Harvard Business School Executive Development Program

For the fourth year in a row, Harvard Business School presents the "Managing Strategically, Leading for Results" executive development program in collaboration with the Institute of Banking Studies, Kuwait. This custom program will be held during March 9 - 14, 2013 and is addressed for executives in the GCC banking and financial sectors. The venue for this year's program is Muscat, Oman.

 The collaboration between Harvard Business School and IBS to offer this program has started in 2010. The first program was organized exclusively for Kuwaiti banks who are members in the IBS. After the tremendous success of that program, several GCC Banking Institutes showed keen interest in a repeat event. With the Harvard Business School showing interest in a GCC level event, the second program was conducted in 2011 addressed to the GCC banking and financial sectors. That program was held in Dubai. Organizing the program at the GCC level continued in 2012 with Doha, Qatar as the location. This year the program will be held in Muscat, Oman at the Shangri-la resort.

 The two main themes of the program, "strategy" and "leadership" were chosen considering that in today's competitive, turbulent and rapidly changing environments, managers and employees alike look to the top of their organizations for two things: a clear strategy and effective leadership.  Business success depends on both. 

Objectives

·        Increase the capacity of executives in the GCC financial services sectors to anticipate and to respond quickly and effectively to strategic challenges in their business environment

·        Strengthen and develop the key leadership skills required to achieve organizational alignment, drive change, and establish productive working relationships with others

·        Provide an opportunity to learn about the latest in management thinking and best practices of some of the world’s most admired companies

Overall Approach

Deliver practical value, providing tools, techniques, frameworks and ideas that can be put to use back at work

Focus on application of new research and best practices from financial services and other industries in other countries to the context of managing in the GCC banking and finance sector

Use a variety of high-energy teaching methods to engage program participants with different learning styles

Curriculum

The program focuses on two primary themes: strategy and leadership.

Strategy

Using a variety of teaching methods, faculty will equip participants with concepts and tools for thinking strategically: assessing the markets in which they choose to compete, positioning themselves for success within those markets, and sustaining success over time in the face of competitive threats. We will examine the five forces model, differentiation and low-cost strategies, value curves and the development of strategy over time.  Special attention will be devoted to the service profit chain, a framework for attracting and nurturing loyal customers and employees, and setting standards for service quality and value that will challenge competitors to adapt or fail.  The critical role of leadership and management in formulating and implementing strategy will be examined in all sessions. 

Leadership

Successful strategy execution depends on leaders who can align all elements of the organization—its formal structure, its critical tasks, its people, and its culture.  In connection with strategy, therefore, we consider leadership at the organizational level—the functions and personal qualities required of leaders as they master the challenges and complex organizational dynamics of leading strategy implementation from the top.  We will compare and contrast different leaders’ efforts to transform their organizations in order to identify critical stages and activities in the change process, different approaches for developing and communicating organizational vision, and different ways to motivate people to fulfill that vision.  We will explore the advantages and disadvantages of different communication and influence strategies in different relationships.  Finally, through self-assessment instruments and experiential activities, participants will gain new perspectives on the strengths of their own styles, and ways to increase their effectiveness.

 
Core Program Elements

Program website:  Seven weeks before the program participants access a private HBS website containing the program schedule, faculty biographies and downloadable versions of pre-reading materials.  The website is also kept open for 30 days after the program to allow continued access to materials, including any new items posted during the program.

 Discussion Groups:  Each day begins with discussions in small groups comprised of 6-8 participants. An assigned discussion leader will facilitate discussion of the case studies assigned for that day. In these mixed groups participants can exchange preliminary ideas, test assumptions and possible solutions and “warm-up” for plenary class discussions. 

Reflections and Learnings Journal:  A small, pre-printed workbook will provide a structure for each individual to identify and record personal observations on topics such as:

• What do I need to learn? How can I contribute most to the learning of others?
• What insights and ideas did I take from today’s sessions? How can I put them to work?

Program Logistics

Location

This is a residential program that will be held at the Shangri-La hotel in Muscat, Oman. All participants are required to reside at the hotel throughout the program. The name of the hotel will be specified later. 

Duration

March 9 – 14, 2013 (six consecutive days)

Timing

In general, program sessions are scheduled every day to begin at 8:00 a.m. and close at 6:00 p.m. There will be regularly scheduled thirty-minute breaks each morning and afternoon and a lunch hour each day. In addition to three or four faculty-led plenary sessions each day, participants will also work in small mixed discussion groups to review cases and assigned readings. 

Meals

Breakfast and lunch will be taken at the hotel, as will most dinners. 

Participants

The program is aimed at upper middle executives of levels such as department heads.

Program Certificates

This is a Harvard Business School program. The program is designed and delivered adhering to the school’s standards for Executive Education Programs to provide the same rigor and quality of learning experience. Participants who successfully complete the program will receive a Harvard Business School certificate of program completion. 

Registration & Inquiries

Please call Mrs Wijdan Kanan or Mrs Dana Al Amari, Marketing Officers, at:
Wijdan.kannan@kibs.edu.kw Tel No: 22901100 Ext: 247
Dana-Amary@kibs.edu.kw Tel No: 22901100 Ext: 203

Program Senior Coordinator

Ms Rajyah Shoukry
rajyah@kibs.edu.kw

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