Innovative approach to management training for executives

EMCS, the business consulting firm and business conference organiser, is combining its expertise in business performance improvement with the academic know-how of management guru Professor Peter McKiernan to provide an innovative approach to executive training that highly subscribes to a practical approach to management.

The Sunday Times interviewed Professor McKiernan, chairman, and Adrian Said, co-ordinator of EMCS's Executive Development Modules 2006 to obtain a better understanding of this new and unique executive training programme.

Professor McKiernan is no stranger to Malta and was a guest speaker at various EMCS conferences on business performance improvement. Besides being the head of the School of Management at the University of St Andrews, he is a former president of the British Academy of Management and vice-president of the European Academy of Management.

He sits on the boards of several UK-based public and private sector organisations and chairs some of them. Some of the companies that fall under his consulting portfolio include Philips, IBM, Nestle, GEC, Exxon and BP.

Professor McKiernan was asked what prompted the development and launch of these executive training modules in Malta.

I asked my audience in Malta several years ago to 'get a future' in its preparation for EU membership and beyond. Indeed, I was pleased to work in association with EMCS to design a cutting-edge management programme especially for Maltese businesses to help them secure profitable futures.

I am privileged to be associated with such a customised package that enables managers to participate in action learning without taking their eye off the business ball.

How can we make sense of the changing world around us?

Many executives are puzzled by the complex business environments they face and want to understand them better. We designed the new executive development programme with this in mind - so that managers can navigate efficiently and effectively, despite the change surrounding them.

Indeed, many managers complain to me about the intensity of the competition and ask how they can keep pace. My answer is usually very straightforward: business is simple - understand the demand side and understand the supply side, and make a strategy that combines this understanding well.

A good strategy will build on the strong resources in your organisation. Some of these you will have and they need to be polished up frequently. But for some of them you will have to get new techniques, better marketing, better procurement policies, etc.

The new EMCS programme provides these in a convenient package without stripping you of time and large amounts of money.

Whom have you appointed as tutors for the programme?

The team of tutors brings extensive experience and knowledge of the issues that we would like to highlight and put forward in this module. The team consists of:

¤ EMCS board directors Dr John C. Grech, Adrian Said, John Farrugia, and Robert Geismann. Besides their technical knowledge of management, they will also avail of their experience of consulting an extensive number of local companies;

¤ Klaus Thelen, managing director of Accelerate Consulting and Management GmbH, a German consulting firm based in Münster with over 20 years of senior management experience in the telecommunications and energy industry, with a client portfolio that includes Deutsche Telekom, Daimler Chrysler and Deutsche Bahn; and

¤ Hatem Dowidar, CEO of Vodafone (Malta), who has extensive experience in management with various blue chip companies including Daimler Benz and Procter & Gamble. Mr Dowidar will be giving a case study presentation that focuses on how Vodafone developed to become the international corporate giant we know today.

Mr Said was asked to elaborate on what he sees as unique in the modules EMCS is proposing.

Our consulting experience is increasingly showing that for companies to succeed and become stronger it is becoming more important to invest in management skills in a way that will secure them with a strong performance improvement culture.

When discussing these issues with Professor McKiernan we jointly decided to fill the void in executive training in this area by develop a training course that is highly effective and focuses on the practical approach to teaching management rather than the theoretical.

When do the courses start and how will they be spread?

The programme starts in the first week of March and consists of five full-day training modules, spread over nine months. By uniting managers from various companies, sectors, corporate cultures and engaging them in a highly charged interchange of knowledge, insight, and experience, the programme will combine technical knowledge with the common experience of tutors and delegates.

To make this course module more useful we shall partially customise its content to be in line with requirements of the class intake.

How is the course structured?

There are two modules and each covers concepts, metrics and resources that delegates can use to advance the performance of their business. This includes an overview as well as practical tips on: strategic planning for success;

how to add value to your business by branding it further;

how to best use the data available to you to manage your customers better and how new technologies can assist you on this;

how to develop new metrics to assess the performance of your business beyond traditional historic cost accounting; and

achieving rapid growth - the Vodafone case study.

What is the typical delegate profile?

The typical delegates profile we envisage are individuals who work in companies of different scales, represent widely diverse industries and different professions.

Intended participants will include:

¤ corporate executives;

¤ managers and directors of business units;

¤ executives poised to take on leadership positions; and

¤ legal, medical or other professionals wanting to develop strong management skills.

Mr Said said a detailed brochure can be downloaded from the EMCS Website, www.emcs.com.mt . For more information, send an e-mail to PiPmodule@emcs. com.mt or phone EMCS on 2134-1848.