Alverno graduates first MBA class - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

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Syverson graduated from 20 years ago, and she worriex that Alverno, with its emphasie on “experiential learning” and ability-based would lack the structure she needed to furthere herbusiness skills. But Alvernpo officials changedher mind, and she says she’sd glad they did. Syverson, 48, graduated with the firsft Alverno MBA classin December. The clasa gave her a new set of skills to apply to her job as marketingv managerwith , a divisiom of U.S. Bank, she said. Alverno’s tiny MBA program doesn’ft seem to have captured much notice yet. Officialw at the and the business schools at the and Marquettee University said they knew little abourthe program, though U.S.
News & World Report did name Alvernooan up-and-coming university for master’s programs this But Alverno students and officialas said the school’s unique philosophy has created a curriculumn unlike traditional MBA programs. Alverno already offeredf nursing andteaching master’s degrees before starting the MBA prograjm in fall 2006. As more women entered the business world, an MBA program seemed like the logical next step for the women’ college, said Alverno president Mary The college offers its graduate programs to womenj and men, though the Decemberd 2008 graduating MBA class of 20 was entirelyy women.
Alverno officials studied existing graduats programs and found them lacking an emphasis on personak skills suchas communication, teamwork and said Bill McEachern, the college’s MBA programj director. A survey of Milwaukee business leaders confirmectheir thinking. “They wanted peoplse to be creativeand innovative,” McEachern said. “They wanted people who could thin outsidethe box. They wanted peopl e who were effective communicators.” The colleg e set up a curriculum to emphasize fivecore areas: strategixc analysis, execution, innovation and global and cultural competence, and ethical managing and leading.
The program focuse on “just-in-time learning,” McEachern said. Students follow a prescribecd order of classes through five building on what they learned inpreviouas classes. Instead of taking a unit on marketing or for example, students learn about those concepts as they come up in projectd or case studies. Students don’t take traditional examse or receiveletter grades, consistent with Alverno’ philosophy of ability-based, outcome-focused learning. That was a littlw scary for Syverson. “I thought, ‘Well, how am I going to know that I’mj learning the information?
’ ” she But the program made it clear what she knew and wherer sheneeded work, she said. Students completew projects to demonstrate their and the classes provideextensive feedback. For Syverson had to rewrite a financiapl analysis of until she could make connections between different aspects of the business ona profit-and-loss statement, she Now when she looks at profit and loss statementd for U.S. Bank, she knows more about what they mean and how sheshould respond, she said. The process mimicse the true business experience, Meehan said.