IMD Business School, based in Switzerland and IESE of Barcelona both topped the Financial Times’ Executive Education rankings this year. IMD came top of Open-Enrolment courses, for the sixth consecutive year, and jumped to second place in Customised Programmes. IESE topped Custom rankings and was second for Open-Enrolments. This year’s ranking was exceptional in that these top two held the top two spots in both rankings.

The FT Executive Education rankings are widely regarded because they are principally based on participant and client satisfaction, international reach, revenue growth and faculty diversity. Other factors considered include programme preparation, course design, follow-up and aims achieved.

IESE performed highly in terms of its academic rigour and all aspects of it’s Customised Programmes and achieved top five in 11 out of the 15 criteria. Participants valued the school’s follow-up, including networking with other participants, its international locations, and its strong alliances with top business schools such as Harvard, Wharton and CEIBS. Open Programs are taught from IESE´s campuses in Barcelona, Madrid, New York, Munich and Sao Paulo.

Recent clients included Abertis, BMW, Enterprise Ireland, Erste, Gas Natural Fenosa, Henkel, Michelin, Oracle and Telefónica, among others.

IESE: highly respected
According to Associate Dean of Executive Education at IESE Mireia Rius: “Ranking number one for the third consecutive year confirms the confidence placed in us by our alumni, participants and corporate clients.”

“At IESE we believe that developing managers should involve a combination of elements: a high degree of personalisation that incorporates the latest technological and academic innovations; the knowledge and research of a faculty highly involved in the learning of participants and companies and a truly global experience,” she added.

Among IESE’s top-rated offerings are the Advanced Management Program (AMP), with international editions in Brazil, Germany, Poland, Spain and the US; the Advanced Management Program in Media (AMP in Media) in the US; the Program for Management Development (PMD), offered in Brazil, Germany and Spain; the Global CEO Program (GCP), with modules in China, the US and Spain and run in conjunction with CEIBS and Wharton; and the Global CEO Program for China (GCP China), run in partnership with CEIBS and Harvard Business School.

Consistent high standards
Over the past decade, IMD has consistently been among the world’s top business schools in the Financial Times, staying at first place in open programs since 2012 and remaining in the top three for executive education worldwide for the past six years.

“IMD’s continued presence at the top of these rankings is a testimonial of our on-going efforts to strive to live up to our ambition of offering ‘Real Learning and Real Impact’, by developing leaders, transforming organisations and impacting their future. It is also an encouragement to continue to do our utmost to keep deserving executives’ and partner organisations’ confidence,” said IMD President Jean-François Manzoni.

In addition to the impressive Financial Times accolades, IMD has also topped other publications’ rankings including No. 1 worldwide in Bloomberg Business Week (2016) and No. 2 outside the US in Forbes (2015).

Second to IMD in Custom Course Personalisation came Duke Corporate Education of the US. This is the third year in a row that school has received third place, having formerly topped the rankings (until 2014) for 12 consecutive years. Another US stalwart, Harvard Business School had an impressive year jumping nine places to 5th position.

The UK wasn’t ignored however, with Saïd Business School, based at the University of Oxford, jumping five places to 4th, the biggest rise at the top of the Open rankings. Saïd improved its position in all of the criteria, which was the result of the participants’ ratings. Cass Business School in London entered the custom ranking for the first time in 60th place

Outside of Europe and the US, Guanghua School of Management at Peking University returned to the rankings following missing last year’s due to low participant response rate, coming back in at 38th. Antai College of Economics and Management at Shanghai, based at the Jiao Tong University comes in at 32.

Further information
http://on.ft.com/2rhq1h6