Putting Together a Winning EMBA Application

One of the defining factors of Executive MBAs around the world is the fact that they are specifically targeted at highly experienced managers and professionals. As a result the level of experience required by our sample group of schools ranges from four years to more than ten - the average participant at HEC, for example, has had around fifteen years in the workplace. The reason for this specification is relatively simple according to Pablo Collazzo, program director of the Executive MBA at Nyenrode. "Our participants feel that they learn as much, if not more, from the intensive interaction with their fellow students as they do from the official lectures and presentations,"he says. "This interaction is greatly enriched by our participants bringing this valuable experience with them into the program."EMLYON's Poty makes a similar point. "Candidates should already have experienced some managerial responsibilities because the EMBA is designed help them to enhance their managerial abilities and to think in a more strategic way. The teaching process focuses largely on the experiences of the participants and every participant should therefore have something to bring to the exchanges, to the discussion. It is also essential that everyone has the opportunity to transfer directly what they learn during the classes to their daily life, which means they need to be positioned at a certain level of responsibility within their organisation."

"We have no ideal in terms of industry or background", says Melbourne's George, largely speaking for all of our panel of experts. "We have had students from the public sector, the arts, health, private sector, military and professional services,"she continues. "However in all cases our students have had careers where they were identified as high potential and promoted early. They have experience of managing people in large organisations and are either already at the top or expect to take on C-suite roles within a few years of finishing the program. And because our program is so intensive we also look for people with a lot of maturity who are able to get along well with others."

"The letter of recommendation should be written by someone who knows the candidate well and who has seen them perform in the workplace, a direct colleague or team leader for example,"says Vlerick's Habets. "Often, candidates go for the highest level possible within a company - perhaps the CEO whom they only meet once a year at the Christmas party - but in fact, these letters are useless because they are so general they don't add anything to the application and are therefore a missed opportunity."

Nyenrode's Collazzo perhaps best sums up the general situation when he says, that whilst company sponsorship is not essential, "support from one's employer does help a great deal!"and Patricia Marcaida at ESADE points out the simple practicalities of taking some EMBA programs when she points out that, "whilst financial support is not necessary for our GEMBA, companies must be prepared to let employees attend modules that are held all over the world. "Several of the schools we talked to have instituted specific measures to help prospective participants get employer buy-in. "Experience has taught us that hesitant employers are usually so because of a lack of understanding or knowledge about the EMBA and the impact it can have on the business," says Warwick's Llewellyn, "which is why we started producing a formal guide for corporate sponsors last year."ESADE uses the LEAD element of the GEMBA which provides a 360 degree assessment of the student and their company to help win employers over. And at Nyenrode Colazzo says, "We arrange events for applicants to attend with their managers - 'bring your boss' lectures, for example to introduce them to the EMBA and underline how the experience will benefit both the student and the business."

"The candidate's project and the way they communicate their ambition to learn, to develop and to be more efficient in their professional life,"says Poty at EMLYON, whilst Vlerick's Habets opts for, "Whether a candidate is genuine or whether they are just reciting a rehearsed piece."At HEC, Kilbride is focused in on whether the individual is going to be able to hold their own within and contribute effectively to their peer group. "We're very group-work oriented so we look for individuals who have the courage to question themselves, the experience, and the presence that's necessary to thrive in such an environment."

"We don't really view application from entrepreneurs or SME employees differently from any other,"says Vlerick's Habets. If anything, they often have more 'comprehensive' professional experience because they are not just performing within a single unit within one defined role, but are exposed to every aspect of the business and have gained a more generalist picture, albeit on a smaller scale."At EMLYON, Chantal Poty takes a similar view of a lack of international experience. "It's certainly not compulsory, but it is important that they can demonstrate open-mindedness towards international issues and be ready to learn and grow from the experiences of their fellow participants."

All of our panel of experts stress the fact that getting the right fit between individual, school and program is vital, but as HEC's Sean Kilbride succinctly puts it, "Most of our applicants put in a lot of time and effort to research programs but then opt for just us or one other because they simply don't have the time for a multitude of applications."