Executive Education in Canadian Firms

A doctoral dissertation about Executive Education involving case study research, and comprising data from interviews with executives in Canada; information about nine universities in Canada, the USA and Europe; and the author's own experience of executive learning. This data and the resulting conclusions and recommendations that flow from them will be of useful interest to practising executives, consultants and business schools providing executive education. "Bruce Fowler's dissertation tackles an important topic, the further education of executives in important Canadian companies, with a view to understanding better what actually goes on in programs designed to make executives better at what they do, keep them up to date, and encourage their imagination on the job. In this he succeeds admirably. His use of Alfred North Whitehead's educational philosophy as a background theoretical vantage point for his work is unusual and very wisely chosen. It enables him to organize his thoughts around a simple, clear and plausible view of the aims and dynamic structure of education at its best" (Dr. Ian Winchester, University of Calgary). "This dissertation's originality and contribution to the discipline lie in the adoption of Whitehead's philosophical framework as a lense through which to reach a synthesis about executive education, which when combined with the author's own business experience give the reader a unique perspective on the issues involved (Dr. H. Woodhouse, University of Saskatchewan). "This research has the potential to make a valuable contribution to the field of executive and business education" (Dr. N. Dudley, University of Calgary).