Chief Operating Officer (COO) Programme

Excel as a strategic operations leader

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Course Dates

STARTS ON

4 February 2025

Course Duration

DURATION

10 to 12 Months
Online and Live Virtual

Course Fee

PROGRAMME FEE

€25.710 €22.500 and get €1.285 off with a referral €150 application fee

Course Information Flexible payment available

Early application benefit

€3.210

This is only available to participants who apply by .

Build agile and resilient operations

The role of the COO is evolving beyond the responsibility to report to the CEO on day-to-day operations of the business. Increasingly, the CEO and COO are expected to form a strategic partnership and deliver an innovative vision for the organisation that creates long-term value. The INSEAD Executive Education Chief Operating Officer (COO) Programme will equip you to navigate unprecedented market challenges and drive cross-functional business development under the guidance of experts at one of the world’s foremost business management schools.

79%

of global company heads say they have adjusted or are planning to adjust their global operations or supply chains.

Source: EY CEO Outlook Survey

87%

of global company heads say they have seen a significant increase in input prices.

Source: EY CEO Outlook Survey

Customised design for your success

The Chief Operating Officer Programme has been expertly designed with the needs of busy senior executives in mind. It offers the flexibility to customise your learning for maximum impact, with a convenient combination of online and live virtual sessions.

Adaptable

Learn online at your own pace in accordance with your work schedule. Deepen your knowledge in select areas of interest relevant to your organisation or career with a choice of topical elective modules.

Reflective

Benefit from a highly interactive learning experience that emphasises a practical application of concepts. Engage in focused business simulations to expand on any knowledge gaps.

Connected

Join a leading international business school and educator of C-suite executives with one of the largest alumni bases of COOs. Become part of an extensive global network of operations professionals.

Programme director

“Organisations today require visionary COOs who can balance innovation with operational leadership to achieve growth and profitability in the uncertain business environment. INSEAD Executive Education imparts essential skills and knowledge to help you spearhead strategic planning, champion change and excel as a partner to the CEO.”

– Professor Guillaume Roels
The Timken Chaired Professor of Global Technology and Innovation

What you will learn in this programme

The Chief Operating Officer Programme will enable you to:

  • Develop your operational thinking into strategic thinking, and articulate new strategic initiatives
  • Evaluate how a shift from an operational to a strategic mindset can transform your organisation, both inside and outside
  • Tackle large-scale problems by leveraging your operational excellence, working beyond your boundaries and acting as a strategic leader
  • Articulate the concepts of value creation and value capture by adopting a customer-centric perspective
  • Discuss how analytics, organisational agility, ecosystems’ capabilities and sustainability may enable your organisation to create more value
  • Evaluate your leadership capacities, including how to make decisions and navigate cognitive biases
  • Understand how to leverage your team, and use negotiations to create value
  • Define how strong leadership ability can influence teams and drive change at an organisational level.

Key programme features

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Experiential sessions

Test your understanding of key concepts through business simulations and live sessions.

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Action learning project (ALP)

Apply your learnings to create an action plan for executing a high-impact business strategy.

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Acclaimed case studies

Explore award-winning case studies with a focus on contemporary issues for COOs.

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Peer interaction

Experience a high level of engagement with accomplished global peers, and exchange diverse perspectives.

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Alumni benefits

Gain INSEAD alumni status upon completion of the programme, and receive select alumni benefits.

Image to accompany text - Case Studies

Programme facilitator

Craft your learning journey in line with your career goals with a programme facilitator assigned to your cohort.

Curriculum

The comprehensive curriculum has been developed by renowned thought leaders in business management. It includes a core component and a choice of three electives so that you can tailor your learning journey. The core modules span three areas crucial for every COO position today: strategy, business acumen and executive leadership.

  • The COO as a Strategic Partner

    • Aligning operations with strategy
    • Achieving operational excellence
    • Driving growth and executing growth strategies
    • Becoming a strategic leader
    • Leading digital strategy and transformation
    • Creative thinking for business

    Developing Business Acumen

    • Customer centricity in a digital age: understanding and creating customer value
    • Strategic drivers of financial performance 
    • Value-based financial decision-making
    • Operations analytics
    • Agile organisations
    • Alliances and ecosystems
    • The business case for sustainability 

    The COO as a Leader

    • Towards better decisions
    • Driving effective negotiations
    • The future of leadership - and work
    • Managing global teams
    • Leading successful change

    *Session topics are subject to change.

    Rethinking Global Strategy – Online: Learn to analyse forces of globalisation and identify winning strategies to lead a global business and build a competitive advantage through international expansion and by applying proven open innovation and knowledge-sharing methods.

