Tag Archives: Kansas City

Kimberly Young is the founding director of Bloch Executive Education at UMKC, which was established in 2008. Kimberly also became the Executive MBA Executive Director in 2012. She’s helped build mutually valuable partnerships between the Kansas City business community and the university through Bloch’s executive programs. In her unique roles, Kimberly has her finger on the pulse of the latest trends in talent development in Kansas City. We asked Kimberly to weigh in on executive education and Bloch’s role in serving that niche community.

Through Bloch Executive Education’s custom programs, you’ve worked with some of the top companies in Kansas City and in the region, designing leadership development programs utilizing industry thought leaders at the university to fill gaps and advance organizational goals. What are some of the most common components in those programs? 

Our leadership development programs are particularly unique because of our focus on understanding and application. We’re not here to only teach a concept or theory, but to help participants understand why that concept or theory is important and how it can make a difference when applied to their work. Our customized programs are co-created with our clients during a series of pre-meetings to make sure that we are delivering on the outcomes that they expect.

What are some talent development trends you’ve observed in the past few years in Kansas City? 

We’re hearing Kansas City companies talk a lot about accountability, risk taking, and innovation. These competencies mean different things to different organizations, but we are very clear that these three things are key to the survival and success of our companies. If organizations are not able to create an environment in which risk-taking is rewarded and accountability is supported, leaders will not do what it takes to cultivate and exercise an innovative mindset. It’s the innovative mindset that drives leaders to scan the environment and think about the opportunities that exist in the complexity of the world today.

What is the value proposition of the Bloch Executive MBA and how is it different from its competitors? 

The Bloch Executive MBA is built upon four platforms: Leadership, Civic Engagement, Innovative Mindset, and Global Perspective. The combination of these four platforms makes our program stand out from any other program in the country. We all teach leadership and many programs touch on global perspective, but to add innovation and the impact of policy on business to the foundation of the program, that is uniquely Bloch, and quite frankly, uniquely Kansas City. Our goal to become the nation’s most entrepreneurial city is evidence that our community and business leaders are already thinking this way. As for innovation, it’s the notion that understanding how to scan the environment and leverage and communicate opportunities is important for current positioning for future success. That’s how we view innovation—seeing the opportunity when everyone else sees chaos.

The Executive MBA Council reported that on average 25% of students entering an Executive MBA program in 2014 received full financial sponsorship from their employer. Bloch far exceeds that industry average. Within the Bloch Executive MBA Class of 2016, 42% of students were fully sponsored by their employers. Why do you think Kansas City employers are willing to fully sponsor the cost of a Bloch Executive MBA? 

Kansas City employers understand the importance of investing in their leadership and they show it by partnering with Bloch to create a training ground for our next generation of business and civic leaders. I can’t think of a better place to do this than the very place that is the educational home to numerous entrepreneurs across the city. This is a city that believes in investing in and growing its own and we are Kansas City’s university for educating executives.