New School of Management Will Transform Traditional Business Education by Creating  Socially-Focused “Challenge Managers”

A new school, dedicated to revolutionising business education and creating future leaders who can effectively confront the biggest challenges facing industry, society and the planet is, today, launched in Madrid.

Advantere School of Management has been founded under the inspiration of the Society of Jesus and through a strategic academic partnership between Comillas Pontifical University and Deusto University in Spain, and Georgetown University in the USA. These three leading Jesuit higher education institutions will advise Advantere’s program development.

Its purpose is the development of professionals who are not only technically, digitally and academically competent, but also humanely driven. Advantere seeks to prepare managers who are committed to the common good, with the skills and perspective to create effective solutions for current and future challenges faced by organisations and society.

The School will operate with three core objectives; to transform education in management, to create a tangible positive impact on society and to develop people on not only an academic, but also a personal and spiritual level. Advantere will achieve this through partnerships with industry, working with start-ups and engaging students directly with social organisations through their studies.

Dean of Advantere School of Management, Guillermo Cisneros, believes that providing such an education is vital if leaders are to succeed in a rapidly changing world. Advantere, he says, will make “resolutionaries” out of students.

Cisneros says;

“Today, more than ever, leadership is not just about business. Business is just a part of what managers and leaders do. Developing a commitment to creating a better world, ensuring sustainability and promoting social justice, is a responsibility for everyone. We do not seek to educate more business leaders, but to create Challenge Managers. Those who can manage uncertainty, take risks and lead with purpose. Advantere is not for the typical business student. We want to welcome what we call “resolutionaries”. Our admission process is designed to identify such individuals.”

The School will initially offer four specialised Masters programmes; a Masters in International Management, a Masters in Marketing, a Masters in Finance and a Masters in Talent Management. Alongside this offering, Advantere will also develop tailored leadership programs together with various organisations, and run a summer school for students from all over the world.

Supported by centuries of experience in education through its prestigious academic partners, Cisneros says Advantere promises its students educational excellence and rigour, whilst re-imagining business education in a way that existing institutions, burdened by conserving and recreating business practice of the past, cannot accomplish.

“Advantere is like a coin with two sides; students and partner organizations providing challenging projects. It will collaborate with what we call “resolutionary organizations”, corporations and social institutions operating at international level, as well as those ones “coming next” which are transforming the world with innovative and disruptive models,” Cisneros says.

At the heart of Advantere is collaboration. Faculty will prioritise collaboration between departments and by partnering with industry for both teaching and research. The integration of students from different programmes will allow everyone to work and learn together.

Students joining Advantere’s inaugural programmes will become co-creators of the institution, playing a key role alongside faculty, corporate partners, and other stakeholders to help shape its ethos and practices. Upon graduation, students will be officially recognised as co-creators in their certification.

Cisneros says;

“We’re looking for students with collaborative skills, who have a strong sense of purpose, are creative, ready to embrace uncertainty and are always willing to learn, committed to society and the greater good for all.”

To create opportunity for all, Advantere will offer a range scholarships and student support schemes, to make sure that most talented students can get access to Advantere programs despite their social and economic conditions.

The first intake of students will be welcomed in October 2022 to study at the heart of Madrid’s business sector. Plans have been confirmed for a campus building of 8,400 square meters in the Chamartín area, to be built by 2023, funded by a multimillion Euro investment.

Further information about Advantere and its programmes can be found by visiting the website: www.advantere.org