Wharton’s EMBA program is known for having a global focus with its International Seminar; however the addition of global modular courses has taken this to a whole new level. Launched in 2010, the week-long  mini-courses offer students opportunities to learn about topics such as financial institutions in Abu  Dhabi, supply chain management in Shanghai, innovation in India, and leadership and conflict resolution in Rwanda.

Having recently returned from the course in Rwanda, we asked EMBA students Marla Bleavins and Bill Williams to tell us about their experience. Here’s what Marla, a second-year student at Wharton | San Francisco who is a special projects manager for Los Angeles World Airports, had to say:

“Most Americans know about Rwanda because of the tragedy of genocide that happened there in 1994, but we aren’t as familiar with the progress the country has made since then. It’s the fastest growing economy in Africa and one of the safest and least corrupt countries on that continent so I was intrigued to learn more about it through this course, which was taught by Prof. Katherine Klein and called, ‘Leadership, Conflict, and Change.’

Philadelphia deadline:   Wed., 2/1/12 at 11:59pm EST
San Francisco deadline:  Mon., 2/6/12 at 11:59 PST

Please call the office of the program to which you’re applying if you need to arrange an extension of the deadline.  Phila: 215-898-5887 / SF: 415-777-1000

Ins and Outs of Interviews for Wharton EMBA Candidates

If you are applying – or thinking of applying – to Wharton’s MBA for Executives program, call us soon to schedule an interview.  Don’t wait until you’ve finished your application to schedule an appointment because slots on class days are filling up fast.

Get insights on the future of jobs from a top Wharton professor, learn more about our EMBA program from Philadelphia and San Francisco alumni, and see what our new campus looks like in San Francisco, then make sure to join us for a virtual reception on Mon., January 23 from 9:00pm-10:00pm EST / 6:00pm-7:00pm PST.

Hosted by Vice Dean Anjani Jain, the event will feature a presentation by renowned labor expert Prof. Peter Cappelli on how the global economy is impacting careers and what this means for the future of employee development. Prof. Cappelli, who teaches negotiations, also will share tips that may help you secure support for your MBA studies and career development.

Afterward, a panel of alumni from our Philadelphia and San Francisco EMBA programs will discuss how the Wharton MBA and network have shaped their careers.  You’ll have an opportunity to ask questions of both Prof. Cappelli and the panelists via your computer or mobile device.

In addition, West Coast COO Bernadette Birt will take participants on a virtual tour of our beautiful new San Francisco campus.  A 21st century learning environment, you’ll see how our technologically advanced facility was designed to provide the most cutting-edge and connected classrooms possible.

To register for this live webcast on Jan. 23, click here.

 University of Pennsylvania will be closing on Fri., Dec. 23rd at 12:00pm EST.  If you have any immediate admissions questions, please contact our offices before that time.  Our Philadelphia office will reopen on Tues., Jan. 3rd at 9:00am EST. Wharton | San Francisco will close at 12:00pm PST on Dec. 23rd and reopen on Jan. 3rd at 9:00am PST.

As you work on your application over winter break, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Congratulations to East Coast second-year Executive MBA student Mike Patterson for winning a National Science Foundation Innovation Corps Award!

Patterson and his teammates from the University of Pennsylvania were selected for their venture, Graphene Frontiers.  We asked Patterson to tell us about what it means to have won this award and how he became involved with this startup. Here’s what he said:

“Winning the NSF award was great.  Not only did we win $50,000 for our postdoctoral fellow Zhengtang Lao to work on the venture full-time, but we gained credibility.  The NSF picked only a handful of teams nationwide, and so the award is a validation that we’re onto something big.

The University of Pennsylvania will be closed from 12:00 noon on Wed., November 23, 2011 until 9:00 AM on Mon., November 28, 2011 (local time, in both Philadelphia and San Francisco). Happy Thanksgiving!

Wharton Executive MBA students have a lot on their plate with school, work and personal obligations.  So why do they need MBA Exec Career Management Services?

“Everyone can benefit from learning how to manage their career over the course of their lifetime,” says Mary Gross, director of MBA Exec Career Management for Wharton’s East Coast program.  “Students may have a great job now, but they want to continue to grow in their career, so we help them learn to identify next steps and the actions they need to take to get there.”

