
Can You Explain the Taste of a Mango?
Trying to explain what the Executive Master in Change (EMC) programme is like trying to explain the taste of a mango.
I will try, but if you are an executive, business owner or consultant, I hope you have the opportunity to taste it for yourself.
Many memories and learnings come to mind: the inspirational workshops by the programme directors, the conversations and lectures by INSEAD professors and guests, the deep conversations in the small groups, the debates in the larger group, the diversity and experience of the fellow participants, the dinners and fun activities.
We had coaching, simulations and business cases, and we became more skilled at coaching and consulting and analysing each other's organisational situations as the months went by.
The practicality of being able to learn from our own personal business cases was a clear benefit of the programme, as it provided different lenses to tackle the organisational and personal issues.
The EMC allowed me to see the organisation I worked for as I've never seen it before: with a microscope, a binocular and a telescope, all at the same time.
Most importantly it allowed me to see what was happening to me during the organisational change. So I could even add an "endoscope" to the other lenses.
The books and articles we had to read between modules opened new ways of thinking, as well as the calls we held besides the empirical part of the programme.
Writing the reflection papers and thesis was difficult, frustrating and rewarding at the same time, it really pushed me out of my comfort zone. I hated it at the beginning but it later paved the way to write a collaborative book on Feminine Leadership some years later.
With the new ways of doing and thinking came new ways of feeling that were triggered not only by what I experienced during the modules, but what happened also at work and at home. The feedback exercise received from my family added another dimension to the 360-degrees executive survey, and both were key for my personal development plan.
This programme provides the luxury of interacting with the world´s thought leaders in change, leadership, innovation, strategy, governance, culture and family business. Is a rare privilege to be able to ask questions to the pioneers in these fields, authors and globally experienced consultants, learn from their experience and receive practical advice to apply immediately at work.
The EMC is experiential learning about personal and organisational change, group dynamics and most importantly teaches you how you can be a tool for change in a team or organisation.
The EMC changed the way I looked at change in organisations, group dynamics and myself. I will always be grateful for it.
The EMC journey is about really tasting and enjoying the mango.