Your Experience: Year Two – Global Immersion Track
N I N E D AY S I N TH E LIFE OF ALAN MYERS
Alan Myers chose the Global Immersion Track for several reasons. First, he believed that a deeper understanding of international business would help him in his career. Second, it would be easier on his family for him to be gone 4 times for a long week than for him to commute from Memphis to Nashville every other weekend. Here’s how Alan describes the typical routine during his immersion experience in Mexico City.
Saturday-Sunday
Friday Mexico City is only 2 short flights from Tennessee, and I am able to leave home Friday morning and arrive early afternoon. Once I land, I head directly to ITAM (Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México—our partner school) for a working lunch with my team members. In the late afternoon, we meet more formally with our Capstone Project faculty. Later that night, we reconnect with all of our classmates at a welcome dinner at a fantastic restaurant with an authentic Mariachi band. Having an immersion experience in January also allows us to escape Nashville’s winter, and it’s great to be in Mexico with the sunshine and pleasant temperatures.
The weekend is spent primarily with our teams and capstone coaches finalizing our Capstone Project, which we will present to our client in about one month. When we are not at a residency, we work on the capstone remotely, so having this in-person time to finalize our deliverables is very valuable. It’s not all work though. On Saturday afternoon, the cohort heads to the Teotihuacan Pyramids, which is an incredible cultural experience. And after our team meetings on Sunday, students organize a river boat cruise, which is relaxing and a lot of fun.
Monday During the week, we have class from 8:30AM to 5:30PM. Our classes during this residency focus on family businesses and international competitiveness. The faculty at ITAM are awesome, and I am learning so much from them. We have a guest lecturer today, the CIO from Cinépolis movie theaters, who discusses strategy surrounding upscale movie theaters. It’s fascinating! This evening, our team decides to visit a theater to see their business model firsthand and enjoy a movie. 38 Vanderbilt Executive MBA
Tuesday On Tuesday, we continue our classes, have lunch, and end the day by working on coursework with our team. The lunches here have been fantastic. The university prides itself on their dining facilities. They have an unbelievable chef and cooking team. We eat really well in Mexico!
