Direct Speech, Education and Science, EU – Baltic States

Managing director Dr. Astrid Kleinhanns-Rollé and dean Prof. Bodo Schlegelmilch took a closer look at the success story of the WU Executive Academy.

To mark the special anniversary of WU Vienna's business school, we would like to take a closer look at the remarkable success story that is the WU Executive Academy.

In the following interview, you can read more about the most important milestones of the past decade:

Dean Prof. Bodo B. Schlegelmilch and managing director Dr. Astrid Kleinhanns-Rollé founded the WU Executive Academy together, and today they are still at the helm of Austria's most successful business school.

- Prof. Schlegelmilch, you are the dean of the WU Executive Academy. Could you give us an idea of how it came into being?

Prof. Schlegelmilch: Yes, with pleasure. Apart from regular courses of study, WU Vienna had for many years offered continuing professional education programs, which were, however, scattered across different institutes. In an effort to put continuing professional education on a completely new footing and to bring it together under one roof, the Rector's Council of the day, led by rector Prof. Christoph Badelt and vice-rector Dr. Horst Breitenstein, set up the WU Executive Academy.

- Being not only the WU Executive Academy's dean but its founding dean, you have been involved in the project from the very beginning, right?

Prof. Schlegelmilch: Exactly. I had been the academic director of both the International MBA and the Global Executive MBA for some years when rector Badelt asked me whether I would be interested in becoming the WU Executive Academy's dean. You can imagine my answer. Under the new umbrella brand, we have developed, together with managing director Astrid Kleinhanns-Rollé, a comprehensive range of international executive education offerings in parallel with our German-speaking programs. And I am really pleased that over the years we have managed to position the WU Executive Academy on a par with other leading international providers of executive education.

- Dr. Kleinhanns-Rollé, what happened after the WU Executive Academy had been founded?

Dr. Kleinhanns-Rollé: We knew from the start that we wanted the WU Executive Academy to have a strong international focus. At the time, specialized MBA programs for managers did not exist at all in Europe. So in 2005, we launched the Professional MBA with various specialization options, and we have continued to develop the program ever since. Over the years, we have added a variety of specialization options, including finance, entrepreneurship & innovation, marketing & sales, project management, health care management and energy management. And our strategy has been proved right. Today, the Professional MBA is our largest source of revenue.

- Dr. Kleinhanns-Rollé, the Professional MBA has not been the only program to be added to the WU Executive Academy's portfolio, right?

Dr. Kleinhanns-Rollé: No, it has not. In 2007, we launched the Executive MBA Bucharest in collaboration with OMV/Petrom and Erste Bank/BCR. This MBA, which has been an open program for many years, continues to be hugely successful. Another example is the Executive MBA PGM, which has existed as a certificate program at WU Vienna for more than 40 years and was added to our range of German-speaking MBA programs in 2010.

Moreover, we have been very active as far as Master of Laws programs are concerned: In 2009 and 2012, respectively, we introduced the Master of Business Law (MBL) and the Master of Legal Studies (MLS). While the former is designed to help lawyers acquire a thorough understanding of business, the latter teaches non-lawyers basic legal knowledge and skills.

- Prof. Schlegelmilch, the WU Executive Academy offers not only MBA programs, right?

Prof. Schlegelmilch: Exactly. There is also the "executive education" sector. Ever since the inception of the WU Executive Academy, a growing number of national and international businesses have turned to us as their partner of choice when it comes to in-house employee development. Among them are CTBTO, UniCredit, DB Schenker, Porsche Bank, Telekom Austria, Rewe, Berndorf AG and Österreichische Post AG. We offer our corporate clients a wide range of services, including in-house MBA programs, management development programs, executive/expert lounges and special workshops such as "Future Trends", "Children Coach Managers" or "Dirty Innovation".

Furthermore, the WU Executive Academy runs short focused programs: You have probably heard of "Governance Excellence", a training course designed specifically for supervisory-board members, or of our "Employer Brand Manager" certificate course.

- And the certificate programs?

Prof. Schlegelmilch: The certificate programs are by far the longest-running training courses in the history of WU Vienna: The Tourism & Event Management program first started in 1940, the Marketing & Sales program in 1949 and the Risk & Insurance Management program in 1982. Over time, many others have been added, including the Market Research program and the Logistics & Supply Chain Management program. In 2012, we broke completely new ground by launching our Diplom BetriebswirtIn (BBA) program: This new six-term alternative to a traditional bachelor's degree is highly practical and designed specifically for professionals seeking to develop their knowledge and skills while continuing to pursue their (full-time) careers.

- Dr. Kleinhanns-Rollé, apart from these great developments, what are the three highlights you remember most vividly?

Dr. Kleinhanns-Rollé: Being awarded EQUIS accreditation in 2007 and AMBA accreditation three years later was a real highlight. Accreditations are hallmarks of excellence and play a crucial role when it comes to choosing the training provider you trust. We are one of only two business schools in the German-speaking world to meet the strict quality standards of both EQUIS and AMBA.

The Financial Times (FT) Executive MBA ranking is another undoubted highlight: Our Global Executive MBA has ranked among the world's top 100 since 2008 and in addition is the only Austrian MBA program so far to be included in the prestigious FT ranking.

And last but not least the fact that last year we achieved the best result in the WU Executive Academy's history despite the continuing economic crisis in Austria and the CEE region. Given that in 2014 the European MBA market plummeted by an average of 20% and that renowned business schools in England, among other places, have decided not to restart some of their programs, we can be proud of what we have accomplished together.

Astrid Kleinhanns-Rollé and Bodo B. Schlegelmilch are pleased with the last 10 strong years since the launch of the WU Executive Academy.

- Prof. Schlegelmilch, is there any other milestone you would like to add by way of conclusion?

Prof. Schlegelmilch: Yes, one that is particularly dear to me: Our relocation to Campus WU in fall 2013, which marked not only the conclusion of an ambitious project but also the beginning of a completely new era: The WU Executive Academy building has given us a new sense of identity and our students the opportunity to take advantage of one of Europe's most modern learning environments.