A unique emba X-perience
Explore this section to learn more about our courses and understand how the different elements integrate as a sequence.
The emba X journey lasts 18 months, and encompasses on-campus courses and events in the lively Zurich and/or the beautiful town of St.Gallen, as well as online sessions.
This part-time study journey has been carefully designed to optimize your learnings and ensure their immediate application to your personal and professional life.
Every single month, the Personal Development Programme (PDP) will act as both a compass as well as your base camp along this intense journey. Through the PDP you will holistically develop mind, body and soul via continuous (self-)assessment tools, workshops, training, coachings, and peer-to-peer coaching opportunities.
2025
February
WHY Week & Essentials I Week
The WHY Week
Short Description
Participants will kick-off with their personal leadership development journey. Further, they will participate in two skill-building workshops, one on building and leading high-performing teams and one on coaching.
E1: Adaptive Cognitive Leadership
Short Description:
Understanding and developing cognitive leadership skills for innovation and adaptation, both in the “DO” (applied skills) and “BE” (mindset) dimensions
E2: Organisational Leadership
Short Description:
Practical learning and application of strategic leadership tools while addressing complex challenges in society by the integration of socially responsible leadership and technological readiness.
E3: Business Ethics
Short Description:
Practical questions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by discussing concrete moral, social, and environmental issues; as well as application of concrete tools in the context of CSR, and how to transfer this context to your organization.
E4: Strategy & Innovation
Short Description:
Development and execution of winning sustainable business strategies. Adaptation of organizational strategy to rapidly shifting environments through the design of innovative business models and/or ecosystems.
February & March
Online Essentials 1-4
E1: Adaptive Cognitive Leadership
Short Description:
Understanding and developing cognitive leadership skills for innovation and adaptation, both in the “DO” (applied skills) and “BE” (mindset) dimensions
E2: Organisational Leadership
Short Description:
Practical learning and application of strategic leadership tools while addressing complex challenges in society by the integration of socially responsible leadership and technological readiness.
E3: Business Ethics
Short Description:
Practical questions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by discussing concrete moral, social, and environmental issues; as well as application of concrete tools in the context of CSR, and how to transfer this context to your organization.
E4: Strategy & Innovation
Short Description:
Development and execution of winning sustainable business strategies. Adaptation of organizational strategy to rapidly shifting environments through the design of innovative business models and/or ecosystems.
May
Essentials II Week
E5: Geoeconomic Dynamics & Disruption
Short Description:
This course will enable executives to interpret the macroeconomic significance of profound technological change, climate change the ongoing energy transition, and globalization.
E6: Corporate Finance
Short Description:
This course will equip excecutives with a holistic understanding of financial markets allowing them to navigate their companies not only throughout the current status quo.
E7: Sustainability
Short Description:
The course will focus on how to approach corporate sustainability strategy, with a focus on climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.
Analytics (Business & Marketing)
Short Description:
The course will enable executives to use data effectively to drive profitable management decisions.
May & June
Online Essentials 5-8
E5: Geoeconomic Dynamics & Disruption
Short Description:
This course will enable executives to interpret the macroeconomic significance of profound technological change, climate change the ongoing energy transition, and globalization.
E6: Corporate Finance
Short Description:
This course will equip excecutives with a holistic understanding of financial markets allowing them to navigate their companies not only throughout the current status quo.
E7: Sustainability
Short Description:
The course will focus on how to approach corporate sustainability strategy, with a focus on climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.
E8: Analytics (Business & Marketing)
Short Description:
The course will enable executives to use data effectively to drive profitable management decisions.
July
Essentials III Week
E9: Energy Management, Technology and Economics
Short Description:
This module will provide participants with an in-depth understanding of what it takes to move towards a sustainable energy system. The module will look at challenges and opportunities on three levels: Macro, meso and micro.
E10: Technology Entrepreneurship
Short Description:
This course will introduce you to the entrepreneurial process of discovering, creating, evaluating, and exploiting technology-based entrepreneurial opportunities.
E11: Cognitive Technologies
Short Description:
Cognitive technologies bring unprecedented potential to transform our society with information technology that possesses human-level capabilities. This course aims to empower participants with technical fluency (“Know”), an understanding of core drivers of cognitive technologies, hands-on learning (“Do”), an overview of the latest trends and applications, and evaluation skills (“Be”) to navigate the responsible transformation of business application through cognitive technologies.
E12: Product & Service Technologies
Short Description:
Introduction to key technologies – and how they change the nature of products and services offerings. Managerial frameworks and industry examples on how organizations can adapt and respond to the change.
August & September
Online Essentials 9-12
E9: Energy Management, Technology and Economics
Short Description:
This module will provide participants with an in-depth understanding of what it takes to move towards a sustainable energy system. The module will look at challenges and opportunities on three levels: Macro, meso and micro.
E10: Technology Entrepreneurship
Short Description:
This course will introduce you to the entrepreneurial process of discovering, creating, evaluating, and exploiting technology-based entrepreneurial opportunities.
E11: Cognitive Technologies
Short Description:
Cognitive technologies bring unprecedented potential to transform our society with information technology that possesses human-level capabilities. This course aims to empower participants with technical fluency (“Know”), an understanding of core drivers of cognitive technologies, hands-on learning (“Do”), an overview of the latest trends and applications, and evaluation skills (“Be”) to navigate the responsible transformation of business application through cognitive technologies.
E12: Product & Service Technologies
Short Description:
Introduction to key technologies -– and how they change the nature of products and services offerings. Managerial frameworks and industry examples on how organizations can adapt and respond to the change.
October
eXperiential Week 1
EW1: Global Business
Short Description:
This week will explore the current and future challenges of global business and will address critical geopolitical changes and their direct and indirect effects on global businesses. Along with a LSL on High Performance Teams and a PDP Workshop on S-Curve.
December
eXperiential Week 2
EW2: Social Impact
Short Description:
This week focuses on the Social Impact for Business Model Innovation project that offers students the opportunity to work on challenges presented by non-profit organizations while integrating the Business Model Innovation course.
2026
February
eXperiential Week 3
EW3: Next Operating Models
Short Description:
This week focuses on how organisations can harness the potential of technology to drive innovation, achieve business goals and maintain a competitive advantage. The courses provide deep dives into data-driven improvement, the role of operating models in realising a sustainable manufacturing industry and the effort needed to bring new digital technologies to life within a company.
May
eXperiential Week 4 & 5
EW4: Digital Platforms
Short Description:
The discussion of principles for designing and governing digital platforms and corresponding digital products and
services will provide you with a rounded perspective on digital platform strategies. You will analyse the underlying mechanics
of digital value creation and explore this phenomenon from different angles such as platform solutions, network dynamics, incentives, quality issues and one vs. twosided platforms. You will also look at more fundamental issues around platform business such as emerging technology, sustainability and macro perspectives. Finally, you will take part in a discussion of the possible downsides to digital platforms for society.
EW5: Agile Hardware
Short Description:
This week focuses on introducing the principles of agile hardware development and aspects of change management methods. It also has a LSL on the Power of Influence and a CIP day at the Zurich Insurance.
July
eXperiential Week 6 & X Week
EW6: Entrepreneurial Strategy
Short Description:
This week is a mix of exploring the mechanisms of entrepreneurial thinking and how it can be successfully introduced to a corporate environment, along with a LSL on managing conflicts and system thinking.
The X Week
Short Description:
During the X-Week the participants will present and discuss the implementation of their company projects and revisit the outcomes of the social impact project. Further, the students will reflect on their learnings, experiences, and personal development during the course of the entire program.
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