The Business School has been recognized for its Executive Education offer by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

The Business School Executive Education team offers programmes to individuals as well as bespoke courses for companies in order to help leaders hone their skills.

It has now been recognised by the world’s largest business education alliance for its pioneering ImpactLab™ – an experiential approach to learning which uses lab settings from across the College.

These experiential programmes take managers and executives out of their comfort zone and into unfamiliar environments in which they can experiment with new ways of thinking and working.

The ImpactLab™ takes place in settings across the College including the Carbon Capture Lab in the chemical engineering department, a performance simulator housed in the Enterprise Lab and a sequential simulation in partnership with the Centre for Engagement and Simulation Science.

These environments are used to help participants manage uncertainty, time constraints and stress. In the Carbon Capture Lab leaders are divided into two teams and given a 30 minute task of transporting carbon across the North Sea with the aim of focusing on decision-making under stress.

The performance simulator is a virtual reality simulator which allows business professionals to build their confidence in public speaking by giving a presentation to a virtual audience. The simulator, which was developed by the Royal College of Music, was originally designed to help musicians overcome their fear of performing in front of a large audience.

The association singled out Imperial in the category of schools that ‘Enhance Approaches to Leadership Education and Development’. This is for business schools who are creating non-traditional and sometimes cross-disciplinary opportunities for students to hone their leadership skills both inside and outside of the classroom.

"We believe that the experiential method to discovery in Imperial’s STEM background has a lot to teach the world of executive development." David Brown Director of Executive Education, Imperial College Business School

Imperial College Business School was one of 30 global institutions recognised by the AACSB which connects educators, students, and business to achieve a common goal: to create the next generation of great leaders.

David Brown, Director of Executive Education at Imperial College Business School said: “We are delighted that our ImpactLab™ has been recognised as an industry leader in enhancing approaches to leadership education by AACSB.”

He added: “We believe that the experiential method to discovery in Imperial’s STEM background has a lot to teach the world of executive development. The ImpactLab™ combines an enquiring consulting approach with high-impact learning to help change culture on a large scale. International awards such as this continue to endorse Imperial College Business School as a global pioneer in innovation.”

The AACSB’s third annual Innovations That Inspire challenge recognises institutions from around the world serving as champions of change in the business education landscape, with a specific focus on innovation in leadership development, a key pillar of the accreditation process and one of five opportunities identified in the Collective Vision for business education.

“The biggest risk to business schools is not the rapid pace of change. It is in failing to prepare the next generation of business leaders to cope with that change,” said Thomas R. Robinson, president and CEO of AACSB. “Through its best-in-class leadership development program, Imperial College Business School’s ImpactLab™ is ensuring that the business leaders of tomorrow will be ready for whatever lies ahead.”

Beate Baldwin, Director of Open Programmes, Marketing and EMBA at Imperial College Business School said: “Our ImpactLab™ takes its roots from the scientific research that Imperial does: we begin by challenging our participants’ assumptions. We then test their ideas in a safe environment and invite them to think about their behaviour.

The solutions they validate are integrated in the work place and enhance the business. We are not here to prescribe nor “teach” but to inspire and support senior executives in this fast paced technology driven world.”

For an overview of all the featured innovations in this year’s AACSB’s Innovations That Inspire challenge, visit the AACSB's website.