Executives-In-Residence: Filling A Business School Education Gap

Babson College executives-in-residence (L-R) Chris Stix, Hugh Crowther, professor Rick Spillane, James Spencer, Pratima Abichandani, Mike Mach, and Mike Dunn - Xueying (Sky) Duanmu photo

Babson College executives-in-residence (L-R) Chris Stix, Hugh Crowther, professor Rick Spillane, James Spencer, Pratima Abichandani, Mike Mach, and Mike Dunn – Xueying (Sky) Duanmu photo

“That was just a complete lesson in and of itself and that complemented the traditional classroom experience (of) sitting and talking about framework and theory.” She and Armstrong remain in contact, Karottki says. “To this day, we swap emails,” she says.

THE REAL WORLD, INSIDE ACADEMIA

Babson executive-in-residence Patricia Henriques

Babson executive-in-residence Patricia Henriques

At Babson College, as at many business schools with exec-in-residence programs, the execs are grouped by specialty. Babson has six executive advisers in its Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership; nine in its Cutler Center for Investments and Finance; and three in its Graduate Center for Career Development. The Babson execs-in-residence program serves MBA candidates and undergraduate business students. “They’re bringing the real world in, in a way that students will listen. Because of their real-world experience they bring credibility,” says Carolyn Hotchkiss, dean of faculty at Babson.

Babson exec-in-residence Patricia Henriques brings deep experience to Babson’s women’s entrepreneurial leadership center. For 11 years, she’s been the founding principal at strategy and business advisory firm The Henlee Group, after 20 years as founder and CEO of national move planning and management firm Management Alternatives. Henriques also brings considerable enthusiasm to her advisory role at Babson. “It’s fabulous,” Henriques says, “one of my favorite things to do.”

She describes herself as “chief coaching officer” for Babson’s would-be female entrepreneurs. She gives a boot camp in January, focused on sales, finance, and operations, “to get women focused on what it takes to launch,” Henriques says.

For the coaching, most students come to her with a problem. “They’ll ask, ‘Have you come across this in your business and how did you solve it? What kind of strategy did you develop?’ You can’t tell them what to do. I try to . . . give examples.”

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