MBA students at the Australian Graduate School of Business (AGSM) at The University of New South Wales in Sydney will get a solid start with the introduction of a new “Foundations of Management” program. It builds on communication, teamwork and analysis skills.
The nation's premier business school, according to the lastest ranking of the "Financial Times", describes its new course as one that allows students to discover both themselves and their team, and harness skills that they will use throughout their course and future career. "We ask participants to dig deep to find out who are they, why are they here, and what strengths they bring as individuals, and as potential leaders," said Professor Murali Chandrashekaran, Academic Director of AGSM MBA programs.
The first part of the MBA foundation course introduces students to the main theories and tools of reflective practice including self-awareness, relating to others, emotional intelligence and diversity. The course then introduces students to teamwork skills, encouraging them to explore self- and group-efficacy. Students also explore the role of organizations in shaping society and issues of sustainability and ethics. The program then turns to creative and strategic thinking, case analysis and decision-making skills. The latter component focuses on overcoming common decision-making pitfalls in a time- and data-scarce environment.
The Foundations of Management course ends with a day long challenge where students read a case, prepare a presentation in 45 minutes, and then make a presentation to the group. "Some people come in with very little experience of public speaking and they finish the three day component on presentation skills and are transformed. They are discovering themselves as great voices for change," said Professor Chandrashekaran.
Australia's largest business school offers a complete range of business degree programs at undergraduate, postgraduate coursework, executive education levels and research levels. AGSM is accredited with Equis and AACSB.
AGSM bases its reputation on 9 schools and 9 research centres plus four affiliated research centres. The competitive research funding was 4.9 Million Au$ in 2008 plus prizes and scholarships from more than 180 industry sponsors. 220 full-time academics cater to 11,000 students who represent an almost equal mix of women and men. 30-40 per cent are international students: individuals from more than 120 countries contribute to a learning environment characterised by diversity. 50,000 alumni are in senior positions in government, industry and academia.