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January 29 , 2007
Goizueta Business School

by Victor rogers

Michael Sacks, assistant professor of organization and management at the Goizueta Business School, took a novel approach for the final project in one of his M.B.A. classes. Rather than having students analyze a diverse range of organizations, Sacks asked them to design a specific project for a local organization — a first-ever assessment of Atlanta’s city parks.

Students presented their findings and recommendations to representatives from the project sponsor, the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, and to Mayor Shirley Franklin’s office, turning the research into valuable information for the city. The students benefited by transferring skills from the classroom to a project whose recommendations actually can be implemented.

The parks project demonstrates two of Goizueta’s goals: developing its internal community and reaching out to its external community. The business school has developed a number of initiatives to strengthen both and is seeing results as the initiatives are launched.

One of the first initiatives to be developed is a plan to support the diversity of the internal community. The business school has established a diversity committee and has appointed a director of diversity and community initiatives. During the last year, Goizueta has doubled the number of underrepresented, full-time M.B.A. students enrolled through the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management.

Goizueta also is continuing to strengthen its faculty and student body while growing in academic areas where it has exceptional strength and student demand. The school already has made one faculty hire of national distinction for the 2007–2008 academic year and is planning others.

To help attract talented students, the new Goizueta Scholars program has been developed to support top high school students interested in business. The business school also is working with Emory College to create programs to meet the needs of all students.

The business school has achieved targeted growth in its Evening M.B.A. and Executive M.B.A. programs. The relatively new Ph.D. program is measuring success, in part, by its graduate hires, and has had early success in placing graduates in top business schools.

In order to provide the best business education possible, Goizueta also is examining academics, particularly the M.B.A. program. A committee has analyzed the curriculum and is now developing new and innovative coursework. The curriculum will provide leadership development in both the undergraduate and M.B.A. programs and includes plans for a Leadership Institute — with support from major donors — that will develop its graduates into ethical leaders in the global business community.

Goizueta plans to strengthen its relationship with the business community and formed a team to coordinate a holistic approach to corporate relationship management. Members are developing a plan to re-energize relationships with key recruiters at targeted companies.

The school also is committed to providing executive education to the business community and is refocusing Emory Executive Development to provide comprehensive and customized executive learning solutions that deliver solid returns on investment.

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