Looking for advice on doing a ‘mini’ Exec MBA, ideally 100% online. I can’t really justify the cost/benefit for a traditional EMBA; more specifically, I’m constrained by having to study online.

Me:
51 years old, live near London.
Business Studies degree from a low ranked UK university.

Work experience:
I'm IT Director level, working as a senior interim manager for large clients.

First 7-8 years of career was in supply chain management.

Then did 5 years IT/Supply chain consulting across Europe in my early 30s, including two years at PA Consulting, a fairly prestigious mid-large size management consultancy.

Worked closely during last 15 years with almost every business function plus worked in around 10 sectors so have good broad business knowledge, except corporate finance/strategy.

Worked in 5 FTSE100/Fortune 500 companies but also worked in a major charity plus public sector.

Goals:
Move back to a permanent role and aim to be a CIO (Chief Information Officer) of a medium sized firm within around 2 years.

Don't need to bump up salary drastically, already in £120-140k bracket.

Alumni and improving broader functional network would be useful but already know lots of senior leaders/headhunters in tech for career opportunities.


Other considerations:
Separately, I’m looking at doing a short course through Oxford Said on Executive Leadership but the areas I need to focus on are mainly strategy and finance and a refresh in marketing.

Ultimately, I need to improve my broader strategic awareness that will help demonstrate the required knowledge/gravitas as I move closer to the C-suite.

I would prefer to choose a course from a prestigious brand name university like Oxbridge, MIT, Stanford, Wharton etc.

Is there such a thing as a suitable mini EMBA?

I see Wharton do an online six month Management Development Program at just under $10k. I’m not sure how rigorous it looks and there’s no academic credit but is that so important for exec education?

Boston Questrom used to do a well thought of mini-MBA for Tech execs as part of a larger Digital Leadership programme but sadly it ceased last year and I can’t find any equivalents.

Any advice gratefully received.

The issue is this: most non-degree options won't make you an alumnus of the university, and they will lack the rigour to give you more than functional vocabulary. The Boston University online MBA sounds like a good option: it would cost less than the Oxford diploma, and give you a much better education.  

There's little functional difference between a £27,000 Said diploma and a £432 Wharton Strategic Management Certificate. Both give you bragging rights, a diploma for the wall behind your desk. Degree alumni of those schools will know they are qualifications that are not really comparable in rigour to an MBA. If you simply need a superficial connection to a brand name, the Wharton certificate works. 

Right now, UK residents have a unique opportunity to get a free or almost-free degree through the apprenticeship scheme. For example, the Cass masters seems to meet many of your needs: https://www.cass.city.ac.uk/study/executive-education/degree-apprenticeships/executive-masters-in-leadership Cranfield, Henley, Manchester have similar options.

Another option would professional organisations' qualifications, like the ICAEW Business and Finance Professional (BFP) and the CIM's Certificate in Professional Marketing.

[Edited by Duncan on Jun 20, 2020]

Thanks for that insight Duncan. Coincidentally I looked at a Cass masters in 2013 but in ‘Innovation, Creativity and Leadership.’ My career objectives were slightly different then. I didn’t apply as it was too difficult to fit around my work.

As I said in my previous email, I work as an interim manager so I get paid by the day by my clients. The Cass course you suggested looks like it is campus attendance based which might need perhaps 30-40 days attendance over 2 years. That would cost me around £30-40k lost earnings which isn’t feasible at the moment. Hence why I posted that I need a largely online course so I can study mainly in the evenings plus weekends. My work is also geographically dispersed so trying to study in the same place could be tricky.

The Said course I mentioned is an 8 week online course specifically in leadership, i.e. no finance, strategy etc. I accept it doesn’t compare to an MBA course at all but personally that course might suit my specific needs. I believe that leadership is best learnt by practice on the job and such a course would give me a framework and tools to apply that in real life experience.

I had looked at the CIM for digital marketing courses but hadn’t thought of something like ICAEW. I’m now thinking of using a specialist CIO career development/ coaching company that a friend just recommended. That might give me some more career specific insight into what type of course would be most appropriate as it seems there are several ways to approach this.

Thanks again.

[Edited by aslamo on Jun 20, 2020]

Also see: https://find-mba.com/board/distance-learning/value-alternatives-to-unaccredited-mbas-58288

Also see: https://find-mba.com/board/distance-learning/value-alternatives-to-unaccredited-mbas-58288

It's a bit more extensive than you might imagine. This is 14 credits of a US MBA. Remember that a US masters is typically twice as long as the UK. 14 US credits would equate to 28 ECTS or 56 UK credits. A typical UK MBA would be 60 credits in the core; 60 credits of electives and 60 credits in a project report or thesis. So, what you have from Smith is something very comparable to the entire core curriculum a UK MBA.

would it likely be more comprehensive and rigorous than any executive non-MBA course at diploma/certificate level?

[Edited by Duncan on Jun 20, 2020]

It's a bit more extensive than you might imagine. This is 14 credits of a US MBA. Remember that a US masters is typically twice as long as the UK. 14 US credits would equate to 28 ECTS or 56 UK credits. A typical UK MBA would be 60 credits in the core; 60 credits of electives and 60 credits in a project report or thesis. So, what you have from Smith is something very comparable to the entire core curriculum a UK MBA.

Duncan, I reflected on your comment about the Maryland EdX core course being equivalent to almost a UK MBA core and suddenly the way forward for me became much clearer. I'm now looking at doing the Maryland course as my ‘core’ and using the five modules from the Boston Questrom EdX Micromasters in Digital Leadership as my electives (which equate to 8 credits.) The Boston modules also give me an additional option of doing additional courses at Questrom in future to qualify for a Digital Business qualification – one that has been highly recommend to me.

Total cost is a mere £2,700. Plus much greater flexibility to do the modules as and when I want and filling in all the gaps in knowledge for my particular career path. As I don’t really need the salary boost or networking benefits, it seems a good fit for my needs.

[Edited by aslamo on Jun 27, 2020]

Those Micromasters are great value