Forbes India AMP Clinic: Are the Astronomical Costs of AMPs Justified?
Two distinguished academicians – Robert Burgelman of Stanford University and Adam Kingl London Business School answer queries from readers on Advanced Management Programmes
Query: If you look at most of the AMP sessions, they are based on strategy per se – the ‘how’ and ‘what’ of it. That is strategy for the sake of strategy-making. But strategy needs to be taught from a practitioner's point of view that covers all managerial functions. I think this is where AMPs lack. What they follow is the import of Porter-Kaplan gifts to strategy framework. This is why organisations face strategy-execution dilemmas. I think strategy gurus should focus their research on the "why", ‘how’ and ‘what’ of strategy. I would like to pass my question to Prof Robert Burgelman. What does your experience say about that? - Amulya Pokhrel
Robert Burgelman:
Thanks for your question. As I don't know the strategy courses of other AMPs, I can only speak about the Stanford Executive Program's "Strategic Leadership in Dynamic Environments" course (which I happen to teach). In that course - based on my book Strategy is Destiny (Free Press, 2002) - I point out that strategy is, in first instance, a mentality, a state of mind that executives should adopt on an ongoing basis to examine the leadership situations they face. I also point out that organisations should strive to create a culture of strategic leadership; that is, a culture in which leaders at all levels bring a strategic mentality to their areas of responsibility. I further point out that strategy without action is powerless; but action without strategy is aimless. Hence, executives at all levels should realize that to be effective they need to view strategy and strategy execution as two sides of the same coin. Finally, I suggest that executives should continually ask why they are getting the results they obtain from their actions, because asking ‘Why?’ is the fundamental question for bringing a strategic mentality to their jobs. I hope this is helpful.
Query: I am thinking of making a career as an investor/angel investor/venture capitalist and hence, recently ramped down my IT company operations as it was taking too much of my time. But I am not sure of where to start.
Here’s a brief about me.
Nearly 12 years of experience in information technology sector with a strong delivery background and vast experience of working in countries such as US, UK, Singapore, Malaysia and India.
Worked with global IT service providers performing various roles from developer to delivery manager, mostly for Fortune Global 50 clients.
Currently working as a Director for AppLabs Technologies, Hyderabad, with primary responsibility of pre-sales, solution design and delivery leadership for healthcare and life sciences vertical.
As an investor, I invested in a real estate company in Nagpur (exited at 15 times the value); an ice cream manufacturing and retail company in Nagpur (incurred losses); an ice cream parlour chain in Hyderabad (incurred losses); and a dairy farm in Hyderabad (going fine). Things are looking good. I started my own IT company and made good money. I have three more proposals for investment under review.
How can I plan a career as an investor/angel investor/venture capitalist? I feel that though I keep on making investments, I am able to evaluate a proposal thoroughly because I lack a formal management education. One option is do a formal MBA from a reputed B-school first and then start working towards my goal. The other option is to do an AMP. What do you suggest? Which AMP would be good for me? - Harish Chintawar
Robert Burgelman:
Your track record indicates you would benefit from an AMP. Since I am not familiar with the specifics of other programmes, I can only comment in the context of our Stanford Executive Program, where the typical participant has at least 12-15 years of management experience and strategic responsibilities at the company- or country-wide level. I would encourage you to seek out executive training that capitalizes on your experience and interests, and look closely at such attributes as networking potential. Given your interest in pursuing a career in venture capital, Stanford's location--reflecting the vibrant entrepreneurial culture of Silicon Valley — could be especially beneficial for you.
Your career transition is an exciting one, and there are numerous skills and insights that will help you to achieve your goals. It sounds as if you may actually be looking for two programmes: one which will help you with identifying and valuing good investments, and another which will help you manage your entrepreneurial ventures and better sculpt business plans and help advise your investment's management teams. For the first need, you could consider a course such as Financing the Entrepreneurial Business, where you will finish the course with mastery of company evaluation and valuation. (We will have such a course announced on the London Business School website very shortly: http://www.london.edu/programmes/executiveeducation.html )
Query
* Are AMPs tailored to assist managers of start-up/small companies (10-25 member company)?
* Please pinpoint specific AMPs which are focused on start-up/small companies
* I am sure a lot of start-up founders/CEOs would also like to know which formal management programmes are recommended specifically for startups. - Pritam Bhandari
Adam Kingl:
We frequently have CEOs of start-ups on London Business School’s Accelerated Development Programme. The nice thing about such programmes is that you leave the course with mastery of all the functions of a business, which is critical as a general manager. You can no longer look at the business through the lens of a single department. This type of programme is also wonderful in assessing and improving your ability to create a vision, communicate that, and bring your people with you to achieve it. Look for programme content that combines peer-to-peer learning (with participants from all over the world and every industry), new insight, tools and frameworks to simplify understanding of issues and decisions, skills development, and implementation. You will not leave the programme feeling that you’ve done some kind of ‘mini-MBA’ but that you’ve transformed your impact on any company – the fact that it’s your OWN company is great for you personally and for your bottom line!
Robert Burgelman:
Most AMPs are designed for senior executives at large, global companies. A better fit for managers of smaller start-up companies might be a short course that covers issues more relevant to entrepreneurial enterprises, such as investor/funding opportunities and building organisational architecture for growth while retaining founders’ values. I would urge you to delve more deeply into the menu of executive education offerings beyond AMPs, and consider the wealth of worthy short courses that deliver more targeted results for your specific needs. In many cases, these short courses draw from the same roster of senior faculty members as the business school’s flagship AMPs.
Query : In a CXO's life, much of the learning happens experientially (hands on) rather than through scholastic knowledge. Given that MBAs do prop up these knowledge matrices reasonably, how important is an AMP (in terms of value add) for a CXO level aspirant (and also a non-MBA) for both his career progression as well as increasing his knowledge levels? Also, is the astronomical sum of some AMPs justified?" - Kalyani Srinath
Adam Kingl
I could never assume that an AMP programme like our Accelerated Development Programme (ADP) at London Business School is right for everyone in all circumstances. That's why we have an application and interview for all candidates: to make sure it's the right programme for the right person at the right time. So without knowing why you're considering something like like the ADP and knowing your background in more detail, I couldn't answer with certainty. That said, many people do an AMP instead of an MBA because it is ultimately less time and money, and at London Business School they still earn alumni status. That network at the very least is useful no matter what throughout one's career.
I think a CXO or CXO-aspirant would benefit from an AMP because a CXO needs to understand a business holistically in order to represent all the company's interests to multiple stakeholders. As far as the programme cost, I would argue that everything is relative - as you might have expected! Unlike many academic subjects, business faculty are in extremely short supply throughout the world. As a scarce resource, they are well compensated. So it's impossible to cost programmes, as one might for a further education course in, say, Literature or Art. In addition, most AMPs costs include accommodation and meals, and are cheaper than doing an MBA, not to mention the time saved.
Robert Burgelman:
According to programme alumni, we know the value gained from AMPs far outweighs the tuition invested. Past participants report that AMPs provide a transformational experience so that executives return to their organisations with breakthrough insights and actionable plans to drive results. Executives — even those with an MBA degree — are often focused so intensively on their day-to-day operations they develop tunnel vision. Attending an AMP enables them to quickly survey today’s global, highly competitive and dynamic business landscape, and update their core management skills accordingly. In addition, the best AMPs provide networking opportunities among peers to facilitate idea exchange and to share best practices. The wide range of functions, industries, and countries represented by the diverse mix of participants in these types of programs provides exposure to valuable new perspectives on management that cannot be gained “on the inside”.
