Group Photo at 3M

Advancing Experiential Learning on a Global Scale

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Last year, Carlson MBA students joined leaders from the Minnesota healthcare community and students from seven different countries to learn hands-on from Sweden's innovative medical technology landscape.

The Carlson School’s Medical Industry Leadership Institute (MILI) hosted its hallmark Global Valuation Laboratory in Sweden last July to challenge students and professionals alike to evaluate new medical technologies in an international context.

"You never know when you will find teammates across the ocean who can give you a much wider perspective." -Professor Stephen Parente, MILI director and associate dean of MBA Programs

Participants ranged from Carlson MBA students and Twin Cities healthcare professionals, to Swedish medical residents and entrepreneurship students. Together, they examined four real-world medical inventions and determined their potential value to the worldwide healthcare market.

“The students did an early state assessment of the viability of new medical technologies,” says MILI Director and Professor Stephen Parente. “It was a very rich and diverse class—our goal was to give them an opportunity to work with and learn from peers from other cultures.”

They performed a market analysis—researched intellectual property rights, sized up potential markets, and completed an investment analysis—to determine the inventions’ potential for success in the global market.

“The differences in patent law, regulatory requirements, reimbursement, and healthcare delivery outside the U.S. can put a slightly different spin on how a medical technology is evaluated and the strategy for commercialization,” says Mayo Clinic Business Development Manager Emily Wampfler.

Much of the course took place in Stockholm; an emerging hotbed for entrepreneurship. The students also engaged in classroom lessons led by expert faculty, got an inside look at start-up companies, and toured corporations like Pfizer, Elekta, 3M, and Biolamina.

“Learning and understanding international perspectives is important so they can be taken into consideration for successful development of new technologies into products and therapies that will ultimately benefit patients worldwide,” says Wampfler. 

Keio University students access new perspective on corporate social responsibility 

Group photo

The Carlson School has enjoyed its partnership with Keio University in Tokyo for more than three decades. Last August, the Carlson School welcomed a group of 16 undergraduate business students who were participating in an immersion program focused on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and business ethics. For 10 days, they received academic instruction from Carlson School faculty; visited Minnesota firms like Best Buy, Aveda,3M, and Mosaic; and took part in social activities to get acquainted with U.S. culture.

The students’ academic sessions were led by Strategic Management & entrepreneurship Professor Ian Maitland and Senior Lecturer Rand Park, whose combined expertise spans globalization, ethics, and corporate responsibility.

“Since Keio University was chosen to be one of the Super Global Program Universities by the Ministry of education of Japan, we were happy to begin this unique exchange opportunity with the Carlson School,” says Keio University Associate Professor of Business Ethics and CSR Mitsuhiro Umezu.

The program was designed in collaboration with Keio University to complement class sessions the students began in Tokyo, prior to their visit.