Want To Study Innovation and Entrepreneurship? Do These Business School Innovation Modules

Knowledge about innovation is desperately needed in today’s workforce.

A survey of executives and managers at 500 US companies found that 6 out of 10 said their companies struggled to learn from past mistakes, while over 80% said that they used a one-size-fits-all approach to innovation strategy.

Whether you want to help a corporation maintain its competitive advantage or start your own successful business, it's clear that you can put yourself ahead of the pack with strong innovation skills - and business school is the place to learn them.

As well as learning from world-renowned experts and researchers who study these complex business concepts daily, business masters programs also give you access to networks of like-minded peers as well as successful businesspeople.

But what does innovation learning look like at business school?

In this blog, we’ll take you through the different types of innovation modules available on business masters programs and give you some top examples.

What does innovation mean?

First of all, let's define what we mean by "innovation". Innovation essentially refers to finding a new way of solving a problem. This might be by creating a new product, or by introducing a new way of thinking.

There are 4 main types of innovation:

1. Disruptive innovation

2. Sustaining innovation

3. Breakthrough innovation

4. Basic research innovation

You can read a summary of these innovation types – and where to study them – here, but a quick example of one of them is the original smartphone.

This is an example of a breakthrough innovation, because it created a totally new product that solved the problem of people needing to be connected on the go, and it changed the technology market.

Innovation is key to business competition and the advancement of new technologies and ideas, and graduate school is a great place to learn about it.

How do business schools enable innovation?

As we’ve already mentioned, business schools are home to a wide variety of research experts.

Your professors will spend their days not only creating case studies examining how companies have succeeded or failed in their efforts to innovate, but working directly with these companies on new innovation initiatives.

They then bring these learnings directly to you in class, enabling students to become more innovative leaders.

But the innovation support offered by business schools goes beyond classroom teaching. Most of them also supply extensive material support for aspiring entrepreneurs, offering a crashpad for new ventures and enabling students to take risks in a safer environment than the real world.

For example, many schools offer

• Startup incubators

• Startup accelerators

• Consulting projects with real businesses

This enables innovation by allowing you to try new concepts and new ways of working before launching these into the real world.

So, what does innovation teaching look like at business school?

What types of innovation modules are there?

There are many ways that you might learn about innovation at business school, and they will differ based on your program, but the main formats are:

1. MBA specializations. By choosing a specialization on an MBA, you will be able to curate your core and elective courses to focus specifically on innovation.

2. Specialized master’s programs. Another way to get focused learning about innovation is to choose a specialized master’s program. This is a particularly good option if you’re fresh out of college or early in your career.

3. Individual modules on innovation. Whichever degree path you choose, most business school programs will examine innovation and encourage you to apply innovative thinking to your way of working.

We’ll now go through each type of innovation modules and show you some examples.

MBAs in Innovation and Entrepreneurship

A Master's in Business Administration, or MBA, is usually considered a generalist business degree. However, more and more top management schools are offering ways for students to specialize and focus their learning on their area of interest.

Here are some of the top schools worldwide offering MBA specializations in innovation.

1. The Wharton School's MBA Entrepreneurship and Innovation Major

The MBA offered by the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania is the top program in the world according to the Financial Times. For the elite students who win a place on the program, there is the option to major in entrepreneurship and innovation.

To complete this major, students must complete a core course in entrepreneurship, then choose their electives from a list of entrepreneurship-focused innovation modules.

These include highly-specialized topics like:

• Venture Capital and the Finance of Innovation

• Intellectual Property Strategy For the Innovation-driven Enterprise

• Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship In the New Space Era

2. HEC Paris's specialization in Digital Innovation

HEC Paris is one of the most prestigious business schools in France, and the school offers a track for MBA specialization in Digital Innovation.

On this course, students learn to become an "innovation enabler", gaining the business skills to complete digital transformation efforts across a variety of industries.

The specialization is divided into two parts: one focusing on managing digital innovation in the B2C services industry, the other on managing transformation in large industrial companies.

In each part there is an experiential learning project. For the B2C services section, students propose a digital strategy and accompanying business plan for a new service being launched by a real-world company.

In the second part, students put their consulting skills to work in a digital transformation case.

3. Imperial College's Full-Time MBA in Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Finally, Imperial College London offers an Entrepreneurship and Innovation specialization for its full-time MBA students.

