DeSales University’s Kathleen Waterbury and J.B. Reilly School of Business is introducing a new “kind” of MBA to the business community.
The university said the MBA is designed through the prism of the University’s Salesian values to prepare graduates for today’s business challenges and opportunities.
Karen Kent, director of the program, led a team of faculty and staff that studied trends in business leadership, technology, and experiential learning to examine and reimagine the future of business education, DeSales University said in a release.
“In today’s world, it’s all about being able to enhance and develop your organization to meet the demands of both the internal environment and external forces,” Kent said. “That’s why we think more of an emphasis on strategic thinking is necessary. The world is changing so rapidly with technology, we need skilled managers that can adapt to change quickly.”
The new curriculum, which launches this fall, is driven by six guiding principles:
- “Be Who You Are, and Be That Well” as a clear vision for effective leadership.
- An effective leader has an astute sense of business acumen, including being able to navigate the new AI world.
- Executives rely on data analysis and must be capable of steering discussions to make decisions.
- Ethics must be the paramount force in business.
- Productivity, efficiency, and the culture of workplaces can improve with an advanced study of individual and organizational behavior.
- Knowledge is created through the transformation of experience in leading, not just theory.
Kent said she and her team considered the impact of AI and other changes in technology to offer the most up-to-date information and guidance to students. They also updated the foundational courses to enable students to acquire the skills they need to start the program sooner. Concentration areas are also being condensed from 14 offerings down to seven.
“These changes appeal to the demands and needs of our students,” Kent said. “The self-design concentration has grown to be our number one concentration, and health care is right behind it. But, at the same time, some students still like to pursue a specialty-focused MBA. We’re always trying to carefully balance the needs of our students and the importance of their educational design for the future.”
A new Experiential Capstone Course will provide students with an opportunity to practice their skills as members of the DeSales MBA Consulting Team, the university said.
Teams will partner with local nonprofits and start-up companies on strategic projects, with faculty serving as coaches. This year, two capstone classes conducted a comprehensive strategic plan for Camelot for Children in Allentown, covering operational, fundraising, grant writing, and long-range facility plans, the university said.
Several hallmarks of the program that won’t change, Kent said, are flexibility, affordability, and personalized attention. Classes will still be offered in different formatsonline, on campus, or asynchronous.
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