Strengthening a curricular emphasis on global and intercultural connectivity, a fourth partner from Canada has joined Eastern Mennonite University (EMU), Bluffton University and Goshen College in the Collaborative Masters of Business Administration (MBA) program. Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, will accept graduate students into the program this fall.
“We are delighted to partner with a business program with similar interests and motivations, especially sharing a unique perspective on how business can be successfully carried out with a value-based sensitivity and outlook that considers more than just dollars and cents,” says Gordon Zerbe, CMU academic vice president. “Future leaders, more than ever, will be expected to direct entrepreneurial spirit, but also with a heightened appreciation for social responsibility, sustainability, and stewardship.”
The Collaborative MBA is an accredited online program based on the concept of “leadership for the common good,” emphasizing six values – spiritual growth, honoring community, leading as service, upholding justice, planning for sustainability and global citizenship.
“Leadership for the common good is a concept that pays attention to the triple bottom line of people, planet, and profits,” said Jim Smucker, program director and dean of graduate and professional studies at EMU. “The common good is established each time a person, organization or community reaches beyond individual self-interest for the sake of the greater whole.”
The addition of CMU’s faculty of business experts expands both the vision and resources of the program, Smucker added.
Students are organized in cohorts – the first cohort started in summer 2014 – and move together through 12 courses that are typically completed in 22-24 months. Nine core courses are augmented by three courses directly related to one of the eight concentration areas: health care management, leadership, accounting and financial management, leading non-profits, conflict transformation, sustainable organizations and intercultural leadership.
Most courses are offered through interactive video conferencing and practical projects. Synchronous interactions delivered through video are complemented by asynchronous learning, in which students contribute and interact on their own time. A one-week international residency provides students with a global perspective and emphasizes interdependency and mutual accountability, values at the heart of today’s global economy. This approach accommodates different styles of learning, as well as demands of employment and family.
Article by Lauren Jefferson. Photo by Jamie Nygaard/Bluffton University.
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