On this track, students get to take advantage of the school's:

• Enterprise Lab, an interdisciplinary innovation hub that encourages creativity and collaboration between students, faculty, and alumni as they explore new business opportunities.

• Venture Catalyst Challenge, an entrepreneurship competition with £80,000 in venture capital up for grabs.

• 12-week Summer Accelerator that gives students access to mentorship and peer support to launch their own venture.

Business masters programs on innovation

Business master's programs are usually better-suited to recent undergraduates who are looking for a springboard into a business career. If you have an entrepreneurial mindset, check out one of the following business masters programs.

1. IE Business School's Master's in Digital Business and Innovation

This 11-month program from IE Business School in Madrid focuses on digital innovation and includes courses on cutting-edge topics including data architecture and governance, cybersecurity management, and machine learning and artificial intelligence.

There are three concentration areas:

1. Digital Marketing & Sales

2. Digital Transformation

3. Industry 4.0

The program culminates in an impact project during which students create a new business idea, including drawing up a business model and conceiving of the technology needed to make it happen.

2. EU Business School's Master in Innovation and Entrepreneurship

The Master in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at EU Business School can be completed in one year of full-time study or two years of part-time study.

Like the program at IE Business School, one of the core focuses of the EU program is on new venture creation, focusing on developing students' creativity and ability to draft new business models.

3. Hult International Business School's Master's in Entrepreneurship and Innovation

This full-time, one-year Master's program from Hult International Business School is based on the school's campus in San Francisco. The key skills development it promises to students includes skills like

• Design thinking

• Business model development

• Investment pitching

• Digital marketing

The core modules are designed to mimic the process of startup development, beginning with an ideation phase, moving through planning to launch, which culminates in a new venture investment pitch challenge.

Students can also choose whether they would like to add an optional second degree in the UK or US to receive a dual degree.

Business school modules on innovation strategy

While not every graduate school will offer a dedicated course on innovation at master's level or a specialization option during their MBA, almost every business school will offer innovation modules during their programs.

Here are some examples from MBA programs at well-known business schools.

1. London Business School

At London Business School, students study a core course program of business fundamentals in their second term.

In this section of the course, they take a course on Innovation and Technology Strategy, as well as a course on design-led innovation.

2. Edhec Business School

At EDHEC Business School in France, the MBA's strategic foundations program offers a dedicated course on Strategy, Innovation, and Business Management.

In this course, students learn how innovation impacts every level of business decision making, from strategy and marketing management, to operations and supply chain, to AI and the digital future.

This course culminates in a live business challenge where students put their new management skills to the test.

3. Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School's "Innovate Using Design Thinking" course teaches students about iterative design, using methods like observation and in-depth interviews with customers to create insights that will help with product or service development.

At the end of the course, students present a final pitch to the client they have been working with throughout in the real business world.

Other ways to learn about innovation at business school

So far, we've covered how you will develop your innovation skills within the classroom on a traditional business masters course, by studying the theory of innovation and applying it to the development of new products.

However, if you cannot attend an in-person program, there are options for pursuing a professional certificate in innovation strategy online.

Online business programs

Many business schools offer both flexible or hybrid online courses, as well as online short courses designed for busy professionals who want to learn the fundamentals of innovative business without taking time away from their work.

One prominent example is Warwick Business School. WBS offers an online course on Strategic Innovation in Practice which covers innovation strategy with particular attention to real-world examples.

Harvard Business School is well-known for the success of its online courses. One of its most celebrated online courses is its offering on the topic of disruptive innovation, featuring online video lectures from Professor Clayton Christensen, the father of disruptive innovation theory.

On-campus research centers

It is also important to note that an important aspect of learning at business school is that it doesn't only happen through courses but through the various research centers and initiatives that take the school as their home.

One example of a research center at a business school is the Center for Social Innovation at Cambridge Judge Business School.

This is a multidisciplinary center for designing best practices for innovation across business, civil society, policy, and academia, with a view to promoting inclusivity and sustainability.

Select the innovation modules that are right for you

Whether you complete a course online or advance your career as an entrepreneur through traditional campus learning, it is clear that graduate management education offers many options for learning how to create change and start a successful business.

You just need to choose what kind of innovation most interests you and tailor your education towards that goal.

To help you do this, we've written a guide to the four main types of innovation, and which management programs you should consider depending on your interests.

Still not convinced that GME is a worthwhile investment if you're pursuing startup success? Read our interview with MBA entrepreneur Austin Cohen, founder of successful fitness app FlexIt.