Concentrations are thematic collections of courses and projects run for MBAs during the second and third terms. Concentrations are run by specialist coaches, who may be a member of our academic faculty or an external business professional, with particular expertise in the given field.
You can choose one Concentration to undertake. As part of this selection, you will select a number of related elective courses. Concentrations also include ‘coach nights’ – sessions run by the Coach and typically involving external speakers – in which students discuss their learning across the related courses. Each Concentration will be concluded with a final team project, during which teams will present their findings in a simulated boardroom situation.
Our Concentrations
- Culture, Arts and Media Management (CAM)
- Digital Transformation
- Energy and Environment
- Entrepreneurship
- Finance
- Health Strategies
- Marketing
- Sustainable Business
- Strategy
Culture, Arts and Media Management (CAM)
Cultural, arts and media organisations provide a unique forum for creativity, self-expression and communal interaction. In addition to the delivery of these social and aesthetic services, however, organisations of this kind are also businesses and are subject to pressures akin to those faced by companies in the wider corporate sector, including value creation, financial planning, market positioning and human resources management.
The balancing of these 2 demands presents a distinct challenge for cultural leaders, which is further complicated by newly empowered consumers, contemporary shifts in the economic climate and unprecedented levels of technological development and new media. Plotting a course through these challenges requires a style of leadership that combines sensitivity to the demands of artistic organisations with a rigorous understanding of business strategy and operations.
The CAM concentration will help you explore the explosion of entertainment and information content – including film, drama series, documentary, animation, gaming, live sports, augmented and virtual reality, publishing, and what the rise of the ‘meta verse’ means for digital goods and culture moving forwards, – all of which is now delivered in multiple formats via online distribution around the globe.
Digital Transformation
Over the last decade, companies such as Uber, Google, and Alibaba have led the way as digital innovators in transforming the business landscape. The challenge today is for organisations across a wide range of sectors to transform their strategy and ways of organising through digital technologies to be innovative and competitive. Making this transition requires a rethinking and widening the lens of innovation which is now possible with the help of digital technologies. In this Concentration, you are encouraged to re-think how you would lead the transformation of your organisation through digital innovation. We will provide methodologies and frameworks as well as critical thinking to guide you, and we will look at breakthrough digital innovations such as AI and neural networks, the Internet of Things, Big Data, and blockchain in facilitating new business models across industries including healthcare and financial services. We will also examine how mobile platforms are enabling financial inclusion and clean energy in emerging economies.
I invite speakers to contribute, such as entrepreneurs from around the ‘Silicon Fen’, consultants on digital transformation, technology policy experts, and platform ecosystem builders.
Energy and Environment
The pervasive nature of energy and environment across the economy and within firms means that it serves as a wonderful case study across all aspects of business education: marketing, strategy, economics, finance, operations, ethics and leadership.
The energy sector is not all massive infrastructure and large scale power plants – it involves some of the most exciting start-ups and may offer the first important steps towards the Internet of Things. Energy poses some of the biggest challenges and opportunities not only within the sector but for all firms in the economy.
This Concentration is suitable for students with an interest in energy and environmental issues. No prior knowledge is required although some students have backgrounds in the energy industry or technical fields, and others have a strong interest in environmental issues.
At Cambridge Judge Business School, we are global experts on the intersection of energy economics, energy policy and corporate strategy.
Entrepreneurship
Cambridge is one of the best places in the world to explore your understanding of how entrepreneurship works. This Concentration gives students the skills and knowledge to help them start their own business and grow it successfully, either now or in the future. Students also develop core ‘enterprising skills’ that will help you as an employee in an organisation, should you decide that you are not ready to start your own business right now.
During this concentration we consider different types of entrepreneurship; social enterprise, family businesses, blended models, life-style companies, consulting, bootstrapped businesses, venture funded businesses. The Concentration sessions and related networking activities also link you to entrepreneurs in the Cambridge and London communities to gain the benefits of their experience.
The Concentration enables you to try out your own ideas, learn what it is like to build a management team that will grow your business and also to explore the range of funding mechanisms to provide the finance that most new businesses need.
Through my experience practising and teaching entrepreneurship, I've learned a lot about success: the importance of teams, the value of social capital, and the willingness to be coached. These principles form the heart of this Concentration.
