Getting the Most Out of Executive Education

The key to getting more out of executive education programs, according to Gilmore, Smith and Shea, is "mindfulness" about the process. They note research by Ellen Langer that shows, that the more executives are mindful about a few things, the greater the learning and the easier it is to access and apply it. "We contend that an executive needs to be mindful about a number of issues when entering, going through, and exiting an educational program," the authors write in the paper, "Mindfulness and Executive Education," published by the Center for Applied Research.

Companies don't pay enough attention to which managers should go (they round up the usual suspects), and "senior executives blithely view 'development' as a 'good thing' and think no further; many participants sleepwalk into a program, putting off all preparation for it until the last minute, adopting a 'consumer' or even a 'show me' attitude (as distinct from a 'participant attitude') as if active collaboration were unnecessary or even inappropriate," the authors write.

By preparing well, focusing in the classroom, and preparing for reentry afterwards, you can get much more out of your educational experiences, and your organization can receive a better return on its investment.

Prepare To Hit the Ground Running

The process begins before you set foot in the classroom. Being clear about the intended benefits of the program for you and your organization is critical to getting the most out of it.

• Ensure organizational support: The study found that education works best when the program is carefully selected to address a need of both the organization and the executive. Sending executives to a program as a reward or means of conferring status — or, worse yet, as a consolation prize for executives passed over for promotion — will undermine the contributions of the program to career development and the company's progress. On the other hand, sending multiple participants from the same organization or involving bosses in part of the program can help deepen the impact.
  
  
• Set clear goals: You and your company need to have clear goals for what you expect to achieve. A lot of powerful learning happens in the workplace, so you should go offsite only when you can see a chance to gain new perspectives or develop skills that can't be developed in the office. Although the program design may emphasize either theory or practice, you should make sure to focus on both the broad aspects of theory and practical application.
  
  
• Be prepared to learn: Adults learn more when they feel the need to learn.

Focus Fully in the Classroom

Managers who get the most out of programs also focus their full attention in the classroom.

• Create space from work and family: If you have one foot in the classroom and the other back at work or home, you will not get as much from the experience. You need to clear your desk, shut off your cell phone and BlackBerry, and make the space to immerse yourself in the program.
  
  
• Use the opportunity to develop your staff: While some managers are fearful that work will suffer, this can be an opportunity for you to develop staff who have to step up to the plate. When you return, you might initiate a conversation with your managers and peers to ask for their experience during your absence.
  
  
• Bring personal humility and courage: Executives advance by knowing the answers to questions, but executive education programs create an opportunity "to embrace one's ignorance." If you can set aside your ego, you will learn much more from the program –and about yourself. If you think about it, the times when you have learned the most in your life were when you were willing to let down your guard and tolerate some discomfort. "Those who understand the necessity and value of this journey have an easier time with it," the authors write. "Those who have never thought about it may well be halfway or more through the course before they catch on to the condition they must be in to learn."
  
  
• Recognize stakeholders: Understanding the context of your job, particularly the relevant stakeholders, can help in thinking about the material presented during a program. During the program, try to view the material through the eyes of other stakeholders in the organization, as well as suppliers, customers, regulators, and others outside the firm. This will give a deeper understanding of the content and also help in implementing new ideas upon your return.
  
  
• Leave behind stereotypical reference groups: It is not uncommon in a program for men in the class to ask women for "a woman's perspective," as if the female managers are representative of all women. In groups, individuals may be pushed to represent a group based on their organizational role, gender, ethnicity, community activities, or other factors. The potential for unique personal development increases when participants can leave these groups behind.

Create a Strategy for Coming Down From the Mountaintop

Like Moses coming down from the mountaintop, returning executives often face a shock when they get back to the office. New ideas, no matter how good, are resisted by the organization, particularly when imposed as commandments. Returning managers can improve their odds of making an impact by giving careful attention to their return.

• Prepare for reentry: Many times, executives return from an invigorating program full of enthusiasm and great ideas but are frustrated in trying to implement their new insights. You need to prepare carefully for reentry before leaving the classroom. If you carefully plot out your transition from the program to work, you will have longer-lasting benefits for yourself and your organization.
  
  
• Focus on a few key changes: Commit to complete one or two key actions within 2 weeks of returning from the program. You need to be judicious, asking: What few approaches stand a chance of gaining acceptance in the short term? What ideas should be put on the back burner for the future? Which ones should be jettisoned? Often this means observing the workplace like an anthropologist returning from a foreign land.
  
  
• Avoid evangelism: If you come back fired up with new ideas, you can actually turn off others because of your passion. This becomes counterproductive and frustrating. If you impose dramatic new ways of thinking after a program, you will have less chance of successfully implementing changes. Staff and colleagues, learning from past experience, may try to wait out this phase until the passion subsides and life goes back to normal. The authors recommend creating "pull" versus "push" in implementing new ideas. You can use a "Trojan Horse" approach, slipping new ideas past the walls of resistance by embedding them in attractive, small initiatives. Once the organization sees the results of these initiatives, they will recognize the power of the ideas themselves without the need to storm the gates.

By being more mindful about the process — before, during, and after the program — managers can take an active role in their own education. These steps help ensure that they do more than get fired up, but actually translate their new knowledge into changes for themselves and their organizations.

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