is a cass executive mba right for you? -...

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Is a CassMBAright foryou?

Executive

Cass Business SchoolIn 2002, City University’s Business School was renamed Sir John Cass Business School following a generous donation towards the development of its new building inBunhill Row. The School’s name is usually abbreviated to Cass Business School.

Sir John Cass’s FoundationSir John Cass’s Foundation has supportededucation in London since the 18th century and takes its name from its founder, Sir JohnCass, who established a school in Aldgate in1710. Born in the City of London in 1661, SirJohn served as an MP for the City and was knighted in 1713.

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“The Cass Executive choice. It’s internation global in perspective for a successful future. helped me in my care you achieve your fullRobert (Bob) Kelly Chairman and Chief Executive Officer BNY Mellon

The Cass Executive MBA perspective

03 Challenge and be challenged05 Managing uncertainty07 International credibility09 Real business not just theory11 Develop a strategic perspective 13 Business doesn’t just mean business15 Build a platform by taking a journey17 Making the transition19 Go from knowing to believing21 360o leadership 23 Reinvent the entrepreneur

MBA is a great ally ranked, and prepares you Cass definitelyer and can help potential.”

Challenge and be challenged

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Our difference is in the learning experience. We have a diverse Executive MBA group and we question the applicability of western management theories to the new context of business. The City of London sets the scene for our high-energy programme, and our international standing reflects a diversity of culture, business and talent.

We challenge our students in a facilitative manner. We aim to create executives who can think critically and challenge the norm but without arrogance. There has been too much emphasis on the charismatic hard-man leader, which is more suited to the 1980’s – not to the 21st Century.

The global economy is facing East, and that requires more cross-cultural sensitivity, and an appreciation of contextual differences. We need to be more curious about different social, economic and political contexts, to gain a deeper understanding of people from different geographies and cultures.

As soon as our students come in they are immersed in an environment that has an international faculty and a diverse cohort. Students have to demonstrate hands-on capability and a global perspective both in the classroom and in their emerging markets consultancy trip and international electives. This is not business education tourism. Students work with local businesses, and the advice they give to small and medium sized enterprises has a real impact.

This is an intensive Executive MBA. Our global ranking is high because we understand the issues of executives holding down challenging jobs while doing a demanding degree.

The Executive MBA is a period of personal transition. If you’re going to use it to convert or accelerate your career, it has to be a partnership of managed change between us.

“Our difference is in the learning experience. We challenge our students in a facilitative manner. We aim to create executives who can think critically and challenge the norm but without arrogance. It’s a difficult balance but very important.” Professor Veronica Hope Hailey Associate Dean of Cass MBA

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Critical thinkingI bring business experience of working with multinationals on three continents. Within the course we run a six-hour simulation of a M&A, where our executives are split into four different companies, all challenging each other. Students learn to form views through critical analysis in front of very sharp peers with contrary views.

Getting real in an uncertain worldYou learn that there’s never enough time to do all the analysis or get all the information. Your strategy, once you understand that of your opponent’s, has to be changed. No battle plan survives contact with the enemy. Chaos rules in M&A deals – especially as you get towards closing. Competitors will take full advantage of your distraction; you have to pull out of that confusion an ability to craft the best deal and run the business afterwards.

Three-dimensional perceptionYou will leave here understanding that the world is less rational than it appears. You need to be able to gather as much information as possible and make the best decision under different circumstances. Life is not perfect and you’re probably not going to find every piece of data, but triangulating multiple perspectives can help you get a feel of what you need to know.

ManagingScott Moeller Director of M&A Research Centre and Honorary Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Finance

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“There’s not a PowerPoint slide in the entire thirty hours. Students learn to form views through critical analysis in front of very sharp peers with contrary views.”


In addition to my day job, I am a Cass alumnus and visiting lecturer at Cass – teaching in both centres – London and Dubai. This gives me a particularly interesting perspective on the Executive MBA.

A melting potI am always amazed at how international Cass is. It’s a compelling fusion of different cultures, languages and ideas that generates an exciting atmosphere. This sense of purpose runs through every facet of the organisation – from faculty and students to course content. Over 100 countries have been represented in the Cass experience, with an international network of alumni who look out for each other.

The core emerging market modules, international symposia and electives offered on the programme give you the opportunity to work alongside business leaders in China, Vietnam, Argentina, South Africa and in the Middle East.

This sort of experience gives you credibility in different cultures. You learn how to convince people from a wide variety of backgrounds to invest in you emotionally and financially, and help turn your ideas into reality.

International credibility

Khurram Jafree Head of Investment Advisory MENA Barclays Wealth

“You learn how to convince people from a wide variety of backgrounds to invest in you emotionally and financially, and help turn your ideas into reality.”

