As a business leader today, you need to take note of what is happening in the virtual workplace. How to manage teams online, communicate with colleagues, and work through a crisis are all invaluable lessons for executives adapting to the new world of work.
Esade Business School in Spain is training its Executive MBA students to pick up vital lessons to adapt to the demands of leading virtual teams.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Esade introduced a hybrid learning model and a set of extra virtual activities that have enabled students to maintain their engagement with their course and class community from home.
From better levels of self-awareness to accountability and confidence, here are five leadership skills you’ll pick up on a hybrid Executive MBA.
1. Communication
During a hybrid EMBA, students don’t only go between studying online and in-person. In practice, the classroom is made up partly of in person candidates, and those joining remotely. The impact? you learn how to communicate in different modes, as speaking to the person next to you is different to talking and being heard by someone online.
Alexis Mavrommatis (pictured right), associate professor at Esade, emphasizes the importance of clear communication in a virtual setting.
“In hybrid classes, it’s how communication and emotional intelligence work together that has changed,” he says, “body language is completely different, and so is students’ understanding of contextual communication, and so EMBAs need to be clear and patient.”
Brevity is key to clear communication when you’re not always physically present in the classroom. The hybrid classroom has in many ways replaced superfluous language with different ways of connecting.
Alexis adds: “The beauty of the hybrid format is that it allows students and professors to have more ways of communication.”
2. Managing new contexts
It goes without saying that nobody expected the pandemic. Learning how to manage new and developing contexts was something executives were doing long before lockdowns, in their boardrooms, but for new EMBA candidates these lessons are all the more potent.
“Managing new contexts has forced candidates and managers alike to lose the emotional contact that you usually might have,” says Alexis. The result? A greater ability to be flexible and manage the unexpected.
Learning to adapt to uncertainty on a hybrid Executive MBA means you are prepared for whatever the post-COVID workplace throws at you.
“We tend to only look at the most probable scenarios,” says Gloria Batllori Lloveras (pictured left), lecturer of Economics at Esade, “not the least probable. Now we are living through a highly low probability scenario, we need to be prepared.”
3. Teambuilding
Not having your Executive peers in the same room at the same time could hamper team building. But while the hybrid format means you don’t all get the personal interaction you had pre-COVID-19, a hybrid EMBA is invaluable in showing how to build a team across different locations and modes of work.
“Throughout the pandemic I really saw how the difference between good communication and bad communication impacted teams,” says Adam Berg (pictured right), current EMBA student at Esade.
Above all, candidates on a hybrid EMBA understand each other’s situations in a more personal way than maybe they did before—comradeship through sharing the virtual experience lends itself to helping develop key teambuilding skills.
4. Confidence
Gloria has found there is a higher level of participation on the program than before, despite that seeming counterintuitive.
Why? “Students who may have been more introverted in person find they’re gaining more confidence when speaking online,” Gloria explains.
And while in-person and remote learning don’t appeal only to extrovert and introvert candidates, respectively, the flexibility a hybrid EMBA provides means you can access the teaching method that suits you best.
Current EMBA candidate Adam echoes this sentiment. He’s found that Esade has helped him gain a new level of self-awareness that has aided his confidence.
“With the first phase of the EMBA— ‘Awareness’—candidates learn vital soft skills and the ways to be a better leader, along with a specific coach to help them,” he says. “It’s been one of the most eye-opening classes for learning about myself and my classmates.”
5. Accountability
Adam has not only learnt accountability from the course lessons, but from Esade’s response to COVID-19 and education regulations.
“Esade have been accountable in communicating with students,” he says, “and despite growing pains along the way, it’s helped us trust more.”
Seeing how an institution responds to crisis and is accountable reinforces how you can do the same. Gloria adds how executives are learning to see how their decisions have a wider impact.
“The complexity of COVID has shown that we need to be able to understand the interactions between the different forces driving different situations.
“This requires integrated thinking and accountability, being able to see different perspectives.”
My time at ESADE Business School has been beyond remarkable. From the moment of the application process, the staff has been super helpful and responsive on every single email! The faculty are highly engaging, the peers collaborative and the curriculum cutting-edge, encouraging me to push my own boundaries and broaden my understanding of business. With practical learning at its core, ESADE has provided me with crucial skills for success in the real world. Not only is this school an ideal place to develop yourself; it's also home to so many fantastic opportunities, friendships and growth. If you're ready for change and want to thrive in the business world then this is definitely the university for you!
