IESE places emphasis on the program length (19 months) and the use of the case method so that the students become true experts in company management and decision making.
Every case is a reproduction of an actual company situation. During the program, participants learn and share SME and multinational problems from the service and industrial sectors. They must tackle a financial dilemma or design and implant new political policies. They learn to make decisions in real-life circumstances.
The method's effectiveness is the result of a three-step process:
First Step: Individual Study
Weekly or bi-weekly, depending on the program format, students are provided with work material for the following week. The case study places the student at the epicenter of a decision of vital importance for the company's future success. Analyzing the situation and reflecting on possible courses of action enables the student to consider the what, how and why of any executive decision.
Second Step: Teamwork
Students are divided into heterogeneous groups in which they are able to pool their ideas, a process which enables them to understand and discover new criteria for dealing successfully with the problem posed.
Third Step: General Session
Students participate in a general session led by an IESE professor who steers the discussion with methodical rigor and evaluates the different alternatives recommended by the students, outlining their various consequences. The professor simultaneously introduces theoretical concepts and tools that round out the students' learning.
