The College of Charleston Executive MBA (EMBA), in partnership with Wisdom Works Group, has released findings from research on the program’s inaugural cohort, showing measurable improvements in leadership effectiveness among students.
The findings spotlight a distinctive aspect of the 18-month Executive MBA program experience: personalized executive coaching. Drawing on 360-degree assessments, self-reported data and executive coach observations, the research evaluated how participants’ leadership behaviors and effectiveness changed throughout the program.
External assessments from participants, colleagues, customers, bosses and direct reports showed clear improvement in how these leaders are experienced by others, including a 12-point increase in leadership effectiveness, a 20.8-point increase in leadership potential utilization and a 16.7-point increase in the ability to balance people and performance.
“Our program was intentionally designed for working professionals who continue to work full-time while they are in the program,” said Ron Magnuson, program director. “What distinguishes this program is its focus on helping participants become more productive, effective and successful leaders within their organizations in real time. These results show that approach is working, with measurable gains in how our participants lead, make decisions and are experienced by others.”
The research also identified growth in areas related to thriving capacity – the ability to flourish at life and work – including energizing others, engagement at work, emotional capacity and life satisfaction. Overall, EMBA students developed greater self-awareness and more effective and intentional leadership behaviors as they navigated professional and personal demands.
Above: Executive MBA participants demonstrated measurable growth in leadership effectiveness and thriving capacity over the program's 18-month duration, according to research conducted with Wisdom Works.
Wisdom Works CEO Renee Moorefield reflected, "Leadership development should be measured by more than what people know; it should be reflected in how they show up, make decisions and positively influence others. These findings show that when executives intentionally build the inner capacity to thrive alongside their leadership capabilities, they create meaningful change that others can see and experience. That's the kind of leadership organizations need to navigate today's complexity."
The College’s Executive MBA is a hybrid program designed to help working professionals build the skills needed to advance into executive roles while balancing the demands of their careers. For more information about the College of Charleston Executive MBA program, visit go.charleston.edu/emba.