Student
Verified
9/08/2023
On Campus
Esade review
As I am just starting off in September, I do not have any hands-on information about the education or the university itself. However, I can tell you about the experience I have had with the admin staff, which was always extremely positive. As I am a scholarship student, I had some hardships with reserving my place as I needed to wait for the result of my scholarship application, otherwise, I would not have been able to attend the university. They kindly offered me to hold my place without paying which was a big help for me. Additionally, any time I had problems with the IT system or any administrative task they would always help me in a day or two.
Student
Verified
27/05/2023
On Campus
Bachelor Business administration
ESADE University stands as a beacon of academic excellence and innovation. With its dynamic programs, world-class faculty, and vibrant campus culture, ESADE offers a transformative educational experience. From cutting-edge business education to a commitment to societal impact, ESADE surpasses expectations. It's a remarkable institution that nurtures tomorrow's leaders.
Anamaria
Verified
22/06/2022
On Campus
Excellent education.
ESADE is a quality university, the professors are the best in the area and this is evident in the student's academic progress. Additionally, the university is responsible for providing opportunities to access the world of work. It is a university internationally recognized for its quality and excellence. It is located in the best neighborhood of Barcelona.
Angel
Verified
22/09/2020
On Campus
Excellent teachers and classes and a superb international experience
If you are looking for a law specialization master's degree (LLM) in the non so traditional areas of law, and you are seeking for an international fully enriching experience, ESADE is your best choice.
ESADE started as a business school so the MBA and other business degrees are their core. Nonetheless, law education and in particular the specialisation master's (international business law and intellectual property and ICT law) are also on the top Europe's LLM of their fields. They combine an excellent program, with the best teachers available in Barcelona and with a more than enough amount of resources to study and help the student to get initiated in their career field. Also, this is the best international experience out there; personally, I got to share a classroom with other 25 students, where only 6 of them were Spanish, the other 19 including myself were a mixture of different nationalities, especially from Latin American countries.
Mafalda
Verified
2/07/2020
What an enriching experience!
The program was super complete and touched on all the key points I considered important in a Master of Law, Intellectual Property and Technology. In addition, I was able to take advantage of business, communication, leadership and other disciplines, so important in the training of a complete and multifaceted professional. It is also great that all teachers are lawyers, so they can practice the knowledge they teach us on a daily basis. In this way, they are able to transmit theoretical knowledge to us with a much more practical approach, super useful for our future. In this way, we are able to penetrate the network of contacts in our areas, which can be extremely beneficial for our career.
I also believe that the University is really concerned with the students, in helping them in everything they need, which can be demonstrated, for example, in the current pandemic situation, since it has always tried to act in such a way as to harm the students as little as possible, providing the support and compensation that they considered fair.
In conclusion, I would like to thank ESADE for providing me with one of the best experiences of my life, in which I have made friends for life, and from which I leave with excellent academic preparation, ready to face the challenges of a professional career.
Günther
Verified
6/06/2020
The online platform and the involvment of students and teachers
The online platform is very agile to work and gives you great flexibility to follow the program. Secondly, I was surprised by the involvement of students and teachers. This has made the program very interesting with links to extensions of the agenda. Quite a good surprise. I would clearly recommend it.
Katrin
Verified
26/04/2020
Great class cohesion, superb study location, super professors
I loved the class cohesion with plenty of international students from all over the world. Great to have that mix during a practical business project to do with the local economy of the Costa Brava.
Studying in Barcelona is simply amazing, and even though the university is not directly in the center, it is in a really nice part of the city with great views over the old town and the sea. I always enjoyed my walk from the metro station to the school.
The professors were nice and motivated, and as classes were small, it allowed a very good learning atmosphere.
Student
Verified
25/04/2020
Amazing experience!
The professors are qualified, passionate, and dive deeply into the topics while always making class engaging. Hands-on experience with companies to solve real issues - offering a great opportunity to apply the learnings and gain more relevant experience. The study tours and minor class trips are also adding value to the course, along with many career and social events, which help create a good environment. Would highly recommend!
Student
Verified
30/09/2019
ESADE Business School allows me to build amazing and long-lasting friendships.
ESADE Business School has successfully created an environment where engaged, open-minded, passionate and problem-solving individuals can proliferate both academically and professionally as they establish friendships with students/professionals from all over the world.
Student
Verified
29/10/2024
On Campus
Career Pivot
I decided to pursue the executive MBA at ESADE after speaking with several alumni about their backgrounds and reasons for choosing this program. Coming from tech, I wanted to learn about other aspects of a company and get assistance in creating my own business plan. The open day was well planned and informative complete with a sample class and case studies. If you’re in doubt, I recommend you attend one of these events.