Steve Hernandez, director of MBA Exec Career Management at Wharton | San Francisco agrees, describing their role as career coaches.  “Career management is not just about moving up the ladder or changing jobs, but rather the ability to determine goals whatever those may be and then to go after them.”

We’re all excited about Wharton | San Francisco’s move in January to the Hills Plaza Building on the San Francisco Embarcadero. Not only will it provide us more space, but the facility will also feature “a 21st century learning environment.” To learn more about the technology going into the new space as well as other technology initiatives in Wharton’s MBA Exec program, check out Wharton CIO Deirdre Wood’s latest blog on the Wharton Magazine site:

“Kicking off a new academic year is always an exciting time, but that is particularly the case this year as we’re immersed in designing and building classrooms of the future. Wharton’s upcoming move to a new San Francisco facility has provided us an opportunity not only to design the most cutting-edge and connected classrooms possible, but also to bring that technology back to our campus in Philadelphia. As a top business school, our constituents expect a 21st-century learning environment, and we are providing that on both coasts.” more...

Bruce Crocker, a legal advisor and trustee for the Hillman family in Pittsburgh, applied to Wharton’s MBA for Executives Program in Philadelphia not only to enhance his understanding of the investment landscape, but also because he thought the rigorous academic program would be good for his “60-year-old brain.” So far, he’s gotten a lot more from the program than he originally planned, including a vast knowledge about India’s healthcare system, new friends in India, and first-hand experience as a consultant.

We proudly congratulate our newest Wharton MBA alumni!

They’ve accomplished so much in the last two years, balancing work, family, and the rigors of school. They commuted from near and far, many have gotten married, even more have expanded their families, and everyone has made life-long connections.

Coming from a diversity of backgrounds, the 96 students in our Wharton | San Francisco graduating class include successful entrepreneurs as well as executives working in fields like healthcare, technology, energy, consulting, and investment management.  During the program, four got married and 15 had babies with several more due this summer.

Most of these Wharton | San Francisco grads live in Silicon Valley, San Francisco and the greater Bay area, but many commuted from southern California as well as Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nevada, Texas, and Washington.  And just under 40% of the class was comprised of international students.

Graduating in a May 8th ceremony at Herbst Memorial Theater in San Francisco, their featured commencement speaker was Larry Baer, President and COO of the San Francisco Giants.  29 of those graduates also attended the MBA graduation ceremony in Philadelphia, held on May 15th at the University of Pennsylvania’s historic Franklin Field, with many gathering at the Inn at Penn for a special celebratory breakfast with friends and family.  The East Coast ceremony featured keynote speaker Vikram Pandit, CEO of Citigroup.

The Philadelphia based East Coast class of 114 graduating students also represents a wide variety of industries including consulting, financial services, healthcare, aerospace, and real estate.  Similar to the West Coast class, many students expanded their families during the EMBA program, with seven students who were married and nine babies born.

Most of the Philadelphia class came from Northeast Corridor – Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., but several commuted from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and even Ontario, Canada.  International students represented more than 35% of the class.

Graduation is an exciting and important achievement and we wish everyone the best of luck!   Please stay in touch!

First-year executive MBA student Tim Goodwin, a program director at Yapstone in San Francisco, has always been involved in volunteer work. So when he heard about Wharton’s Nonprofit Board Leadership Program (NBLP), which selects and trains Wharton MBA students to serve on the boards of directors of nonprofit organizations for one year, he wanted to participate.

As social responsibility becomes a priority for both large organizations and new startups, the Wharton Program for Social Impact is likewise growing in popularity with current and prospective students. Raghavan Anand is a first-year Wharton | San Francisco Executive MBA student who has extensive experience in education- and healthcare-related non-profits.  He spoke to us about what social impact means to him.

When Bernadette Birt joined Wharton last September as COO of Wharton | San Francisco and executive director of the West Coast EMBA Program, she brought with her 20 years of experience working at Northwestern University, particularly in that school’s EMBA program. “This job at Wharton provided many exciting opportunities and I was ready to do something new,” she says. “Not only are we moving into a bigger facility, but we are growing the MBA for Executives Program and executive education offerings here as well as strengthening Wharton’s presence on the West Coast.” We asked Bernadette to talk more about her role at Wharton | San Francisco and what the new facility will be like.

