Business schools are watching the rise of McKinsey Academy, an Open edX-based platform created by the consultancy giant and headquartered in lower Manhattan .
“McKinsey has genuine potential to reshape the business education market”, says The Financial Times.
“When people ask me where my competition is, McKinsey Academy is on the list,” says Glenn Hubbard, dean of Columbia Business School in New York.
- “A typical McKinsey Academy course might drill the user in the “10 timeless tests” that it applies when hatching corporate strategies (“Does your strategy rest on privileged insights?” asks test five, while number 10 inquires: “Have you translated your strategy into an action plan?”). Alternatively, the student might get sucked into a fictional case study involving a playground equipment manufacturer that has lost its way and needs to get sales growing again.”
- “The content tends to be broken up into 3-5 minute snippets to reflect the fact that participants are unlikely to have much time to spare — there is even an option to watch videos at double speed. McKinsey consultants serve as “teaching assistants” and top students are rewarded with a place on a leaderboard. There is also a “group work” element where participants are broken up into small teams.”
Beyond McKinsey, other consultancy making similar moves include Korn Ferry and PwC.
[Disclosure: IBL has a partnership with McKinsey Academy to host the Open edX Meetups in New York]
