Peru’s Path to a MOOC MBA and other MBA News Snippets

Schulich School of Business at York University is to launch a specialized MBA tailored specifically to the retail industry this fall.

The retail industry is estimated to be worth somewhere in the region of US$13 trillion worldwide (and US$440 billion in sales in Canada alone), and Schulich believes that there are far too few MBA specializations currently available considering the sector’s rich potential – with most business schools drawing on faculty expertise from a functional specialty in, say, marketing or supply chain management.

Current growth in the retail industry is fuelled by the growing number of consumers in emerging markets and of course, the widespread technological innovations being implemented on an ongoing basis.

As such, there are examples of retail-industry specific course already out there, such as a one-year specialized master’s program – aimed more at pre-experience candidates – at Cranfield School of Management in the UK.

"Worldwide, the entire sector is in flux, as retailers from North America, Japan, and Western Europe expand and then fiercely compete in growing markets such as India, China, Brazil, and the Middle East," Robert Kozinets, a marketing professor at Schulich School of Business said.

Schulich’s MBA in Global Retail Management also intends to be distinct from sector-specific MBAs focused on elements of the retail industry, such as fashion and luxury goods. Its new program brings the total number of MBA specializations available at Schulich to 20.

Advocacy group, the 30% Club, has made a further move to increase professional development opportunities for female executives by teaming up with London Business School to widen its scholarship initiative.

Having already established executive MBA scholarships for mid-career female professionals with Henley Business School and the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School, the 30% Club has now arranged for a full-scholarship position worth £30,000 (c. US$50,000) on London Business School’s four-week Senior Executive Programme – designed for those already possessing extensive experience and a clear potential for C-suite roles.

The 30% Club was founded in the UK in 2010 with the goal of seeing 30% of FTSE-100 boards made up of female leaders by the end of 2015 (a figure currently at 22.2%) and the organization has now also established branches in Hong Kong and the US.

“Put simply, we want to increase the female representation on our programs. Our Senior Executive Programme brings together a diverse group of senior business people. However, the number of women remains far too low,” said Sabine Vinck, associate dean of executive education at London Business School in a press release for the 30% Club.