The benefits of becoming a host organization
Our enthusiastic EMBA Israel Lab teams deliver measurable impact to Israeli host companies in a wide variety of industries.
EMBA Israel Lab is a unique opportunity for Israeli startups:
- to work with a team of experienced, mid-career executives and innovative leaders on specific issues startups are facing
- to collaborate to find concrete, implementable solutions through research, analysis, and knowledge sharing
- to gain insights and guidance from a student team with wide-ranging skills, work experiences, and cultural backgrounds
Project scope
When selecting their project scope, host companies can choose from a broad spectrum of management challenges facing executive leaders across a wide array of industries, such as strategic growth, new market entry, pricing, marketing, benchmarking, VC and fundraising, and financial strategy.
EMBA Israel Lab strongly emphasizes concrete “leave-behinds” as a primary component of the teams’ project deliverables. For example, student teams may deliver tools such as financial models, potential customer/investor/partner pipelines and screens, and go-to-market roadmaps.
Executive MBA student teams
EMBA Israel Lab teams will typically comprise four to six MIT EMBA students representing a range of backgrounds and expertise, from management consulting and financial services, to engineering, technology, and operations.
Each team will work with an EMBA Israel Lab mentor who meets with the team and oversees the team’s progress, both logistically and substantively. The team, however, is responsible for building and managing the relationship with their host company. Please keep in mind that EMBA students are also full-time working executives.
The project calendar
Teams work for their host organizations on a four-month project engagement. Potential host organizations submit online questionnaires through October, in which they describe the scope of the challenges they are facing and the solutions they would like an EMBA Israel Lab team to work on. We ask potential hosts to detail the skillsets and expertise they believe would be most useful for team members to possess. EMBA Israel Lab faculty and mentors are available to assist organizations in shaping and defining their project scope for the questionnaire.
In December, EMBA Israel Lab faculty match approved host organizations with self-selected EMBA teams. From January, the teams work with their hosts from campus to finalize the scope and agree on a work plan, and then undertake research, interviews, and analysis. Host organizations and teams build their working relationships through online collaboration and regular conference calls throughout this remote phase.
The teams’ final deliverables include a formal presentation and, more importantly, a concrete analysis that host organizations can begin to use immediately.
Host company obligations
Host organizations receive optimal results when the CEO or other senior managers are available to devote focused time and energy to the project and to working directly with the EMBA Israel Lab team, especially while teams are working full-time. Please make sure that the appropriate leaders will be available to work with and guide the student team.
Host companies should be comprised of at least 15 employees. Hosts must provide a clear project statement, strategic objectives, and access to people and data.
If you are interested in becoming a host company for EMBA Israel Lab, please contact israel-lab@mit.edu with your questions or ideas.
