ecla Entrepreneurship and

Competitiveness in Latin

America

www.eclaprogram.com

“Entrepreneurship and Competitiveness in Latin America” (ECLA) is an executive program created by Columbia Business School for entrepreneurs of mid-sized Latin American companies who seek specialized education to compete in today’s changing global environment. The 13 months program (a combination of in-classroom training and distant learning) provides the participants with the skills and direction necessary to implement and lead change within their organizations and prepares them for success across borders.

Divided in 2 phases: “improving efficiency” and “business growth planning”, the program is designed to put learning into immediate practical application. Each company is required to complete a project for each phase where, in conjunction with an advisor (Columbia faculty) they identify an issue, develop and implement a solution and show the results to the rest of the ECLA class. In addition, as part of the curriculum, participants go on a study tour to a country with strong entrepreneurial activity (South Korea in 2011, Israel in 2013).

About ecla

Program Objectives • Equip participants with the

educational foundation, tools, and resources to grow their enterprises and conduct cross-border transactions.

• Develop and hone participants' macroeconomic skills and global mindset, enabling them to capture opportunities and recognize challenges of entering new markets.

• Expose participants to the business and entrepreneurship culture of a country outside the region.

• Enable participants to develop

and implement a company improvement project with measurable results and impact.

• Bridge theory with practice, utilizing case discussions, guest speakers, industry coaches and the diversity of experiences inherent in the faculty and student community.

• Establish a network of Latin American entrepreneurs, industry coaches, academics, and business leaders.

Program overview

Profile of ECLA participants 2 per company : CEO/Founder and right hand person • Bachelor’s degree, or the

equivalent • Proficient English speaking

and writing skills • Entrepreneurial initiative. The

entrepreneur demonstrates the vision, persistence, passion, and drive to take their business to the next level.

• Intellectual curiosity. The entrepreneur has the desire to receive education and training

in functional areas and apply new knowledge to his/her business setting.

• Global mindset. The entrepreneur has an interest in learning about successful entrepreneurship models in other parts of the world and applying insights in order to make his/her business more competitive in the global market.

Phase I: Improving Efficiency

Curriculum

Module I: Foundations of International Business and Problem Definition (New York) The program kicks off at Columbia Business School with two weeks of core classes in all business areas, with an emphasis on performance improvement. With the support of a faculty advisor, participants will prepare a proposal for a “Process Improvement Project” that responds to a pressing issue in their company.

Module II: Process Improvement Methodology (Online) Online lectures and case studies focused on process-improvement methodology will enable students to make their businesses more efficient and competitive. With the support of a faculty advisor, students will spend 10 weeks working on their Process Improvement Projects followed by approximately 18 weeks

Module III: Entrepreneurship and Innovation (Study tour) A week-long study trip will permit students to learn firsthand how high-growth entrepreneurs have made their companies successful across borders.

implementing and analyzing the impact of their projects on their companies.

Module IV: Global Expansion and Value Creation A week-long module in New York will offer classes that examine current trends in global business. Students will also present the findings of their Process Improvement Projects to faculty, who will evaluate the success of the projects. Applying the skills and knowledge acquired from

Module V: Business Growth Applications (Online) Online lectures and case studies on business-growth applications will help students identify the opportunities and challenges of cross border expansion. With the support of a faculty advisor, students will spend four months developing their growth plans.

Phase II: Business Growth Planning

Module VI: Challenges of Growth and Presentations and Graduation(New York) Participants will present their Business Growth Plans to Columbia Business School faculty and guests. At the graduation ceremony, students will receive a certificate from Columbia Business School’s Chazen Institute.

Module IV, students will develop a “Business Growth Plan” that prepares their companies for global expansion and value creation.

Testimonials

Pamela Chavez, Founder Aguamarina - Chile “The program allowed me to convert the laboratory into a processing unit, into a productive entity, and to design a growth plan. The firm needed a corporative organization and governability. As a result of ECLA, I was able to structure the firm, manage it properly and make it grow. ”.

Javier Arredondo , Founder Editoriales Mapas - Mexico ““Our business would have continued to work as it had done for the last 12 years, and it would have grown by inertia probably. But now that we participated in ECL, we know how to achieve what we want, how to grow in a safe and sustainable way.””

Ivan Barchese, owner and CEO Mextra - Brazil ““The program is one of the best things I have ever done. I studied with a lot of interesting people and the professors were excellent and helped us enormously. It is much more than a theoretical course and enabled me to put procedures and techniques into practice in my company here in Brazil. I have an MBA from another school but on the ECLA program we worked much more as a team, and it was very beneficial,”

Martin Schrimpff – Founder and Business Development Director – Pagosonline (PayU Latam) “ ECLA provided us with a space to think and exchange experiences with other fellow entrepreneurs. We learnt from the best business professors in Columbia to think big and understand the importance of process improvement in our organizations. If you want to take your company to the next level and want to learn from other people´s mistakes rather than committing them yourself, this is the course for you.”

Program Information

Dates Module I January 6th – 17th 2014 Module III March 16th – 22nd 2014 Module IV August 24th – 29th 2014 Module VI January 11th – 16th 2015 Modules II and V are distant learning, online classes once a month

Application Deadline for ECLA’15: October 31st 2013

Contact For more information, please contact: Angela Quintero aq2163@columbia.edu Maggie Hopkins mh3370@columbia.edu or visit www.eclaprogram.com

Cost* $30 000 The fee covers the tuition for 2 participants

from the same company, books, case materials and 5 weeks of accommodation (New York and Israel).

It does not include air travel . (*) We are able to offer this subsidized cost thanks to our sponsors:

Entrepreneurship and Competitiveness in Latin America

Columbia Business School

New York, NY

Tel: +1 212 854 1122

Email: ecla@gsb.columbia.edu

www.eclaprogram.com

ECLA Class 2013