    Supply Chain Strategies for Business – Online: Gain the strategic capabilities required to navigate the complexities of today's supply chain landscape and deliver transformative change within your organisation.

    M&A Success Strategies – Online: This elective equips with the essential tools and frameworks necessary to make better M&A decisions from start to finish.

    Agile Strategy Execution: This elective provides the insights and tools to bridge the gap between the rational development of strategy and real-life execution. It helps identify hidden traps, balance the rational with the emotional and build the internal capability to continue successful strategy implementation.

  • Meet your cohort peers and faculty in person at the INSEAD campus immersion and networking event. This event provides a valuable opportunity to form a lifelong global business community. 

Note: Participants may take anywhere from eight to ten months to complete the programme depending on individual schedule and programme selections.

Meet the faculty

The global team of cross-disciplinary INSEAD faculty includes experts in technology and operations management, strategy, accounting, economics and organisational behaviour.

Faculty Member Guillaume Roels

Guillaume Roels

Programme Director for the Chief Operating Officer (COO) Programme, Professor of Technology and Operations Management, The Timken Chaired Professor of Global Technology and Innovation, Research Director of the INSEAD-Wharton Alliance

Faculty Member Noah Askin

Noah Askin

Visiting Professor of Organisational Behaviour

Faculty Member Atalay Atasu

Atalay Atasu

Professor of Technology and Operations Management, The Bianca and James Pitt Chair in Environmental Sustainability

Faculty Member Daniel A. Bens

Daniel A. Bens

Professor of Accounting and Control

Faculty Member Maria Guadalupe

Maria Guadalupe

Professor of Economics, The Goltz Fellowship in Business and Society INSEAD

Faculty Member Li Huang

Li Huang

Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour

Faculty Member Chengyi Lin

Chengyi Lin

Affiliate Professor of Strategy

Faculty Member Ville Satopää

Ville Satopää

Assistant Professor of Technology and Operations Management

Andrew Shipilov

Professor of Strategy The John H. Loudon Chaired Professor of International Management Chair, Strategy Area

Faculty Member Manuel Sosa

Manuel Sosa

Professor of Technology and Operations Management Chair, Technology and Operations Management , Director of the Heinrich and Esther Baumann – Steiner Fund for Creativity and Business

Wolfgang Ulaga

Professor of Management Practice Co-Director of INSEAD Marketing and Sales Excellence Initiative (MSEI)

Faculty Member Guillaume Roels

Guillaume Roels

Programme Director for the Chief Operating Officer (COO) Programme, Professor of Technology and Operations Management, The Timken Chaired Professor of Global Technology and Innovation, Research Director of the INSEAD-Wharton Alliance

Faculty Member Noah Askin

Noah Askin

Visiting Professor of Organisational Behaviour

Faculty Member Atalay Atasu

Atalay Atasu

Professor of Technology and Operations Management, The Bianca and James Pitt Chair in Environmental Sustainability

Faculty Member Daniel A. Bens

Daniel A. Bens

Professor of Accounting and Control

Faculty Member Maria Guadalupe

Maria Guadalupe

Professor of Economics, The Goltz Fellowship in Business and Society INSEAD

Faculty Member Li Huang

Li Huang

Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour

Faculty Member Chengyi Lin

Chengyi Lin

Affiliate Professor of Strategy

Faculty Member Ville Satopää

Ville Satopää

Assistant Professor of Technology and Operations Management

Andrew Shipilov

Professor of Strategy The John H. Loudon Chaired Professor of International Management Chair, Strategy Area

Faculty Member Manuel Sosa

Manuel Sosa

Professor of Technology and Operations Management Chair, Technology and Operations Management , Director of the Heinrich and Esther Baumann – Steiner Fund for Creativity and Business

Wolfgang Ulaga

Professor of Management Practice Co-Director of INSEAD Marketing and Sales Excellence Initiative (MSEI)

Programme facilitator

Faculty Member Jill Kravetz

Jill Kravetz

Pop-up business partner, hands-on founder advisor, fractional CxO

Jill Kravetz is a multifaceted executive with experience starting and operating several businesses across sectors. Kravetz is frequently called on by business owners and senior executives for data-driven, practical, strategic and operational help for their most pressing priorities.

Kravetz holds a Bachelor of Science (Honors) in Biology from Queen’s University and an MBA from the Wharton School.

Project work

The ALP is a crucial practical aspect of the programme. You will apply programme insights to prepare an action plan that identifies and solves real-world operational issues in your company or industry based on the four pillars of operational leadership. Regular check-in sessions and feedback from your programme facilitator and peers will assist you in refining your road map.

