The basic elements of the program are presented below; each year program content changes as faculty modify materials to meet participant needs and as the program’s overall design addresses changes in the business environment as well as changes in health care and the profession of pharmacy. Faculty members from The Wharton School, a world-renowned business school, present the latest business concepts and applications in the five-and-a-half day Core Program and subsequent two-and-a-half Executive Forum.

The Core Program begins by exploring the concept of systems thinking and the importance of a systems perspective in achieving effective organizational decision making. More broadly, the current and future role of pharmacy is examined in a scenario planning exercise utilizing an idealized design methodology.

Using the systems design framework, participants learn techniques to identify and analyze key stakeholders and various stakeholders’ effects on organizational performance. Participants also explore techniques to manage and influence stakeholder behavior to achieve a desired outcome, as well as study basic marketing concepts. In addition, a negotiations workshop allows participants the opportunity to discover their own negotiation style and learn methods for effective negotiation both within and outside their organizations.

The program also focuses on financial strategies and performance measures. Participants learn how to interpret and understand the financial and non-financial condition of a business, how to measure the effectiveness of a business in generating a profit, how to determine the efficiency of a business in managing its assets, and how to identify potential ‘trouble-spots.’ Participants review methods to analyze the income statement and the balance sheet as well as discuss specific measures of business performance.

To conclude the Core Program, participants will work with Wharton Communications faculty members in learning the most effective methods for communicating a cohesive and persuasive business plan to senior leadership of an organization, in preparation for the arrival of the participants' supervisor/administrators. The final two and a half days of the program are then devoted to the Executive Forum in which participants learn concurrently with their supervisors/administrators. During this Executive Forum the organizational pairs have the opportunity, in a non-threatening benign learning environment, to address key issues facing their organization. The Executive Forum is also an opportunity to gain further executive education training for the participants and their administrators. Leadership styles and techniques are examined, as well as common decision traps that often cause poor strategic and tactical decision making. The program concludes with a discussion on the importance of effective “re-entry” into the participants’ organizations.