The completion of a business project for Volkswagen and the first-ever student trip to the carmaker’s German headquarters mark a new path for the executive MBA program at UTC and could spur a yearly visit to VW locations worldwide.
The executive MBA track at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga — a small group of working adults who have substantial business experience — requires international visits each year.
This year’s class, however, was the first to work directly with VW, capping off a viable business research project for the carmaker with a visit to its global headquarters in Wolfsburg.
Students said the opportunity to work so closely with an international company that is making a tangible difference in Chattanooga’s business landscape has given meaningful context to their studies.
“The bottom line is, if you want to climb up the corporate ladder, you have to have international experience, and I think VW really encourages that,” said Susan Thompson, one of 16 current executive MBA students.
Michael Owens, assistant dean of the UTC College of Business, said the project and trip gave an edge to Ms. Thompson and her colleagues because of VW’s local connection. He said he hopes future executive MBA candidates will have similar opportunities.
“While (VW’s headquarters in Wolfsburg) would be an outstanding destination for future EMBA groups, the more interesting potential is to visit other VW locations around the world,” Mr. Owens said. The automaker has sites in Italy, Russia, China, India and Brazil, he said.
“We hope to see the UTC College of Business/Volkswagen partnership continue to develop and flourish,” Mr. Owens said.
The May 4 visit to Wolfsburg included a daylong tour with VW officials, discussion of the company’s international marketing strategy and a tour of the plant.
But it was only a small part of the students’ exposure to VW this year.
Earlier, the automaker commissioned research work from them on ways to brand Chattanooga’s manufacturing facility as an attraction to help propel sales.
THE TRIPThe 10-day international trip for this year’s executive MBA program at UTC included visits to several international companies. After visiting VW’s German headquarters in Wolfsburg on May 4, the students went to Prague where they met with, among other executives, the female head of Google Czech Republic.
While visitor centers are common and VW also is building one, Mr. Owens said his students’ work was “innovative” and impressed company executives. He said some executives hinted some of the new ideas might be implemented.
VW’s general manager of communications, Guenther Scherelis, said the company is not prepared to discuss the details of the students’ project but said VW sought advice from many regional sources and has “very much appreciated” the input from UTC.
The students themselves said they were surprised at how seriously VW executives took their work.
“At first we were wondering how much value this was giving VW or if they were just throwing us a bone,” said Kirk Neubauer. “But when they sent their top people in to listen to our ideas, we realized it was a big deal.”
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