Week 1 - The Intensive Week

Wow - what a week. Some highlights:

* Meeting all my new classmates.
Finding out what they do and what they are like was a fantastic experience. There were a lot of different backgrounds, reasons for doing the course and what they wanted to get out of it. It's amazing how many people want to change careers and are using the MBA as their foothold.

Also, seeing what everyone looks like at 3:30am is an eye-opener. Even more interesting is seeing everyone at breakfast at 8:00am the next morning - well, almost everyone. :)

* Groupwork
Everyone cringes when they have to work in groups. There are usually challenges with different goals, energy levels, motivations and contribution levels. However, it was great to work with some people who were just as motivated as I was. I'm sure I'll be writing more posts on group work in the future.

* Case study method
There is a lot of controversy in the MBA-sphere about the relative merits of teaching by case studies. Harvard Business School famously uses only cases as instructional examples. At the U of C, there will be a mix of textbooks, readings and case studies. In this first week, we were presented a number of cases, each one more complex than the last. We spent time evaluating the case ourselves before meeting with our groups where we came up with recommendations. It was interesting to see what we came up with versus what other groups came up with versus what our instructor recommends.

While I enjoyed the case studies, they provided a lot of real-world problems, I wouldn't want to be using the cases as the only study method alone.

* Food
The food was very good. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were provided and there were some tasty meals. I will have to work hard to make sure I don't acquire the "Freshman 15".

* Time and energy
One of the most useful parts of the week was a panel session during lunch with some of the recent graduates from the program. It was fascinating to get their insight into how to be successful with the MBA program. They really emphasized how much work there is to do and that time management is the key to being successful. They also mentioned how important it is to ensure that your family understands what is required. 20 hours per week outside of class and work time is a very large investment, but they all agreed that that was realistic.

We have started to receive some of our course outlines, which means that once I am finished the report that I'm currently working on, I can start getting ahead on the reading. I have a feeling that every little bit will help.

Adult Learning

Getting feedback on tests and essays is almost always rank based. Marks are received in either a letter grade or number or percentage format. This allows the student to compare themselves against other students as well as project how they will do in the long run. It also allows the instructor to find out where everyone is ranked and whether or not the concepts they are teaching are being understood.

In a Masters program, that is entirely different. The Managing Director at my EMBA course was the one to tell me that grades don't matter as much when you are in "Adult Learning". Completing the work satisfactorily and actually understanding the concepts and being able to apply those concepts in the real world are much important than the grade.

That is a wacky concept to me. Throughout high school and university, achieving the highest grade possible was the primary driver for spending the extra time and effort to complete course work to a higher standard. Work hard and you will get higher grades which will lead to more opportunities.

I suppose that I can't imagine any interviewer asking me "What grade did you get in Marketing during your MBA?". So, ultimately it does make sense but it will take some time for me to get used to the idea. I hope that people in my group feel the same way.

Now all the rules are broken. This is going to take some getting used to.

Business Cliches

Seth Godin lists his top ten business cliches:

1) Best practices
2) Synergy
3) At the end of the day...
4) Thinking outside of the box
5) Low hanging fruit
6) Going forward
7) Win-win situation
8) Maximize leverage
9) Web 2.0
10) Giving 110%

Why do business people speak like this?

...the vast majority of buzzwords exist for one reason: to hide. By obfuscating, lying, confusing or just plain avoiding the issue, business people can avoid communicating. Do you have the guts to stop using cliches?

Priceless.

"The journey begins here....."

That is what Jack Kulchitsky, the Calgary EMBA Academic Director was supposed to say in his inaugural address to the EMBA class of 2009. He didn't. That's not his style. I'm not sure what his style is - but academic is not the adjective. More marketing and entrepreneur.

Some quotes:
* Just like when you were 6 years old, this is your first day of school. Except your mother isn't just oustide that door.
* Some former students say it was like "Running a marathon in bare feet". 99% say that it changed them
* You have asked us to stretch you. I promise that we will stretch you.
* The journey is going to affect you professionally and personally.
* This years class has 37 students: 76% male, 24% female
* The average age is 37.
* The average work experience is 14 years.
* 78% have previous degrees.
* Average GMAT score is 576.
* There will be 20 courses: 1st year contains core or foundation courses, 2nd year is about leadership, strategy and globalization
* Two promises: 1) commitment to your success 2) your hat will be funnier than mine at graduation

It was good. He's also around for meals and drinks. He is candid about what happens in the classroom and is adamant that any academic problems will be solved. He gushes about the instructors and how much they care. From the two that I've met, that certainly is true.

Baby steps.