Business Analytics And AI: A Route To Senior Leadership

To remain competitive in today’s fast-moving business environment, all companies need to work skillfully with data analytics and advanced technologies. And to do this, they need leaders who have a deep understanding of both technology and business. So it’s no surprise that Vlerick’s Masters in Business Analytics and AI (MAI) is seen by many as the first step on a journey to senior decision-making roles.

Professor Philippe Baecke is an Associate Professor in this field at Vlerick Business School. His colleague, Emilia Konttinen, is a senior careers advisor for the school’s masters courses. And they’re celebrating a significant achievement. In addition to being triple-accredited, the MAI is expecting accreditation by NVAO, the accreditation organization of the Netherlands and Flanders. This important accreditation means that the MAI – which was previously part of our Masters in General Management – will now be a standalone program. From 2025, students will graduate with a specific Masters in Business Analytics and AI.

Here, Philippe and Emilia discuss the success of the MAI program…

It’s interesting that you talk about Vlerick’s MAI as a “bridge” between advanced technology and leadership. Tell us more about this…

Philippe: “The MAI isn’t a hard-core IT program. It’s more useful to think of it as a hands-on way of becoming a strategic partner for both IT and management. It involves working with data, interpreting it and acquiring business insights.”

Does this mean that you don’t need to be a coder to take the MAI?

Emilia: “We typically welcome a very broad range of students to the MAI. You might find an economist sitting next to a historian… who in turn is sitting next to a bioengineer or law graduate. You don’t need to have computer skills or a technical background to apply. It’s more important that you get a kick out of analyzing the numbers and working with data.”

Philippe: “I agree. The MAI is open to everyone. If you’re inspired by the huge surge in the popularity of business analytics and AI in recent years, this is a specialization for you. You need a fundamental understanding of statistics – and if you don’t have a programming background, we provide online courses in SQL and Python. With this basic grip on programming – and using generative AI – our students then easily use advanced AI models in several business contexts.”

So, like Vlerick, MAI graduates have one foot in the business world, and one foot in hands-on application of technology?

Philippe: “Exactly. Our faculty and guest lecturers have strong links with business and use real-life cases. Students take part in a hackathon, where they combine their business and technical skills to develop an end-to-end solution to a real business challenge in the course of one week. And we leverage our alumni network in Amsterdam to take students on a field trip to visit companies including Amazon, Google and Cisco.

“At the same time, our academic credentials mean that we are always up-to-date with the latest trends. So we’re one of the few business analytics program that explicitly features advanced AI on the curriculum.

“Vlerick has had a focus on digital transformation – and on business analytics and AI in particular – for many years now. Our Centre for Excellence in Financial Leadership & Digital Transformation, and our executive program in AI & Big Data for Business, are just two examples of this.”

Philippe Baecke is an Associate Professor at Vlerick Business School. He specializes in big data analytics and AI – and integrating business-critical insights into marketing, operations and finance. He teaches on Vlerick’s Masters and Executive programs – and has assisted multiple international organizations at both strategic and operational levels, delivering game-changing data analytics approaches. His work has been published in several peer-reviewed journals.

It sounds very hands-on. Does this approach mean that MAI graduates hit the ground running at the start of their careers?

Philippe: “This is certainly the intention. For example, students learn to support complex and automated decision-making with advanced AI techniques. So they know how to develop company-specific generative AI chatbots – and understand the principles of a self-driving car.

“Importantly, we also explore how these technologies can have a positive impact on the planet. For example, by using data to boost energy efficiency.

“Students can also take elective boot camps so that they can specialize in particular areas.”

Are employers keen to get their hands on MAI graduates?

Emilia: “A survey by an association of global management schools in 2023 revealed some interesting statistics. In 2022, 71% of companies worldwide recruited Masters of Business Analytics graduates – and 79% planned to do so in 2023. For Masters of Data Analytics graduates, these figures rose to 75% and 79% respectively.

“The MAI opens many, many doors for graduates – in consultancy, IT, technology, pharmaceutical, retail and finance, to name but a few industries. For companies, leveraging data analytics and advanced technologies is essential to remain competitive. Yet we know there is a gap between the supply and demand for professionals with these skillsets.

“People who come to the program with an engineering or economics background develop a depth of leadership skills that sets them apart from similar professionals – making them even more sought after in the fields of consultancy, IT and technology.

“And because all sectors need data and technology to succeed, graduates with backgrounds like law, medicine, accountancy – or any other domain – bring a valuable blend of skillsets to their industries.”

Like all Vlerick Masters programs, the Masters in Business Analytics & AI is rooted in the real business world. Students learn tangible skills through:

Hands-on, real-life business cases & challenges (e.g. a hackathon)
Company visits (e.g. Amazon, Google, Cisco, Picnic, StartUpVillage…)
An in-company project
An international study trip (e.g. Amsterdam)
1:1 career coaching
Personal development courses (e.g. management, presentation, negotiation, career skills… )
Recruitment & career events to connect with local and global employers

How does Vlerick help MAI students connect with career opportunities?

Emilia: “Vlerick Career Services give our students very personal support. Through one-to-one coaching and workshops, we help our students to understand their strengths and preferences, finesse their CVs and develop vital career skills.

“In individual career coaching sessions, we define a winning job search strategy, and prepare our students for interviews. In addition, there are opportunities to connect with our 25,000-strong worldwide alumni community – as well as with industry leaders.

“And we organize company visits so that students can become familiar with the data and analytics roles within organizations – and make valuable connections in these companies.

“We also host regular career and recruitment events to connect students with opportunities in Belgium and internationally. An increasing number of employers attending these events are offering roles with a focus on data, analytics and AI.”

Vlerick also has a well-regarded Masters program in Marketing and Digital Transformation (MDT). How is the MAI different to it?

Philippe: “The MDT empowers students to develop analytical skills that are primarily focused on customer insight data. It also covers AI, from a marketing strategy perspective.

“The MAI is for students who want to develop the skills to apply AI techniques within multiple business domains. It’s a broader and more technical program which dives deeper into the world of IT and data management, data science, machine learning and AI models.”