For the second time during the Corona crisis, WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management is offering a special program for managers who are facing particular challenges as a result of the current crisis. The success of the program’s first run and the extensive number of interested participants show that many managers currently have a particular desire for an exchange with their managerial counterparts.
"Leading in times of crisis will never be easy. But after taking part in the program, I now feel I have a better understanding of the challenges and problems this crisis presents and am better equipped to deal with them," Ali Inal reports on the program ‘Leading Beyond the Crisis - An Online Advanced Management Program,’ in which he took part at the private business school WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management in November 2020. "And more importantly: I can convey this understanding to my team," adds Inal, IT director at Turkish energy producer Enerjisa Üretim.
What Ali Inal and the other participating executives particularly appreciated: the exchange of experience and knowledge with their managerial counterparts. In addition to the presentations by selected experts, the participants used interactive and virtual group work to develop strategies for dealing with the particular challenges of the current crisis situation and discussed specific problems in a safe environment. "I was particularly impressed by the caliber of the participants and the speed with which a sense of familiarity developed between all candiates despite the online format," says Armin Häberle, Head of Business Media Division and Managing Director of "Die Stiftung" Media GmbH. "In a very short time, extremely valuable and resilient conversations got underway, and relationships blossomed." The fact that the program was offered in a purely online format was very convenient for him and many other participants, given the pandemic-related travel restrictions.
The program focused on resilience - the ability of a person or company to emerge from a crisis as unscathed as possible. Jutta Kaiser, Head of Retail Development - Strategy & Governance @ Customer Support at BMW, was able to reflect on the problems she overcame in her day-to-day work over the past few months as a result of the program: "The program showed me how we can prepare ourselves for such challenges and what resilience means for me, for my team and for my organization. I've learned how to deal properly with even the first emerging signs of imbalance."
Based on positive feedback from participants and continued interest in the program, the executive education training will be offered for a second time in March 2021, but with a few new elements; including that the language of instruction will be English. In addition to academic sessions on resilience, the online format also includes practical case study workshops and peer consulting sessions, providing participants with the best possible opportunity to network.
More information about the Executive Education Program is available through the program's website.