Personalized Guidance and Support
As an executive, establishing meaningful connections is both a skill and an art. A distinguishing feature of the LMU EMBA program is our Executive Connections program, anchored by the individual guidance you will receive from an executive coach and an alumni mentor.
Executive coaches and alumni mentors share the following objectives:
- Engage in and reinforce professional and personal development.
- Guide practical application of competencies, skills, perspectives and decision-making frameworks.
- Assist in network building by providing strategic recommendations and making connections.
- Increase the diversity, inclusion and awareness of resources in and out of the program.
Though these two advisers share the same objectives, their roles are slightly different.
Coaching is more performance driven, designed to improve a professional’s on-the-job performance. An effective executive coach holds a mirror up to their student, helping them think about where they are professionally, where they want to be and how they might navigate themselves to that moment.
Mentoring is more development driven, looking not just at the professional's current job function but beyond, taking a more holistic approach to career development. In our program, mentors are LMU EMBA graduates with first-hand knowledge of what it takes to acclimate to and succeed in the EMBA environment. Our alumni mentors serve a unique role for our students ranging from a voice of support to a sounding board.
Executive Connections
You will have the opportunity to be paired with a coach and mentor from our list of candidates, or select a coach and mentor from your current network. We request that you meet with your coach and mentor a minimum of 3 times per semester to allow for meaningful growth and interaction. Combined with our faculty, your coach and mentor will become part of your “personal board of directors,” a small group of people that you go to for support and advice on advancing your career.
Coaching and mentoring are present throughout the EMBA program, most evident in the “Professional Development” course included in all 4 modules of the EMBA curriculum. Each module will contain a different focus related to coaching and mentoring.
- Module 1, Discovering Yourself: Who are you as a leader, and what areas and skills do you need to improve?
- Module 2, Becoming a Mentee: Learn how to locate a coach and/or mentor to address your professional and leadership development needs.
- Module 3, Becoming a Mentor: Learn how to support another’s professional goals and objectives.
- Module 4, Building Your Mentor and Mentee Relationships: Solidify your personal board of directors, and determine how you will move forward beyond the EMBA program.