What is Executive Education?
Executive education is comprised of academic courses and programs that are designed to support the professional development of executives, managers, and business leaders. Different from a traditional MBA program, executive education courses are generally shorter in duration and focus on strengthening a specific area of knowledge for class participants. Courses may be customized to serve the needs of a single organization, but many are also offered via open enrollment. In a fast-moving world, executive education courses help businesses and businesses leaders embrace life-long learning, remain dynamic, and stay on top of the latest trends and skills necessary to be successful. While they are designed to teach new skills, executive education programs also provide an opportunity for business leaders to interact and widen their professional networks.
How Is Executive Education Taken Online?
When conducted online, executive education courses allow business professionals to fit continued education into their schedule without needing to factor in travel time or be constrained by their proximity to the university that they wish to attend. Online executive education programs use audio and video technology to create a collaborative, interactive virtual classroom environment. Because online executive programs can be accessed worldwide, they offer a unique opportunity for global companies to enroll their employees, individually or in dispersed groups, regardless of their physical location.
Berkeley Online Executive Education Programs
In addition to in-person programs, Berkley Exec Ed offers a wide variety of online executive education courses taught by renowned faculty and leading industry practitioners. The online format and schedule for each training is tailored to fit the program’s unique curriculum – but the two fundamental platforms for our online executive education program are the Forum and the Lab.
The Forum is an immersive, digital lecture hall that brings Berkeley faculty (as well as your fellow students) into your home. In the Forum, all students receive a front row seat and have the opportunity to “raise their hand” and ask questions while surrounded by a panoramic view of their classmates. In addition to instructor-led activities like presentations and panels, activities held in the Forum can include polls, quizzes, and whiteboard sessions – fostering student interaction and discussion.
The Lab is a virtual collaboration space conducted via Zoom. In the Lab, you can engage with faculty and colleagues, take part in brainstorming sessions, activity planning, group projects, one-on-one coaching sessions, and more. When not participating in a specific exercise, the Lab is your hub for virtual happy hours and coffee chats – a great place to get to know your classmates and expand your network.
All Berkeley online executive education courses employ at least two of the following elements:
- Pre-Session Work: Pre-program videos and readings to get you oriented with the curriculum and primary program objectives. Opportunities to participate in group discussions and get to know your colleagues and program coaches.
- Classroom Synergy: A multi-camera, dynamic digital classroom experience in the Forum. Learn from faculty and engage with classmates.
- Group Interactions: Breakout sessions in the Lab centered around collaboration. Brainstorm, plan and work on group exercises.
- Program Activities: Final presentations, Q&A sessions, and time with faculty. An opportunity to reflect on what you’ve studied and how best to apply it in your job role and organization.
How to Enroll
Berkeley’s open enrollment executive education programs are commonly attended by experienced professionals who hold mid to senior-level roles in their organization. To apply to enroll in one of our online courses, we recommend that you begin by surveying our offerings below. Whether you’re looking to learn more about technical topics like AI and blockchain or are interested in honing your communication or leadership skills, our programs provide growth and development opportunities for every executive.
Leadership & Communication Programs
- Berkeley Executive Leadership Program
- Communications Excellence
- High-Impact Leadership
- Leading Strategy Execution through Culture
- New Manager Boot Camp
- NextGen Directors Program
- Women's Executive Leadership
Strategy & Management Programs:
- Customer Obsessed Design for Product Management
- Leading Strategy Execution through Culture
- Negotiation and Influence
- Product Management Studio
- Artificial Intelligence: Business Strategies and Applications
- Business Analytics for Leaders: From Data to Decisions
- Data Science: Bridging Principle and Practice
- Digital Transformation: Leading People, Data, and Technology
- Leading Complex Projects
- Data Strategy: Leveraging Data as a Competitive Advantage
- Future of Technology: Trends, Strategies, and Innovation Opportunities
- Marketing Analytics: Strategies to Optimize ROI
- Technology Leadership Program
Entrepreneurship & Innovation Programs
- Customer Obsessed Design for Product Management
- Open Innovation for Leaders
- Product Management Studio
- Venture Capital Executive Program
- Artificial Intelligence: Business Strategies and Applications
- Blockchain: Technologies and Applications for Business
- Business Analytics for Leaders: From Data to Decisions
- Digital Transformation: Leading People, Data, and Technology
- Fintech: Frameworks, Applications, and Strategies
- Technology Leadership Program
- Marketing Analytics: Strategies to Optimize ROI
- Future of Technology: Trends, Strategies, and Innovation Opportunities
Finance and Business Acumen Programs:
- Financial Data Analysis for Leaders
- Venture Capital Executive Program
- Blockchain: Technologies and Applications for Business
- Fintech: Frameworks, Applications, and Strategies
- Intelligent Investing for Everyone
Have a question about any of our online or in-person executive education offerings?
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