Real business not just theory

Alex RitsonReporter and presenter, BBC


Cass has not only transformed my work as a financial journalist – it has opened many other intriguing possibilities. For complex international finance there is no better business school and the connections with the City are first class. I’ve rediscovered a love of numbers – the beauty and the patterns. Now I not only understand the alleged causes of the financial crisis – things like Credit Default Swaps and Mortgage-Backed

Securities – I could get out my spreadsheet and analyse them. We have senior people from global industry coming through on a regular basis. I’m having candid conversations with them in a way that is impossible as a journalist, because it’s Chatham House rules here at Cass.

Hands on experienceCass has excellent international electives in emerging markets. They took a hundred of us to Vietnam and attached us to various companies. Organisations are queuing up to be involved because they’ve seen how businesses have benefited in previous years.

Our company gave us remarkable access to their staff and books. We were able to do anything and ask any questions. We were putting into practice things we learned, such as how to motivate staff and reduce costs. I think we probably saved some businesses with our recommendations.

Investing in myselfThe point at which the penny dropped was the Quantitative Methods class. It was pitched far too high for me. I locked myself away with books and just kept going until I understood it. I suddenly realised that if I could master Quantitative Methods, I could master anything. I went on to get what was my best mark to date. The opportunities are only limited by yourself. Cass is the best decision I have ever made.

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“The Executive MBA helps you to analyse and understand the DNA of a business.”

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Alyson Reeves A member of PA’s Management Group,PA Consulting Group Ltd

Creating confidence and credibilityThe Cass Executive MBA immerses you in a huge number of business disciplines rapidly enabling you to become credible in topics ranging from culture to cashflow. It’s modular, allowing you to gain knowledge brick by brick, gradually building your confidence. You work with such a high calibre peer group that you can’t help but feel proud you can hold your own in their company.

Learning the art and science of businessThe Executive MBA gives you an excellent grounding in business helping you really understand how organisations work giving you a great set of methods, tools and techniques. It helps you understand financial markets, strategic drivers, the importance of cashflow, governance and decision making, formal and informal hierarchies and the power of influence.

I found it so helpful to learn from applying the theory in a real business context – something other course formats don’t offer.

Becoming a time traderNot an obvious advantage but one of the most profound benefits to me has been learning to manage my time so I could balance a challenging career, very stretching Executive MBA and have some semblance of a personal life. I now treat work like triage: rapidly assessing what’s important, what’s urgent, what can I delegate, and what must I do myself? Time is my most valuable commodity so I trade it with care.

I really enjoyed the mental stretch, the variety of work, the punishing workloads and the calibre of classmates and that’s why I chose my career in management consultancy.

“It’s like business boot camp for the brain – by the end you feel you could take on any challenge thrown at you.”

I came to Cass early in my career and it opened the door to my first charity Chief Executive job. Now the Executive MBA is giving me the intellectual and practical help to advance my career again.

The not-for-profit sector has to make its strategy, operations and management as effective and efficient as a traditional business would. The Information Management course changed how I perceived my organisation, and I went back to work questioning our IT strategy.

People from the not-for-profit sector make a huge contribution in class. There’s been a lot in the press recently about MBAs not teaching ethics. When I came here I thought it would all be about profit, but the focus is so much broader. There is a growing awareness of delivery through collaboration; about aligning organisations and teams around strategy.

Sustainable creativityMy cohort was hugely creative and knowledgeable. It was a very fertile environment and that’s what I love about it. If you bring together an actuary, an accountant and a book-keeper, the ideas they generate will be adequate. But put an accountant, a nuclear scientist and a doctor in a room together and the ideas you generate are truly stratospheric.

Organic approachMy role means that I have to look forwards, backwards and sideways. With my Executive MBA I now have a much broader more strategic and culturally aware approach. My President tells me I have matured, and I operate at an entirely different level. Working with clinicians is not easy. They can be a tough, brusque breed. Organisations are becoming more diffuse, and boundaries are less clear. So tomorrow’s leaders must be able to thoroughly integrate people and activities.

Samantha Peters Chief Executive, British Society for Rheumatology

Businessdoesn’tjust mean

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“When I came here I was a bit nervous that it would all be about profit, but the focus is so much broader. A lot of people come to Cass thinking in silos, but leave with a much more organic approach.”

Life-changing revelationsThe prospect of an Executive MBA was a bit daunting. Two years of study when I had a young family, a demanding job – how would I balance it all? My company sponsored me, so while it was easier financially, there was a lot of pressure to deliver and do well.

Expanding my horizonsWhen I arrived, there were many opportunities to learn and develop, join networks and get involved. Part of my challenge was to navigate through. My fellow students and Cass staff helped me stay on track and keep things in perspective.

The Executive MBA has given me a tremendous amount of confidence. I can look a CFO in the eye and feel very comfortable talking about my specialist subject.

Joined up thinkingThe big challenge in business is to connect established management techniques with emerging theories. The intensely collaborative approach at Cass showed me how I could build the platform to help me do that.

