We asked Dr Isaakyan a few questions about the programme and how she plans to develop it further.
RSM: What excites you most about the role?
There are four aspects of this role that particularly excite me. First is the opportunity to shape the entire EMBA learning journey. Over the past several years, I have been responsible for leadership development tracks, initially in the Full-time MBA and, more recently, in the Global Executive MBA. Although these tracks run throughout the programmes, they represent one specific component of the broader MBA experience. I have always tried to connect leadership development to the overall learning journey. Now, I will have the opportunity to take a broader perspective and shape the journey as a whole, ensuring that different courses and experiences come together to create a coherent, meaningful and transformative learning experience.
Second, the strategic and business dimensions of the role. Beyond academic content, the role involves important strategic questions about programme positioning, target audiences, marketing and recruitment. I find these business challenges particularly interesting and look forward to contributing to the future direction of the EMBA.
Third, the opportunity to build on an already strong foundation. I am very grateful to Erik Roelofsen, who has done a wonderful job leading the programme as academic director. I look forward to building on his legacy and further developing the EMBA into an even more impactful and rewarding experience for our participants.
Finally, and equally importantly, the people I will be working with. The people I collaborate with have always been an important part of what makes my work meaningful and enjoyable.
Through the Global Executive MBA, I have worked closely with Hans van Oosterhout, and it has been one of the most rewarding professional collaborations I have experienced. Hans has done tremendous work designing the GEMBA learning journey, and I am happy that we have the opportunity to work together again and bring some of the best practices and insights from the GEMBA into the EMBA.
I also look forward to working with Tom Blansjaar, the EMBA’s associate director. Tom has already been incredibly supportive in helping me become familiar with the programme. What has particularly impressed me is his genuine engagement and the care he puts into thinking about how to create the best possible experience for participants.
Additionally, I have started to collaborate with the wider EMBA team, and these first interactions have been extremely positive.
For me, working with talented, dedicated people who genuinely care about what they do makes an enormous difference. The opportunity to be part of such a team is definitely one of the things that excites me most about this role.
RSM: How do you plan to develop or improve the programme?
Together with Hans van Oosterhout and Tom Blansjaar, we have several exciting ideas for the future development of the EMBA. Our ambitions centre around three key priorities:
Refining the strategic positioning of the programme
With the Global Executive MBA being discontinued, we have an opportunity to revisit the positioning of the EMBA and explore how we can better serve more senior and experienced leaders.
Creating an even more coherent and impactful learning journey
Building on the strong foundation established by Erik, we want to further strengthen the connections between different courses and experiences throughout the programme. Our ambition is to create a learning journey in which each element builds on and reinforces the others, allowing participants to integrate their learning and see the bigger picture.
Placing leadership development at the heart of the programme
Closely connected to the previous priority, we want leadership development to be a central thread running through the entire EMBA journey. For the upcoming cohort, Björn Atterstam and I have already significantly redesigned the Personal Leadership Development journey. We are expanding its focus beyond leading oneself to include the competencies required to lead teams and lead at the organisational level.
We are also making leadership development more personal and intentional. Each participant will work on an individual leadership development plan, reflecting on their ambitions, strengths and areas for growth. This will help them take ownership of their development and connect insights from across the programme to their own leadership challenges and aspirations.
These are some of our initial steps, and we have many more ideas that I look forward to exploring and developing together with the team. Ultimately, our ambition is to build on the EMBA programme's strengths while making that journey even more integrated, transformative and rewarding for our participants.
RSM: What can future cohorts expect from the programme?
Our ambition for the EMBA is to accelerate participants’ personal and leadership development, enabling them to graduate with greater confidence and the capabilities to take on more senior, strategic leadership roles that align with their ambitions and values. Equally importantly, we want to broaden their perspectives, challenge their assumptions, and help them discover new possibilities and opportunities they may not have previously considered, whether that means pursuing a different career path, stepping into new leadership roles, or exploring entrepreneurship and creating their own ventures.
Three elements will be central to this experience:
Leadership development at the heart of the programme
Serving as a connecting thread throughout the EMBA journey, leadership development will help participants integrate insights from different courses and experiences and translate those insights into their own leadership practice. We want participants to continuously reflect on their development and actively apply what they learn to the leadership challenges they face in their daily work.
Courses and experiences that challenge and stretch participants
We want to create opportunities for participants not only to acquire new knowledge and insights, but also to step outside their comfort zones, engage with complex and pressing business challenges, question established ways of thinking, and discover new capabilities. Our aim is to create learning experiences that are intellectually stimulating, practically relevant and personally transformative.
More opportunities to connect, collaborate and learn from one another
I often say that one of the greatest assets of any MBA programme is the people you go through the journey with. Our participants bring a wealth of professional experience, diverse perspectives, and valuable insights. We want to create even more opportunities for them to learn from one another, challenge each other's thinking, and build meaningful connections. The relationships, shared experiences, and memories they create during the programme can be just as valuable as the knowledge they gain, and many of these connections will stay with them for a lifetime.
Ultimately, I would like participants to leave the EMBA not only with new knowledge and capabilities, but also with greater self-awareness, confidence, meaningful relationships and a broader understanding of the impact they can have as leaders.
RSM: Have you been involved in the EMBA before now? If so, how?
Interestingly, the EMBA is the one MBA programme at RSM in which I have had relatively limited involvement so far.
My previous experience has primarily been with the Full-time MBA and Global Executive MBA, where I have been responsible for leadership development. Within the EMBA, I have delivered a few workshops, but I have not yet had the opportunity to work extensively with its participants. This is also what makes the new role particularly exciting. I look forward to getting to know the EMBA community, understanding the programme more deeply, and bringing relevant experiences and insights from the other MBA programmes.
I have already met some of the participants who will be joining in January 2027, and I was genuinely impressed by the talented, experienced and thoughtful leaders I encountered. It made me even more enthusiastic about working with them and contributing to their EMBA journey.
