Twenty one MBA students from American universities, including Harvard, Yale, Rice, Cornell, and Sloan as well as three students from Mexico are in Ottawa from May 31 to June 5 for an intensive week long briefing on business relations between Canada, the United States and Mexico.
The Canadian Leadership Orientation Program for MBA students from the US and Mexico is hosted by the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa and divided between Ottawa and Montreal where participants are given presentations from leading Canadian business, government and national associations.
"The Canada US trade relationship is the largest in the world and will impact the professional careers of these business graduates. Any aspiring business professional should have an understanding of North American business market structures and overall political and trade relations. They come away from this program with knowledge that will make them better business persons", said Micheál Kelly, Dean of the University of Ottawa's Telfer School of Management and one of the founders of the program.
2009 marked the fifth year for the program, which began on an experimental basis in 2005. To ensure that the program continues to deliver a rich and unique learning experience, the program has capacity of 24 participants who gain entry by invitation only.
Dean Kelly who was instrumental in founding the program says the smaller group allows for terrific interaction and enhanced learning. "This is a special program and something these business graduates will remember for a long time. We believe it will help shape their careers."
The founding program partners, the University of Ottawa, The Association for Canadian Studies in the US and HEC Montréal - created the initiative to familiarize the next generation business leaders of America and Mexico with Canada.
