Most people do not fully anticipate just how profound, intense and demanding the MBA journey will be, says Stefano Pogutz, a Professor of Practice in Corporate Sustainability at SDA Bocconi School of Management, where he also serves as the Director of the full-time MBA programme.

We find out much more about his career and thoughts on the future of the MBA, here are his words:

Tell us about yourself and your career to date.

From my university years in the late 1980s, I developed a strong interest in the field of sustainability and development —particularly in relation to environmental protection and social inclusion. I went on to complete a PhD in management, with a focus on the interaction between business and ecosystems, aiming to bring into management scholarship and practice analytical frameworks developed in fields such as ecology and sustainability science.

Over the years, I have taught across a wide range of programmes—from undergraduate to executive education—covering innovation, operations, general management, and sustainability. In 2021, I was invited to become Director of SDA Bocconi’s Full-Time MBA. I accepted with enthusiasm, motivated by the opportunity to help prepare a new generation of leaders capable of creating and sharing value while operating within the limits of a finite planet.

What should people expect when they start an MBA?

We always tell our students that an MBA is a transformative journey. In my experience, most people do not fully anticipate just how profound, intense, and demanding that journey will be. It is not simply about acquiring managerial knowledge — the technical foundations and the “toolkit” that complement and enrich each participant’s background — together with the soft skills required for a successful career.

An MBA is also about challenging yourself every day alongside a carefully selected group of talented and highly skilled peers. The class network is a fundamental part of the learning experience: it enables students to learn from one another, step beyond their comfort zones, and develop a positive and constructive form of leadership. Many activities are team-based and require students to identify priorities, manage relationships, negotiate effectively, and learn to put themselves forward.

What makes the MBA experience so distinctive is the constant interplay between theory and practice: every moment becomes an opportunity for learning. And of course, an MBA offers much more than classroom teaching alone — it includes experiential learning, business games, study tours, coaching, mentoring, and extensive networking opportunities with Clubs. Ultimately, it is a journey in which students, faculty, the Career Development Centre, and staff work together to help shape responsible, resilient professionals.

Please share something that your MBA programme does particularly well.

I believe one of the defining strengths of our MBA is captured in our tagline: “Change Together, Lead with Impact.” The relatively intimate size of the class — around 120 to 130 students, divided into two cohorts — allows us to provide a high level of individual attention and care, while shaping a learning journey that aims at bringing out the best in each person within the group. We typically have around 40 nationalities represented in the class, with highly diverse academic and professional backgrounds, so our students experience multiculturality on a daily basis. Each term, we reshuffle both classes and teams, meaning that throughout the programme every student comes into direct contact with roughly 70 to 80 percent of the class. This makes the learning experience particularly rich, dynamic, and immersive.

Our positioning is also very clear: we are not trying to be a school that offers everything. We see ourselves more as a boutique programme, where those who choose us value close interaction, a one-to-one approach, and the co-creation of the learning journey.

A second distinctive feature is our strong emphasis on impact and responsible leadership. In today’s complex and uncertain world, where many traditional points of reference have weakened, our MBA seeks to develop leaders who are able to create value while remaining grounded in strong values. This has been part of the identity of our School since its foundation, and it continues to guide our work every day.

Why do MBA programmes remain relevant today?

I believe MBA programmes remain highly relevant because they play a fundamental role in professional growth. Technical skills, data management, and artificial intelligence will increasingly help organisations maximise efficiency and optimise decision-making, but the leadership of most organisations remains, above all, a question of guiding people — both at the strategic level and in day-to-day execution.

Some technical content will inevitably become commoditised. As a management school, however, our role must be to develop leaders. In this respect, an MBA offers a unique environment in which leadership can be tested, experienced, and strengthened. It helps students build resilience in the face of stress and uncertainty, and it encourages a strong sense of responsibility together with the courage to make difficult decisions.Much of this develops face to face, through what you live in the classroom and beyond: engaging the empathic dimension, building trust, learning to collaborate, and staying open to feedback. Those shared experiences are also what create an MBA community — relationships with classmates, faculty, and alumni that often become a trusted network to rely on long after graduation.

What hopes do you have for your MBA graduates?

Perhaps it may sound obvious, but my first hope is that our graduates are able to fulfil their aspirations and ambitions. Pursuing an MBA is a major decision — an investment in themselves and in the direction they want their lives to take. For that reason, we must help them achieve the professional and personal goals we have shaped together, ensuring that they fully realise the value of the financial commitment and personal energy they have devoted to this journey.

On a more personal level, I hope that, beyond acquiring the skills needed to make a positive impact on society, they also develop a genuine passion for what they do, the curiosity to explore new paths, and the confidence to embrace change and innovation without fear.

How do you envisage the MBA evolving in the years ahead?

I see several important challenges ahead. First, we need to adapt our teaching and learning approaches to the characteristics and expectations of new generations. This means rethinking how classes are designed, how AI is integrated into pedagogical pathways, and how we assess learning outcomes. AI must become a support and an ally — something that helps us learn more effectively, rather than replacing learning itself. A second challenge is the need to further strengthen active and experiential learning, making the classroom more and more a laboratory for experimentation, reflection, and practice. A third challenge concerns content. Tomorrow’s managers will need to be more entrepreneurial and innovative. They will have to navigate uncertainty and risk, abrupt paradigm shifts, and increasingly complex problems, where success will depend not only on the ability to compete, but also — and perhaps above all — on the ability to collaborate. This calls for new ways of understanding the world, new capabilities, and new soft skills.

For additional insights, trends and perspectives, visit the conversation on MBA Programmes and Leadership.