The CEO as Sponsor
Dr. Rolf Breuer, CEO for Deutsche Bank has been a vocal sponsor for crafting a new executive education practice within Deutsche Bank. In fact Dr. Breuer recognized that a new learning paradigm for executive education was needed if Deutsche Bank was to achieve its strategic business goals. What Dr. Breuer eventually created is known as the Sp~kesman's Challenge, a partnership between Deutsche Bank and Duke University. Twenty participants form various business divisions were invited to the kick-off an executive education program that starts with Dr. Breuer asking the group four key questions which revolved around matrix management, knowledge management, globalization and innovation. The questions posed to the group included:
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What are the cultural and organizational characteristics of a global firm?
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What are the characteristics of successful matrix organizations? What should the Bank do in order to get maximum benefit from its matrix organization?
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What needs to change for Deutsche Bank to become more innovative and entrepreneurial? How do these changes occur?
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How can Deutsche Bank better mange knowledge as a critical resource for business success?
Once the four challenges were framed, the participants were divided into four mixed teams. Each team tackled one of the four challenges. The entire Spokesman's Challenge group met with the sponsor, Rolf Breuer, at roughly six-week intervals. The personal involvement of Deutsche Bank's CEO had a lasting impact on Challenge program participants. "The time we spent with Dr. Breuer was quality time" says one manager. "It gave us a real opportunity to understand, at a level none of us was previously familiar with, the scope of strategic issues that the Executive Board has to deal with. The time spent with Dr. Breuer also made clear to us that the issues we were addressing were integral to the continued success of the firm. We really did feel that we were part of the process."
A few weeks after the program began, Deutsche Bank publicly announced the acquisition of Bankers Trust. Most of the Spokesman's Challenge participants became deeply involved in the integration planning within their respective business lines. Many of these managers asked themselves if they could personally continue to participate in the program in light of the additional pressure the Bankers Trust integration was placing on their daily workload.
The executive management group that took on this challenge used this an opportunity to bring new perspectives as well as a new vision statement to the Bankers Trust/Deutsche Bank merger. Dr. Breuer became the most prominent and visible sponsor of executive education within the Bank. Now customized executive programs like the Duke University partnership