Before Lan Luan even began the MBA for Executives Program at Wharton | San Francisco, she knew what topic she wanted to pursue in the first-year Field Application Project (FAP).  A senior product manager at Microsoft in Bellevue, WA, Lan wanted her education to make a real impact on her company and saw the FAP as an ideal vehicle for making that happen.  We asked Lan to tell us more about the FAP and how her team’s findings are benefitting Microsoft.

New energy and clean tech are hot areas these days, especially at Wharton. With so many students interested in these burgeoning fields, Wharton’s recent Energy Conference was a great opportunity for undergraduate students, full-time MBA students, executive MBA students, faculty, and alumni to connect.

Registrants from 30 states and 14 countries joined us last week for our first-ever Webcast event.  During the interactive presentation, streamed live from Philadelphia and San Francisco, participants heard from administrators, faculty, students, and alumni.  It was a great opportunity to learn more about Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives.  If you missed it, it’s not too late. You can watch the replay.

The interactive presentation began with Vice Dean Anjani Jain providing an overview of our program.  He was joined by Wharton Professors David Bell, Peggy Bishop Lane, and Witold Henisz who shared their experiences teaching in our program.  Students and alumni on both coasts then discussed the benefits of the Wharton MBA degree and how they handled the challenge of working while they earned it.

Although we covered a lot of topics during the Webcast, you still might have questions. If so, please contact us at either our San Francisco or Philadelphia Office. We’re looking forward to hearing from you!

Meet and interact with Wharton MBA for Executives professors, alumni, students and admissions staff during our first-ever webcast event, streaming live from both Philadelphia & San Francisco.

Thursday, January 20, 2011
7:00-8:00pm EST / 4:00-5:00pm PST
REGSITER FOR THE WEBCAST

Get a Taste of the Classroom Experience
Live from Philadelphia: Vice Dean Anjani Jain asks faculty about their experience teaching in the program, including current topics from recent classes. 

David Bell, Professor of Marketing
Peggy Bishop Lane, Professor of Accounting
Witold Henisz, Professor of Management 

Meet Admissions Staff
Live from San Francisco:  Vice Dean Anjani Jain introduces members of the Admissions Committee, including Bernadette Birt, COO of Wharton | San Francisco and Cathy Molony, Director of Admissions, Wharton MBA Program for Executives.

Interact with Students and Alumni
Live from both Philadelphia & San Francisco:  Alumni and students share their stories about the benefits, both personal and professional, of the Wharton MBA degree.

The webcast will include forums for posting questions as you watch.

We hope you'll join us!

Meet and interact with Wharton MBA for Executives professors, alumni, students and admissions staff during our first-ever webcast event, streaming live from both Philadelphia & San Francisco.

Thursday, January 20, 2011
7:00-8:00pm EST / 4:00-5:00pm PST
REGISTER FOR THE WEBCAST

Get a Taste of the Classroom Experience
Live from Philadelphia: Vice Dean Anjani Jain asks faculty about their experience teaching in the program, including current topics from recent classes. 

David Bell, Professor of Marketing
Peggy Bishop Lane, Professor of Accounting
Witold Henisz, Professor of Management 

Meet Admissions Staff
Live from San Francisco:  Vice Dean Anjani Jain introduces members of the Admissions Committee, including Bernadette Birt, COO of Wharton | San Francisco and Cathy Molony, Director of Admissions, Wharton MBA Program for Executives.

Interact with Students and Alumni
Live from both Philadelphia & San Francisco:  Alumni and students share their stories about the benefits, both personal and professional, of the Wharton MBA degree.

The webcast will include forums for posting questions as you watch.  We hope you'll join us!

