of traditional strategy
• How to achieve «Value Innovation»
• Reconstructing market boundaries, break away from the competition and unlock tiers of new demand
• Creating new market space
• How to create and nurture a culture of innovation

Optional international week

You can choose between these alternatives *:

"Fostering entrepreneurship" - Sillicon Valley
The stay in Sillicon Valley will allow participants to know closely the characteristics of this ecosystem of entrepreneurship and its agents and learn the attitudes and behaviors that are critical success factors.

"Promoting innovation intrapreneurship" - Cambridge Judge Business School
Learning the role of innovation in intrapreneurship and the creation of companies in Cambridge is the goal of this intensive week. Cambridge Enterprise will be known, one of the most dynamic business communities in Europe, created by the University in order to encourage entrepreneurship and the creation of new business initiatives (spin-out).

"Leadership innovation" - Florence
During this week participants will learn, through history, how to lead oneself and manage organizational development. Florence, the place where the period of greatest creativity of humanity (the Renaissance) took place, offers an experiential experience about art, humanism, politics ... This week's objective is to incorporate the ideas on leadership of the people who generated during that historical period an engine of change and innovation in Europe.

* Indicative, subject to availability.