Abstract:

This study, conducted in 2015, examined the different design and delivery issues that are important for success in executive or management development interventions. Field interviews were undertaken with a group of 28 experienced faculty members of an international business school over a four-month period. Data from the study indicates that four key areas are important for effective executive education; Contracts both commercial and psychological, Communities of learners and providers, Content, including the learners emotional response to the learning, and Contexts within which the learning takes place. These areas are briefly outlined below.

Contracts: several formal and informal contractual arrangements were identified in the process of executive education such as that between the education provider and the buyer of executive education. Communities: not only the community of participants on each programme but the community within the participants’ organisations. Content: this term was used to refer to everything that takes place in, or during, the ‘delivered’ part of the learning process; one key element is the time used for reflection. Contexts: as well as embedding the learning experience in the context of the participants’ personal and organisational life, the contexts in which the learning takes place were also reported as able to facilitate or hinder learning. Most interviewees felt that finding a variety of ways to manage the atmosphere and dynamics of the learning space to create an engaging experience is at the heart of the learning context.
Uniquely, this report offers a unified model of the principles and pedagogy of learning that can be shared by organisational managers, L&D professionals and those involved in the delivery of management development. The report provides Learning and Development professionals with an evidence base for understanding what lies beneath the surface of excellence in management development. The shared understanding of the four key areas of the model will help clients and faculty to work more closely together and ensure that the learning journey for individual participants is a holistic one offering relevance, personal insight and organisational impact. The practical implications of the findings – for executive education providers, teachers, individual learners and for those who are commissioning management and executive education.

References:
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Keywords:

Executive Education, Management Development, Learning Impact.