Guest post by David Cruice, WG'06 (WEMBA 30)

The Wharton Club of South Florida held its 2010/11 season-opening on Thursday, September 29th at the Jorge Perez Auditorium on the campus of the University of Miami’s School of Architecture. Over 90 attendees enjoyed a free-flowing 90-minute Q&A session focusing on the intersection of marketing and social media. The blue-ribbon panel of experts included: Steve Ennen, director of Wharton’s Interactive Media Initiative (WIMI), who moderated the discussion; Wharton’s very own Professor Eric Bradlow, co-director of WIMI; Bruce Turkel; University of Miami Professor Alex de Carvalho; and Jacques Hart of Roar Media.

The panelists’ consensus was that social media is having a pervasive impact on our world and communications. If used correctly, it can significantly help a company achieve its goals. Companies that choose not to engage in this dialogue will invariably forgo the many positive impacts and benefits of social media. They also run the serious risk of alienating themselves from the consumers who are talking about them while limiting their ability to respond to crises and manage their reputations online – a dangerous proposition.

Audience members voiced concerns about companies failing to protect their reputations online and mitigate negative feedback. Without doubt, all sorts of conversations about their companies, brands, products, and services are happening online – whether or not the companies want to engage in them – and smart companies are choosing to invest the time and resources to join the conversations. Many attendees shared personal anecdotes of company executives who are reluctant to engage in social media, support its funding, or embrace it as an integral part of their marketing strategy.

Feedback was extremely positive, with many of the attendees remaining well past the end of the event to speak with the panelists and network with their fellow Wharton alumni. Overall, it was a great start to our event season. We look forward to meeting many of our fellow alumni as we host future events focusing on behavioral economics, corporate growth, the economic forecast, the business of baseball, and green technologies. And don’t forget to follow the Wharton Club of South Florida via our very own social media channels:

For pictures, bios, and more information on the event:

Social Media & WIMI Event Photos & Wharton Club of South Florida - Social Media & WIMI Event

David Cruice, WG'06
President, Wharton Club of South Florida

While the second-year Wharton EMBA students recently headed to China for their international seminar trips, first-year students had a unique weekend of their own when the Wharton | San Francisco students flew to Philadelphia to attend classes. The annual Philadelphia trip is a highlight of the program and a chance for first-year students on both coasts to meet each other and expand their networks.

The weekend’s activities kicked off with a speed networking event. First-year Wharton | San Francisco student Eric Sheng, who is operations general manager at Nvidia in Santa Clara, explains, “We got to request the background of the types of people we wanted to meet at that event. I spent most of my life on the West Coast so I was really interested to hear about industry issues from people on the East Coast,” he says. “It was kind of exhausting to condense all of that into five-minute conversations, but during the hour I got to meet 12 really interesting people.”

After that, there were plenty of other opportunities to network and bond at dinners and happy hours. Sheng says, “We even had a dance off between the two coasts and I’m happy to say that the West Coast won.  It was fun watching everyone break out of their shell and getting to know them in an informal setting.”

Sheng, who arrived on Tuesday and departed the following Monday, says that he also made sure to tour the campus and meet full-time MBA students as well. “There is a sense of belonging that you get from visiting the main campus. That weekend, there were plenty of student activities going on like a club expo and happy hours organized by the full-time MBA students so  I attended a couple of those and plan to build the bond with that group too.”

On his last day on the East Coast, Sheng also participated in a Leadership Trek for EMBA students to Gettysburg, led by Prof. Michael Useem.  “About 40 students from both coasts went on the trek and I got to know even more East Coast students as well as participate in great discussions about leadership,” he says.

First-year East Coast EMBA student Jennifer McGrew, vice president of Brandywine Global Investment Management in Philadelphia and the social coordinator for her class, helped organize many of the social events for the weekend. She says, “Beforehand, I got in touch with my counterpart on the West Coast to talk about what we could do to keep students engaged with more social activities.  On Friday, we had a school-sponsored event and then we continued networking at a happy hour.  Starting with the speed networking event all the way through to the Gettysburg Trek, the whole weekend was filled with opportunities to get to know each other.”

McGrew adds, “The program is like a three-legged stool with academics, career progression, and the network.  The relationships you build in the program will last a lifetime and the weekend was a great time to make more of those connections. It really adds to the overall experience to build this amazing network of really interesting people who work in all kinds of different industries and locations.”