In a recent article called “Solving for ‘X’”, BizEd published essays from seven business school deans about their most successful solution to the modern problems that their institutions face. One of the seven deans was Peter Henry, Dean of New York University’s Stern School of Business.
When he first became a Dean at Stern, MBA students told Dean Henry that they felt they had to focus on their job searches starting at the beginning of their business school education. The unrelenting pressure of the job search left students with little time to consider how they could use their MBA to create value for themselves and the world. Dean Henry said ‘I wanted to send them a different message, one based on “and” rather than “or.” I wanted them to understand that doing well and doing good need not be discrete activities.’
In response to these concerns, Dean Henry and the Stern faculty made significant changes to Stern’s MBA orientation. In 2011, faculty, students, and administrators came together to design LAUNCH, the nine day orientation for all incoming Stern MBA students. The orientation is designed to study social issues from four angles: World, Business, City, and U.
Each of the first three days focuses on “World,” “Business,” or “City”. Students participate in breakout sessions on the theme and hear speeches from guest speakers and faculty. Previous guests have included Roger Ferguson, the chairman and CEO of TIAA-CREF, and Cory Booker, the former mayor of Newark and current senator of New Jersey. The first three days also feature special events, like “9”, an event where nine guest speakers give nine-minute TED-style talks.
The last six days of LAUNCH focus on “U,” encouraging students to think about how they can make meaningful contributions to society. Students learn about offices of career development and student engagement, listen to advice from recent graduates, and receive mentoring. Students also get to participate in Launch Pad, a program where students create and present videos highlighting ways to create value in the world. The students then get to vote on which Launch Pad projects show the most promise.
Dean Henry emphasizes how important LAUNCH is to Stern and the school’s MBA students: “For us, LAUNCH has become both noun and verb. As an event, it is the beginning of our MBA students’ experience at Stern; it is also an active process that propels students onto a trajectory to explore how they can become more transformative leaders.”
