Spain: Business, Culture, and Leadership in Spain

Business, Culture,Innovation andEntrepreneurship in Spain is an experiential study abroad program. The purpose is to provide students exposure to the culture, business innovation and entrepreneurship activities in 5 distinct cities/regions of Spain. Undergraduates will receive credit for MGT 3954 Study Abroad. Graduate students will receive credit for MGT 5954, and be required to submit additional work.

The program will visit 5 areas of Spain; the cities of Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Cordoba and Madrid. The program will be a mixture of class time, visits to businesses, and excursions to some of the cultural sites in the area. There will be much walking and hiking, so students should be physically capable of hiking for at least half a day. See the accompanying itinerary and course schedule for more details.

The program is targeted to Pamplin freshmen through seniors with all classes being welcome to participate. Students will be in teams of 4-5 students with one senior level leader.

Leadership is also a recurring aspect of the program, with seniors gaining direct leadership experience. Classes will focus on innovative and strategic approaches to business, especially highlighting entrepreneurship and start-up ventures. Company visits will also have an business innovations theme as organizational leaders and entrepreneurs share their leadership style, philosophy, and experience.

By the end of this program, participants should be able to:

• Discuss how business works in Spain, and by extension, the European region.
• Understand various innovative business strategies, techniques and philosophies.
• Work productively as collaborative teams to accomplish specific assignments and projects successfully
• Develop cultural and international competence to in order to function confidently and competently in international settings
• Understand and appreciate business philosophy, corporate functioning and regional cultural differences and gain insight and concepts during group discussions