Partnership Opportunities
Hands-on, applied learning that is focused on real-world challenges is an essential part of the MBA in Design Strategy program. We encourage partnerships with businesses, non-profit organizations and government agencies to engage student teams in:
- generating new strategies
- creating new products and services
- devising ingenious solutions
- unearthing new business opportunities
- developing new business models
- and much more.
We offer the opportunity to work with a single team of students, or an entire class of student teams. Projects can range from small, four week projects (including research or evaluations) to semester long projects developing ideas and innovative solutions for needs and opportunities 3-5 years in the future. These can include marketing, brand strategy, finance, strategic, and operations plans.
These projects uncover new opportunities not yet identified or addressed by partner organizations. They also give our students experience working with real organizations on interesting challenges and offer great networking and career-building opportunities for students.
Our partners find that working with the DMBA students not only results in high-quality deliverables and outcomes, but stimulates fresh thinking and approaches that go well beyond the scope of the projects. The studio becomes an experimental lab for both students and organizations to discover the effectiveness of design strategy for innovation and complex problem-solving.
A sampling of the opportunities, including related courses and potential deliverables, is listed below. For more information about these, or to propose a specific project or partnership, please contact Tim Smith.
Sponsored Projects
Whole course, semester duration
Courses: Innovation Studio, Market Insight Studio, Sustainability Studio, Experiences Studio
Potential Deliverables: innovative product and service prototype solutions
These projects usually involve whole studio courses (approximately 30 students) but may, in some cases, be smaller. Investigations usually focus on a specific market and customer domain. Students work with partner organizations to develop appropriate and innovative concepts for a 3-5 year window.
Sponsored Research
One team or whole course, semester duration or shorter project
Course: Market Insight Studio
Potential Deliverables: customer and market research report, marketing plan, meaning strategy
These projects typically involve whole studio courses but may, in some cases, be smaller. Research focuses on qualitative and quantitative techniques to identify market opportunities. In some cases, potential market solutions may be proposed as proofs or concept.
Student Team Projects
One team, semester duration or smaller project
Courses: Business Models & Stakeholders, Market Insight Studio, Leadership by Design, Operations & Systems, Managerial Finance, Brand Strategy, Strategic Foresight, Strategic Management
Potential Deliverables: marketing plan, finance plan, operations plan, strategic plan, brand strategy plan, scenario development, new business models, etc.
These projects involve a team of students working closely with an organization--generally a nonprofit-- to develop a plan for a specific area of need that is valuable and actionable by the organization. This kind of engagement enables organizations to work through opportunities or identified issues that the organization simply doesn’t have the resources to pursue.
Mentorship Program
Every year, we match or second year students with outside professionals in the wider community for career advice. The time commitment is only one hour per month, on the phone, via Skype, or in-person for the school year (8 months). If you or someone else in your organization are interested in being a mentor, we'd like to pair you with one of our promising students.
More Engagements
Other mechanisms for outside organizations to interact with our students and program include:
- Internships (summer and academic year)
- Job placement
- Speaking opportunities
- Teaching opportunities
- Guest critiques or mentoring
- Sponsor faculty positions
- Sponsor program-wide events
- Sponsor student scholarships
- Sponsor IMPACT awards
- Sponsor ENGAGE projects
- Attend school and program events: Spring Career Expo, DMBA Annual Charrette, etc.
- Our faculty regularly give workshops on the themes and skills in the program to organizations of all types (for-profit, non-profit, and government). We can even customize workshops for your organization.
Of course, outside organizations are always welcome to join our community and attend free program events and performances as well as be notified of school-wide events.
If sponsorship fees associated with projects apply, these are tax-deductible.
Testimonials
"They were spectacular. Working with the CCA MBA in Design Strategy Program was a revelation for La Cocina. We are often paired with student groups ... but CCA's students made a particular impression in their vision, entrepreneurial spirit, creativity and impact. In a very short time, the students proved effective at understanding our business model, communicating effectively and efficiently and going deep into the project on their own time. They provided resources and results that went above and beyond our project expectations, and their impact continues to be present in they everyday work that we do. Not only will we consider the recommendations of the students but we will also implement several of them, saving us time and otherwise unnecessary waste. I would be thrilled to work with students of this caliber any day."
Caleb Zigas, Executive Director, La Cocina
"The team of graduate students from the MBA in Design Strategy made a meaningful contribution to Kidlandia's understanding of the our place in the family media ecosystem, and we will without doubt implement both specific suggestions, and approaches that came out of their research. They worked both independently, and with data and information provided by our Business Development team by phone, email, and occasional meetings, to build first a draft study, and then a final and impressive study. The team acted with intelligence, motivation, and humor, and I would be delighted to work another Design Strategy team."
Brian Backus, "King" of Kidlandia
DMBA In the News
Listen to the BusinessWeek podcast.
Read the Core 77 interview.
Contact
For questions about the MBA in Design Strategy program, please email us.
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Visit
To visit the program, including courses in session, please email us. In addition, guests visiting CCA can receive a discount on their lodgings just for being a part of the CCA community. Each of the SoMa Hotels (specifically the Good Hotel, the Carriage Inn, and the Americania Hotel) will honor a special discount rate for guests who mention "CCA" when making reservations. For complete hotel contact information, see Special-Rate Lodging.
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