EXECUTIVE MBA University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in Downtown Chicago
innovative leadership
in a connected world.
an innovative leader possesses a strategic perspective that comes from experience and intellectual curiosity. recognizes the value of knowledge and leverages it superbly. embraces exposure to new and better ideas. gets results.
welcome to the University of Illinois Executive MBA, where your goal to become an unparalleled leader is realized.
profoundly change the way you think.
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dean’s message
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game change
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innovative thinking
8 leadership
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global sensitivity
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faculty stars
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curriculum
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networking
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impact
These four points of excellence ensure a top-notch MBA education and transform you into a superb, strategic innovator.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
Why Illinois? Innovative thinking differentiates the University of Illinois from its peers. Developing groundbreaking, legendary CEOs and entrepreneurs. Securing the forefronts of financial engineering and accounting. Pioneering business game-changers like the Internet. No other university comes close to the innovations that we’ve masterminded. And new ideas from Illinois are constantly changing the game in business, science, and society. Our Executive MBA—one of the nation’s first—builds on the university’s core competency of innovative thinking. We empower students with the insight, creativity, and confidence to boldly change the game in their company and industry, and to lead their organization with unparalleled expertise. As you consider the challenge of returning to school to earn your MBA, I encourage you to read through this book and visit our website for more information. And, more importantly, I invite you to visit our classrooms,
“ I’ve taught in the Executive MBA program for over 15 years. Guiding the transformation of executives into dynamic leaders is highly rewarding—and means a great deal to me as a teacher.”
talk with our students and alumni, and meet our faculty. You’ll get a better sense of how the program will return brilliantly on your investment. If you’re looking to lead, look no further than the University of Illinois Executive MBA. Our program is your path to creating lasting change.
Larry DeBrock Josef and Margot Lakonishok Endowed Dean College of Business at Illinois
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game change. do nothing and fall behind. or emerge as an innovative force that lands on top.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
if the world—and your company—is flat, how do you rise above? Today’s business world is marked by astounding rates of nonlinear change. It’s not like playing chess, where you can reasonably anticipate your opponent’s moves. It’s more like poker, where you’re always unsure of what opponents hold up their sleeves. That’s why senior managers need innovative strategies to compete. When computer companies such as IBM and HP relied on value-added intermediaries, Dell Computer completely bypassed them and sold to customers directly. Netflix changed the business model of online rentals and disrupted Blockbuster. JetBlue became a success by integrating technology into their daily businesses with an extraordinary service element. And Starbucks transformed a utilitarian product into symbolic consumption. Along with successful tech companies (Google, Apple, Yahoo!), several non-technology companies (Cirque du Soleil, Southwest Airlines, Tata Motors, Haier) have flourished brilliantly. Why? All these companies changed the rules of the game by leveraging innovative strategies. This is what the University of Illinois Executive MBA is all about. We develop leaders who are game changers—leaders who transform business by thinking innovatively.
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innovative thinking. an Illinois education. where differentiation starts.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
take an idea, examine it in a new light, differentiate to win. Everlasting competitive advantage comes from unique, innovative thinking. While other programs teach you what to think, Illinois will teach you how to think. Better than anyone else. We’re the university that brought the world one of the first Executive MBA programs, as well as the founders of Netscape, the first Internet browser, YouTube, Black Entertainment Television (BET), PayPal, CDW, Delta Air Lines, and the NFL. Illinois taught the icons of innovative thinking: management great Jack Welch, relationship guru Tom Siebel, entrepreneurial wizard Doris Christopher, distribution magnate Michael Krasny, and organizational oracle Larry Ellison. We place enormous value on innovative thinking—and we continue to be the vanguard in developing the innovative business leaders of the future. As an Executive MBA candidate, you’ll see why the University of Illinois enjoys a powerful reputation for developing managers into global thinkers and motivated business leaders in an environment that develops, nurtures, and demonstrates strategic, innovative thinking right from the start. As an Executive MBA graduate, you’ll be prepared to step up as the leader who will drive that innovation in your organization.
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leadership. gain expertise. create change. influence your industry. with distinction and integrity.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
Brand yourself as leader with an Executive MBA from the University of Illinois. Every MBA touts a leadership focus. Only the University of Illinois Executive MBA backs it up with a culture of innovative thinking that has differentiated our university—a global pioneer in research, teaching, and entrepreneurship—for over 140 years. Our highly selective program unleashes your inner potential and develops a close-knit cohort of strategic thinkers hungry to mastermind the next big idea, make a powerful impact on their company, and stand out from the competition of like-minded managers.
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global sensitivity. global competitors turn into global collaborators. be prepared.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
it’s an experience unlike any other, and it will change how you view leadership. In an increasingly vast business climate, global sensitivity is critical to business leadership. At the University of Illinois, you’ll learn how to apply an unparalleled degree of global sensitivity that most managers don’t get exposed to in their lifetime. Our capstone international consulting project is a key differentiator of the University of Illinois Executive MBA. Over the course of your final module, you and your project team will analyze a current business
Global sensitivity in action
issue for a global organization. You’ll work with your peers and
Executive MBA students showed a
partner organization executives to—with guidance from faculty—
Fortune 500 company its market potential
engineer a solution. For the final exam, you’ll travel halfway around the world to present your recommendation to decision makers.
in India. As they assessed existing markets to determine the best strategies to pursue, they researched key market drivers like quality, service, reach, and
Global sensitivity is more than a catchphrase. It’s about being equipped with practical knowledge required to stay ahead in an increasingly global marketplace—and about being prepared to lead in a multicultural world. Whatever the business issue, you’re always going to make a better decision because of how the University of Illinois prepared you.
breadth of offerings. Then student teams developed and presented high-level recommendations to executives, suggesting powerful ways the company should penetrate the market. Your own international experience will likewise be comprehensive and
Everybody does global. Only the University of Illinois takes your global sensitivity to new levels. Levels at the forefront of a connected
hands-on. It will showcase your skills and lead you to the cutting edge of international business development.
world.
