MBA@Rice Capstone Program | January - March
General
- Graduate
- 20 learners; teams of 4
- 30 hours per learner
- Dates set by experience
- Learners self-assign
Preferred companies
- 3/4 project matches
- United States
- Academic experience
- Non profit, Large enterprise, Small to medium enterprise
- Any
Categories
Skills
Project timeline
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December 8, 2021Experience start
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December 21, 2021Research and Work Plan
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January 31, 2022Current State Assessment
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February 14, 2022Strategy
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March 14, 2022Detailed Designs and Plans
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March 18, 2022Final Presentation
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March 24, 2022Experience end
Timeline
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December 8, 2021Experience start
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December 21, 2021Research and Work Plan
Teams will formally plan the activities and workload of solving a complex problem, over a multi-month project, with a remote client. This also provides information for the teams and the instructors to hold individual team members accountable for their participation in the course.
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January 31, 2022Current State Assessment
An in-depth assessment of the client’s current situation to form the basis for the strategic analysis. Generally, it should identify critical issues that must be addressed by the strategy, as well as organizational competencies and other opportunities upon which the strategy should be built.
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February 14, 2022Strategy
This assignment includes descriptions of all strategic options considered by the team, critical assumptions, qualitative costs/benefits of the different options, and analyses that form the basis for prioritization and final strategy selection.
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March 14, 2022Detailed Designs and Plans
Will be comprised of four elements: the detailed designs of the recommended solution (strategy + functional improvements); a comprehensive value proposition; a high-level implementation plan for your
recommendation; and a risk analysis and mitigation approach. -
March 18, 2022Final Presentation
The final assignment is a formal presentation and an executive summary document based on the Assessment, Strategy, and Detailed Designs and Plans assignments. It will be presented to the company, including project team sponsors and senior leadership, as well as the Capstone faculty director.
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March 24, 2022Experience end
Overview
- Details
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Looking to elevate your organization, and bring it to the next level? Bring on a team of 4-5 MBA students from Rice University to act as consultants to your organization on a large scale, comprehensive, enterprise strategy course that puts every discipline they have learned in their program to work. Students are in their final courses before graduation and looking for a challenging and engaging project.
This Capstone Consulting course will run from January to March.
- Learner skills
- Competitive analysis, Business consulting, Business strategy, Marketing strategy, Project planning
- Deliverables
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Provides a detailed, actionable recommendation at the strategic and tactical levels
Taps both student and Rice University, Jones Graduate School of Business faculty expertise to develop the recommendations
Approaches your strategic challenges with fresh, yet experienced perspectives
Exposes your organization to the capabilities of talented MBA professionals
Builds your company’s long-term relationship with Rice University and the Jones Graduate School of Business in Houston, Texas
Project Examples
In this course, second year MBA students will dive deep into the large scale project that you provide, utilizing all disciplines learned throughout their program. Students work with one or two dedicated primary contacts from your organization to gain a thorough understanding of the needs of your business and the competitive landscape of your industry.
As a participating organization, you'll be asked to provide crucial information to our students, that we protect with a non-disclosure agreement. We also ask primary contacts to meet regularly with students, typically once a week, to ensure open communication and project focus. Student review and recommendations will encompass all areas of your business, and at completion teams will deliver a final presentation and roadmap to implement your project goal.
Projects we accept are encompassing enterprise strategy in nature and comprehensive for the whole business or non-profit. The project can include functional issues (e.g., marketing, talent management, operations/supply chain, valuations, etc.), but those will be considered under the umbrella of the main strategy project.
- Focus on large scale strategy
- Growth or expansion plans (most common – over 90% of projects)
- Turnaround business plan
- We do not include fundraising, sales or new customer/client cultivation or acquisition target solicitation activities in projects.
Additional company criteria
Companies must answer the following questions to submit a match request to this experience:
Are you a nonprofit or company with >5 years of business operations?
Be available for a quick phone/virtual call with experiential learning staff to initiate your relationship and confirm your scope is an appropriate fit for the course.
Provide a dedicated contact person who is available for weekly/bi-weekly drop-ins to address students’ questions as well as periodic messages over the duration of the project.
Provide an opportunity for students to present their work and receive feedback.
Provide relevant information/data as needed for the project.
Do you have a strategic plan currently in place?