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| IT for Non-IT Managers. |
The McIntire School is known for world-class undergraduate and graduate programs. The Comm School can also create and deliver outstanding executive programs. Here are just two examples.
“Take-Home Value”
The classrooms in Monroe Hall are usually filled with excited, engaged young people preparing to make their way in the world. On Jan. 9, 2004, a classroom was reserved for a different type of student. On this day, the class consisted of 10 executives who have already made significant contributions to the business world but who are still very eager to pursue learning and professional growth.
Each person in the group was the president of a company, and each was affiliated with an international peer network called the Young Presidents Organization, or YPO. The organization includes more than 8,000 young global business leaders in more than 75 nations. Members not only network with each other, they also have unparalleled access to the
world’s foremost experts, heads of state, and thought leaders to explore diverse issues.
Within each chapter are smaller groups of approximately a dozen members organized as a forum, where leaders faced with similar personal and professional challenges gather to share experiences and consult together. Forum members help each other navigate through business and life.
“Once a year, the members of our local YPO forum go away on a retreat,” says Fred Kelly (A&S
’72), President of Aeroglide Corporation. “The idea is to have access to education, to get to know one another, and to have some structured exercises dealing with issues that are important to us. I felt it was important to meet in an academic setting, and our group agreed. We chose the McIntire
School.”
The forum group met with two McIntire professors. “Tom Bateman used a Harvard Business School case to provide a very thoughtful look at the leadership style of President George W. Bush in the aftermath of September 11,
2001,” Kelly says. “George Overstreet narrowed the focus to small and medium-sized businesses. His presentation was titled
'Beating the Odds: What Do We Really Know about the Nature of Corporate
Success?’”
Kelly found the YPO and McIntire to be a perfect fit. “As a University of Virginia alumnus and a member of the McIntire Advisory Board,
I’m pleased to say that that the YPO now has nine new converts to U.Va. and to the McIntire School of
Commerce,” he says.
“When it comes to executive education, one of our catchphrases is that each event has to provide
take-home value. We want information that we can use in our day-to-day business lives. Both of these professors provided us with thoughts and insights that provided exactly that. We received insights that we have taken home and that we can apply across many dimensions. I should add that Assistant Dean for External Affairs Elizabeth Harvard did a wonderful job of organizing the event and making sure our forum felt at home. We also found our luncheon discussion with Dean Carl Zeithaml, who spoke about business education issues in general and at McIntire in particular, to be very
valuable.”
IT for Non-IT Managers
In 2002, when the Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA) sought an executive education program designed to help business managers deal with information technology issues, the organization looked to the McIntire School. The VHDA is a 300-employee organization that assists low- and moderate-income Virginians in finding affordable housing.
“My son was a student in McIntire’s M.S. in the Management of Information Technology
Program,” says Ted Woods, IS Assistant Director for Enterprise Architecture Information Services for the VHDA. “I was very impressed with his program and spoke with Professor Ryan Nelson about custom building an executive curriculum for us with the theme of IT for non-IT managers.
“He and his McIntire colleagues came up with a curriculum that consolidates many of the graduate program elements into really high-level executive-style seminars. The program was targeted toward middle managers who want to better understand and implement business strategy as it relates to technology. A number of senior managers also
attended.”
The curriculum included sessions on IT strategy, architecture, project management, e-business strategies, and the management of emerging technologies.
The results? “The program has been very successful,” Woods says. “It has really helped us bridge the gap between technology and business. Our managers really appreciate what
they’ve learned.”
In fact, the executive education seminars were so successful that the VHDA invited McIntire to create an additional curriculum for 2003-2004.
Meeting Your Needs
McIntire’s successful program “IT for Non-IT Managers” is available in an executive format that can be custom-designed to meet the needs of your business. This innovative and exciting program offers: |
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A flexible curriculum |
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Half-day sessions or multi-day seminars and workshops |
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On-site delivery. Or, if you prefer, programs may be delivered at McIntire. |
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Topics include: |
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Project management |
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E-business strategies |
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Change management |
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Knowledge management |
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Managing emerging technologies |
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| To learn more, contact McIntire Centers Coordinator Sarah Landon
at 434-924-7568 or slandon@virginia.edu. |
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