Finance
The Finance concentration is useful for anyone interested in working in finance, be it in banks, investment funds, companies or as an entrepreneur.
In recent years, advances in technology have led to a flurry of innovation in financial markets. This Concentration will focus on several new trends in Finance, all being presented by leading practitioners. Discussions will cover themes including passive asset management, alternative lending and blockchain and digital ledgers.
Sessions with visiting speakers will conclude with a drinks reception and networking.
What I bring to the Finance Concentration is a mixture of academic and practical experience and a continuing curiosity about finance, how it works, what it can do for us and why it can sometimes go badly wrong.
Health Strategies
This sector is very interesting to study: the health sector globally is growing significantly and predicted to experience continued growth for the next 20 years, in terms of the spend for health, investors in the health sector, activated consumers and patients, providers of health services, the life science industry, technology companies, big data and consultancy. The Health Strategy Concentration will appeal to those with a background in the health sector who wish to continue their careers in this sector with a broadened or different emphasis, or to those who are new to the sector who wish to explore it as a potential area of employment or interest.
The Concentration seeks to draw on the general and business management concepts that students are familiar with and apply them in the context of the health care industry, specifically focused on the particular challenges and opportunities offered by the sector. The Concentration brings in senior global faculty to teach the sessions and the student group has also visited 10 Downing Street, London.
Health is arguably the fast growing global sector by some measure. It is critical to societies, relies on fast-moving technologies and there is significant incoming investment. There are great career opportunities in Health.
Marketing
The Marketing Concentration is aimed at students interested in developing a more in-depth and practical understanding of marketing and topical issues in this area. It will provide valuable insights for students wishing to pursue jobs in marketing.
This Concentration gives students the opportunity to see how businesses tackle real world issues and how the boundaries between both these areas overlap in doing so. A key highlight of the module is the contribution of senior industry speakers who use real examples to show how a marketing strategist approaches such issues. The Concentration involves four lectures (mainly by industry speakers), analysis of real-world problems, and a challenging ‘Board Impact’ project. Speakers in this year’s Concentration represent companies including Facebook, Barclays, Marks & Spencer, CNBC, Brunswick, Flock Associates and McKinsey.
I invite distinguished marketers to share with you their career paths and insights – the world of marketing is an exciting place to be right now.
Sustainable Business Concentration
This newly designed Concentration in the MBA programme is led by Matthew Grimes, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Futures, together with Christopher Marquis, Sinyi Professor of Chinese Management.
The Sustainable Business Concentration is designed for MBA students from a range of backgrounds and with a variety of career ambitions who are interested in the role and potential of different types of organisations in affecting positive environmental and societal change. Some participants in this concentration may wish to specifically build careers in corporate sustainability, environmental, social and governance (ESG) consulting, social ventures, non-profits, or governmental organisations; yet given the increasing relevance of sustainable business to all corporations, the concentration is suitable as well to those who wish to pursue leadership roles within traditional settings.
Many of the companies and topics we will examine in this concentration focus on the development of creative and practical solutions to complex environmental and social problems. While a focus on environmental and social impact has traditionally been associated with the non-profit and public sectors, this association is increasingly challenged as many companies and societies realise that both the problems and the solutions require attention to cross-sectoral dynamics.
Learn more about the Cambridge MBA's sustainability pathway
The Sustainable Business Concentration is designed for MBA students interested in leading organisations and building networks toward positive social and environmental change.
Strategy
Increased competition, globalisation and fast changing technologies have made today’s business environment uncertain and dynamic. To survive and succeed in this challenging environment, managers need to think strategically by charting the future directions of the firm, managing the resources, capabilities, and strategic positioning of the firm to create and sustain competitive advantage.
The Concentration will cover a range of key issues relating to strategic management, including: competitive positioning; mergers and acquisitions and strategic alliances; corporate strategies including portfolio analyses and diversification; as well as the strategic adaptation to environmental disruptions including corporate structuring and turnaround.
Through the Concentration we provide opportunities to engage with board-level strategists from large companies and founders of multi-billion revenue companies, to deepen the learning from the core and elective modules with real world engagement.
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