Certificate

Certificate

Upon completion of the programme, participants will be awarded a verified digital certificate by INSEAD Executive Education.

Who is it for?

The Chief Operating Officer Programme is ideal for:

  • New and emerging COOs looking to gain strategic insights to drive operational excellence in their organisations
  • Heads of operations and operations leaders looking to advance into C-level positions and gain executive leadership skills to enhance their existing skill set.

Participants should have:

  • A minimum of 10 years of work experience
  • Fluency in written and spoken English
  • International exposure (preferred)

Alumni benefits

Join INSEAD’s powerful global network of more than 66,000 alumni in over 180 countries, and receive select benefits, including:

  • Access to more than 1,000 events and programmes annually organised by INSEAD and the INSEAD Alumni Association
  • Access to the INSEAD Alumni Lifelong Learning programme
  • Career development for alumni, including career coaching, peer-to-peer advising and mentoring programmes
  • Benefit from preferential rates on in-person INSEAD Open Enrolment Programmes and Open Online Programmes
  • Networking tools and a lifelong INSEAD email.

*Upon completion of the programme, graduates of the Chief Operating Officer Programme will gain complimentary alumni status for a period of three years. A minimal annual membership fee will be required to maintain the status thereafter.

Application details

programme fee

€25.710 €22.500

The fee amount is available till ,, and does not include the application fee of €150
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FAQs

  • The INSEAD Chief Operating Officer (COO) Programme follows an immersive learning process. Participants are expected to fulfil a certain minimum criteria to earn the Certificate of Completion. This includes successful completion of core and elective activities and an action learning project.



    As participants progress through each core module and elective, reviewing the weekly content, they earn points for each activity. Participants need to have earned a certain minimum number of points at the end of each core module and elective. In addition, participants are also required to submit a core action learning project at the end of the core phase.

    To complete the programme and earn the certificate, participants are required to:

    • Complete a minimum of 80 percent of all in-platform learning activities
    • Submit at least three weekly action learning project assignments per core module and elective
    • Submit a timely ALP.

  • On-campus attendance is optional for this programme. You will have the opportunity to participate in an on-campus immersion, networking event at the end of the programme. However, the curriculum is fully online and consists of a mix of recorded video and live virtual sessions with fellow participants, learning coach and faculty.

  • Yes, of course! The learning experience is especially designed to encourage interaction and simulate as close an experience to face-to-face interaction as possible. Participants can interact with each other through discussion forums, live forums, webinars and virtual networking interspersed throughout the learning journey.



    In addition, the programme concludes with an optional in-person immersion, networking event.

  • Yes, we purposefully manage class sizes to ensure ample faculty-to-participant time. INSEAD faculty will also regularly read and respond to your comments in the discussion forums. The faculty is assisted in these interactions by the learning coach, acting as a bridge between the participants and the faculty.

  • The Chief Operating Officer (COO) Programme has been designed with your busy schedule in mind. You will be required to commit not more than three to five hours per week, enabling you to benefit from this impactful programme while balancing your work responsibilities. The programme offers a blend of self-paced modules and live interaction.

  • The learning journey includes live and asynchronous online sessions with renowned faculty, industry experts and global peers. You can take advantage of live sessions and the Slack channel to ask questions and discuss ideas with your programme facilitator and cohort participants. Real-world examples and a debrief of the programme learnings are delivered through a combination of recorded video and live online lectures.

  • Unfortunately, it is not possible to take any more electives than the specified number. The electives are designed to help you gain specialised skills in areas that are aligned with your career so that you can dedicate focused time for learning and honing those skills.

  • Yes, we provide closed-captioning and transcripts for all pre-recorded videos as well as closed-captioning for recordings of live sessions.

  • Eruditus collects all programme payments, provides learner enrolment and programme support, and manages learning platform services. INSEAD is collaborating with Emeritus (part of the Eruditus Group) to offer a portfolio of high-impact programs.

  • For the programme refund and deferral policy, please click the link here.

  • Programme fees for Emeritus programmes with INSEAD may not be paid for with (a) funds from the GI Bill, the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Act of 2008 or similar types of military education funding benefits or (b) Title IV financial aid funds.

Connect with a programme advisor for a 1:1 session

Email: INSEAD_COO@emeritus.org

Phone: +44 1416 732351 (UK) / +1 234 516 2703 (US) / +971 80 00321209 (UAE) / +52 55930 20507 (LATAM)

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Early registrations are encouraged. Seats fill up quickly!

Flexible payment options available. Learn more.