“Cass was asuccession of defining moments, and the realisation that I had much more ability than I thought. It was an awakening.” Robert Secoy Vice President, BNY Mellon Depositary Receipts


platform Build a

by takinga journey

“Without the Executive MBA I wouldn’t be where I am now. It showed me where I could go.”Rodrigo Franciscani Senior Strategy Manager, Motorola I consider myself half British, half

Brazilian. I came to England from Brazil for two years but have already stayed for ten. I was leading a team of software engineers but felt ready to go to the next level by moving from a functional position to a more strategic role. I started researching Executive MBAs to help me make that leap. I studied the rankings and reputations, talked to people and looked around the City; everything pointed towards Cass.

Connecting life togetherI studied with managers, senior executives and directors. In addition to the academic side, I learned soft skills such as getting the best out of people; how to engage a team and develop self awareness so that you can lead with confidence. It’s a continuous process – you forge connections and help each other to achieve goals.

Investing in networkingThe competition is fierce out there. People are making themselves more marketable, more knowledgeable, and you have to take ownership of your career. You can put your Executive MBA on your CV, but what really counts is how you demonstrate it in your day-to-day job.

Makingthetransition


“Just as important are the softer skills: believing in yourself and knowing how to bring others with you.”

Understanding othersWe had a diverse range of personalities, cultures and professional backgrounds on my intake. The group work was a phenomenal experience that helped me to relate to others so much better. I met intelligent and outspoken people who were bringing something completely different to the game. Collaborating on projects through to 2 o’clock in the morning, we learned to think and deliver as a group.

I now work with a wide range of colleagues in many departments – accounting, corporate finance, treasury, sales, marketing, public relations, general management, and operations.

Intuitive entrepreneurialismGood leaders have to be confident about their ideas. They can’t convince and motivate a team by sitting on the fence. Cass taught me that if you don’t take risks, you won’t achieve great success. I’m lucky enough to work for an organisation that encourages risk and entrepreneurialism. In the present economic environment, we need this more than ever.

David M Berk Vice President of Finance, L’Oreal USA

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Go from

The Executive MBA helped me discover my leadership strengths and weaknesses. I’m in a finance role – but I’m not an accountant. I work in procurement – but I’m not a buyer. When I don’t know something, I draw on someone who does. I hadn’t been offered a Finance Director role before, so my promotion reflected the balance of ability and confidence other people had seen in me.

Instant innovationA big part of Cass is about thinking differently. Entrepreneurism is part of the procurement function. We are constantly looking for fresh ways to deliver new and existing products. We are spending significant amounts of money on behalf of the business, so there is a huge responsibility on procurement to produce the right quality, optimal service and the best possible deals.

Embracing different culturesI started my career in Hong Kong, worked in Singapore and China and then came back to the UK, so I have always thought internationally. My focus on the Executive MBA was to develop my understanding of international finance and marketing, so to study a Japanese business for my elective made a big difference.

“Bringing skills, people and motivation together in a way that delivers the outcome.” Caroline Wehrle Finance Director, Global Procurement Diageo Plc

360 0 leadership


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“Other business schools take people from big corporations, present a business case and say – this is the way you should do it. Cass say – there is no right answer, but these tools will help you deal with this situation.”

Understanding how I operate I founded Reinsurance Group of America UK in 1999 with a lot of frenetic activity. We were very successful, very quickly, in a tough market. We were getting lots of plaudits and winning prizes. I thought I knew my business, but then to be ripped to shreds by the Professor of Strategy at Cass; that’s the kind of learning curve you can’t pay enough money for.

Cass really changed my leadership. Being able to lead is one thing, but creating and communicating a vision that people want to follow is quite another.

Confronting my shortcomingsThe best thing about the Executive MBA was not necessarily learning how to manage, but learning where to look for help. It was a very intense two years. I came out with a lot of skills; strategy, HR and managing

people. My soft skills were reflected in how the team flourished when I was not there. I developed an emotional intelligence – and actuaries are not known for their emotional intelligence. No one can be strong at everything, so knowing your weaknesses can be a positive advantage.

Perry Thomas CEO, HSBC Reinsurance Limited

Reinvent theentrepreneur

...do wereally need to ask?Cass Business School106 Bunhill RowLondon EC1Y 8TZTel +44(0)20 7040 5276www.cassemba.com


Global reputationRanked 2nd in the UKCentre of excellence for Finance and Strategy with emphasis on practicality and real business relevanceFlexibilityTailored learning that fits your career goalElectives that enhance and challenge youGlobal networksA world renowned facultyIconic speakersAlumni networkInternational symposiaPersonal developmentTeam based learningCareer coachingPersonal development programmesLifelong learningLeadershipBalance of business and management skillsGlobal business issuesStrategic leadershipApplied learningReal life situationsPractical projects International assignmentsA business environmentArguably the best located business school in Europe with 75% of FTSE 500 companies on our doorstepNetworking opportunitiesGlobal business connectionsEmerging marketsCampuses in London & Dubai

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is a cass executive mba right for you? -...

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