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The importance of continuous leadership development is more pressing than ever, as companies are realizing that to thrive in today's ever-changing environment, they need to cultivate and further develop leadership skills and organizational abilities.

WHU not only stands for excellence in management education, we also strongly believe in the concept of lifelong learning. Hence, the WHU Executive Education department is constantly developing its portfolio so that we can support managers and executives at all career and experience levels.

In order to further optimize the Open Programs portfolio for the needs of experienced professionals, the WHU Executive Education department is proud to announce the launch of its newest program, the Management Acceleration Program. Designed for managers and executives with at least 5-8 years of leadership experience, this comprehensive program empowers experienced professionals to navigate complex business landscapes, drive growth, and achieve strategic goals.

"In today's rapidly evolving business environment, continuous leadership development is paramount. Our Management Acceleration Program addresses the unique challenges faced by experienced professionals, providing them with the tools and knowledge to thrive in their leadership roles."

- Dr. Rebecca Winkelmann, Managing Director Executive Education at WHU

The Management Acceleration Program is a flexible learning experience designed to meet the needs of experienced professionals. The content of the program is in line with the bestseller “Management Essentials” and offers experienced managers a broad spectrum of topics that are relevant to their day-to-day work:

• Advanced Leadership
• Crisis Leadership
• Financial Literacy
• Strategic Decision Making
• Strategy Execution for Organizational Growth

Participants can personalize their learning journey by choosing three of the five modules, ensuring that they gain the skills most relevant to their career aspirations.

The program combines theoretical frameworks with practical applications and includes interactive elements such as simulations, role-plays and case studies. Participants learn from renowned WHU faculty and industry experts, gaining valuable insights and real-world perspectives.

Further details on the Management Acceleration Program can be found on the program’s website.

Sports business needs experts capable of rising to the challenges posed by the modern era. With the world of sports becoming more digital, international, and in need of future-proof strategies, three of Europe’s top business schools—WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management in Düsseldorf, Germany; the Stockholm School of Economics in Sweden; and ESSEC Business School in Paris, France—have announced the European Sports Business Program (ESBP), a new business management executive education offering scheduled to debut on February 14, 2024, and to run until late-May. This program, the first of its kind, has been designed for professionals with a growth-oriented mindset and a strong interest in how the European sports industry functions at its very core.

The program comprises three distinct on-site, English-language modules, each taking place over the course of three days—and in three major cities across Europe. Under the supervision of Professor Sascha L. Schmidt (Director and Chairholder at WHU’s Center for Sports and Management), Professor Martin Carlsson-Wall (Director of the Center for Sports and Business at SSE), and Professor Karoline Strauss (ESSEC Sports Chair), participants will not only learn new skills. They will have a complete experience, gathering with like-minded future leaders and building a strong, international network of their peers. They will become proficient in state-of-the-art techniques for systematically analyzing and leveraging the future efficiently. And, finally, they will delve into the pivotal roles that leadership, purpose, and culture play in effectively managing change at sports organizations. “We aim to provide our participants with a forward-thinking perspective that prepares them to seize opportunities and manage risks in the changing sports industry,” said Professor Sascha L. Schmidt.

Further details on the European Sports Business Program can be found at the program’s website.

In September, the first open WHU Executive Education program started at WHU Campus Düsseldorf. In this first five-day module of the program 12 participants from South Africa, Germany, Mexico and Brazil learned the basics of Strategy and Accelerated Skill Development.

Moreover, they started to work on the “Business Impact Project”: In cooperation with the non-profit organization BOOKBRIDGE, they will create a business plan for a learning center in Cambodia. During the fourth module of the 21-day program, the group will travel to Cambodia to implement the business plan on-site. In the evening, Carsten Rübsaamen, BOOKBRIDGE, gave a lively introduction to Cambodia.

The next module in December will focus on Leadership, Business Functions, and Change Management. In the meantime, participants will continue working on the Business Impact Project in virtual team workshops and will contact local project partners.

WHU Executive Education is launching a new Open Enrollment Program teaching General Management skills. This pilot program has emerged from two very successful components and now combines four modules in nine months, 15 days of teaching, and 7 days real-life project launching in an Emerging Country.

During top-end lectures from WHU professors, important elements of general management will be taught in a dynamic way, and participants will be inspired to think creatively and gain confidence by discussing issues with fellow participants and faculty, case simulations, and peer discussions. By studying both the best practices of successful companies and the mistakes that have derailed others, you will learn how to identify the optimal structure for your department, assess and respond to rapidly changing markets, evaluate product- and business models and rank investment opportunities.

The theory will be put into practice by developing a real-life social enterprise, known as the Business Impact Project. With the professional guidance of BOOKBRIDGE participants are challenged to write and implement a business plan for a learning center in a desolate area of Cambodia. During the program, the participants will develop this center using their knowledge from the program and with close communication to local sources. During the fourth module, the plan will be implemented in real-life on-site in Cambodia.
The program helps business leaders to decide how to allocate resources, manage people and risk and deliver the return their shareholders demand. Through case studies, lectures, dynamic peer discussions, and the Business Impact Project in Cambodia, the program will demonstrate how to competitively position an organization for success.

The deadline for application for this program is August 9, 2013.

The scope of duties of a Chief Information Officer (CIO) has expanded considerably in recent years. CIOs take on a broad range of responsibilities, and their leadership extends far beyond information and communications management in a company.

In light of these wide-reaching changes in the role of the CIO, the Executive Education branch of WHU, together with the specialized business magazine CIO, has developed a furthering education program that specifically develops the leadership competence and general management skills of IT managers. Supported by HP and the CIO Foundation, the "CIO Leadership Excellence Program" has successfully started as the first program of its kind in Germany. The participants comprise a total of 19 topnotch IT managers from different companies, including Henkel, Hilti and SMA Solar Technology.

The program is explicitly designed to allow the participants to analyze, structure, and address the strategic challenges of companies from the perspective of management and the business division, using a targeted set of approaches. Class content and teaching methods are specifically designed for the target group of executives: senior managers who already possess many years of professional and leadership experience and who can actively contribute their experience in class. The furthering education program places particular emphasis on a dynamic and competitive environment as well as on the opportunities and risk profiles of emerging economies.

The "CIO Leadership Excellence Program" consists of a total of three modules: a basis module with an emphasis on general management at the WHU campus in Vallendar as well as two international modules in India (Mumbai and Bangalore) and in China. Emerging markets form the special focus of the two international modules.

The innovative IT business magazine CIO brings together two things that belong together in the closely networked economy of the 21st century: IT and business. IT is increasingly coming into focus as companies set goals for the future. The reason: reducing costs, optimizing customer relationships, and increasing productivity are only possible with strategic, expedient use of new technologies. “CIO – IT Strategy for Managers” has been a member of IDG Business Media GmbH since October 2001. Since 1974 they have been the specialist for B2B communication in the German-speaking field of IT and technical communications.