GIA, Harvard Business School hold second global leadership program

Forty-two senior gem and jewellery executives convened at Harvard Business School (HBS) for Gemological Institute of America’s (GIA’s) global leadership program.

The group—representing 12 countries and 14 sectors ranging from mining to manufacturing to retail—gathered to discuss challenges facing the industry and participate in a custom program with a curriculum based on the HBS case study method. This year, the program focused on the importance of marketing, branding, strategy, and communications to a company.

“The quality of the case studies, the participants, the interactions, and debate, as well as the ability of the HBS professors to deliver, was at the pinnacle of exceptional quality,” said John Green, chair of GIA’s board of governors. “This program has again brought closer collaborations to our supply chain and our industry.”

The case studies covered Harley Davidson’s entrance into the India market, the ‘Intel Inside’ campaign, and the building of the Real Madrid soccer team into a global brand. 

GIA initiated the program with HBS in 2014 to bring together leaders from around the world representing different sectors of the gem and jewellery industry to help further develop senior management expertise.

The program also provides a networking opportunity for senior executives, building bridges between different sectors of the global gem and jewellery supply chain.