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faculty stars. a high-caliber MBA program demands high-caliber faculty.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
you’re better prepared to become a leader when you learn from one. With groundbreaking research, books, articles, and real-world leadership experience to their credit, our awardwinning faculty are also gifted educators who draw on their research to challenge, develop, and inspire you. At the University of Illinois, Executive MBA faculty travel from the UrbanaChampaign campus to Chicago. So you’ll engage with accomplished, experienced faculty who share their insights across key business disciplines, including leadership, economics, finance, accounting, ethics, marketing, and strategy. Advanced courses spin building blocks in new directions to reveal the interconnected world of business opportunity. You’ll also learn from well-known speakers and business executives as part of our Innovative Speaker Series. By highlighting their career experiences and sharing their stories, these pioneering leaders will augment your knowledge, add to your leadership skills, and foster a can-do attitude you’ll use to lead your entire organization.
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think ahead. Every course in the Executive MBA program will challenge you to think strategically and innovatively about a broad range of critical business issues relevant to the executive. Every course. These aren’t standard college classes repackaged for experienced professionals. They’re highly tailored modules created specifically for the Executive MBA program. Although courses are differentiated by subject matter, they’re tightly bound by the four points of excellence—leadership, innovative thinking, faculty, and global sensitivity.
It might just be your most demanding undertaking, but the University of Illinois Executive MBA will give you enterprise-wide leadership skills you’ll use immediately.
19 months. 4 levels of learning. Ready? Go. And go boldly.
You and your classmates enter as a cohort and progress through the program in study teams. You’ll work together, exchange innovative ideas, and share problem-solving methods. And because you’ll be working with fellow corporate executives, mid- to senior-level professionals, and seasoned entrepreneurs, the faculty and program staff carefully create study teams with diverse industry experience and functional expertise areas to maximize your learning opportunities.
Our curriculum is comprised of four essential levels of learning, layered to enable you to build your knowledge. ONE: LEADERSHIP AND BUSINESS STRATEGY.
Nothing is more central to our
mission than preparing you for your next leadership role. The first step begins with understanding that innovative leadership depends on strategy, as well as learning key leadership concepts that effective change agents must master. TWO: THE COMPLEXITY OF BUSINESS.
Successful CEOs run entire enterprises,
not narrow business functions. Your ability to lead depends on your ability to communicate your company’s challenges across the organization. Here, we focus on teaching you the diverse “language” critical to working across your organization: accounting, economics, finance, and marketing. THREE: SOLUTION CREATION. Develop
a rich, more robust view of the
problems facing businesses today. Delving deeper and broader, Level 3 focuses on cross-functional and enterprise-level problem solving, shaping strategic critical-thinking skills required for innovative leaders. FOUR: THE CAPSTONE GLOBAL EXPERIENCE. The
most comprehensive final
exam one might imagine—truly a defining aspect of our Executive MBA. During your final module, you’ll work on an international consulting project in which your team will tackle a real problem in a real company based overseas, culminating in a presentation to your client abroad.
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networking. the University of Illinois network. where the best and brightest stars align.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
a degree from the University of Illinois is a credential that opens doors. Executive MBA graduates have access to the largest, most high-powered alumni network of its kind. Executive MBA alumni often say that one of the best aspects of the program is the excellent networking. And you’re encouraged to take advantage of it. Along with valuable networking opportunities within the Executive MBA program, you’ll be eligible to participate in the exclusive Executive MBA Alumni Directory. Of course, you’ll also venture forth in your career as a College of Business alum. It boasts over 20,000 alumni in Chicago and over 60,000 worldwide who graciously welcome Executive MBA graduates into an active network of proud alumni and corporate sponsors. And as a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, you’ll have access to over 600,000 alumni. With leaders of Fortune 500 companies as your fellow alumni, you’ll discover that attending the University of Illinois not only provides an incomparable network, but is a badge of great achievement.
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impact. bigger promotions. more leadership opportunities. higher compensation.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
when it comes to a superior return on investment, the University of Illinois delivers. In fact, Financial Times ranked the University of Illinois Executive MBA #16 in the U.S. The Wall Street Journal ranked the Executive MBA as the #14 overall program nationwide. And Fortune Small Business ranked our program among the top 12 Executive MBA programs in the nation for entrepreneurs.
Although the business world and its challenges are constantly changing, your Executive MBA will work for you for years to come, long after you’ve graduated. Because at the University of Illinois, you’ll have learned how to be an innovator, ready to reinvent and reimagine yourself—and your strategy.
OVERALL PROGRAM QUALITY
The University of Illinois outranks
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its peers in a multitude of key areas for the Executive MBA: program
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quality, program value, teaching 3
effectiveness, global content, and relevance to career.*
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1
ILLINOIS
PEERS
ALL
*Precept Research. Study consists of approximately 100 Executive MBA programs. Peer comparison includes Michigan State University, Ohio State University, Purdue University, University of Minnesota, and University of Notre Dame. 5 is a perfect score.
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Executive MBA | University of Illinois
join the innovative leaders who are ready to change the game. find out more and apply at www.ExecMBA.illinois.edu/apply
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www.ExecMBA.illinois.edu The University of Illinois Executive MBA College of Business Illini Center, Fourth Floor 200 South Wacker Drive Chicago, IL 60606 emba@illinois.edu 312-575-0900