Networking · UNICON Members Only
Small, self-facilitated groups of executive education professionals, matched by role, who meet regularly on Zoom to swap strategies, solve problems, and build lasting relationships across institutions.
Formerly known as UNICON Coffee Breaks. Same great conversations, refreshed for 2026.
Join a Peer Pod
Peer Pods are small groups of executive education peers who hold similar roles at other UNICON member schools and meet regularly on Zoom. Formerly known as Coffee Breaks, they are the easiest way to build your network across the consortium. Here is what members get out of them.
Test ideas, compare approaches, and get honest input from people who do your job at other schools, without any competitive pressure.
From participant safety practices to faculty incentives to AI-powered program reviews, pod conversations regularly turn into changes members implement on their own campuses.
Pods meet over the long term, so relationships deepen year after year, and familiar faces await you at UNICON conferences and workshops.
UNICON handles the matching, scheduling, reminders, and shared agendas, and checks in with every pod regularly, so you can focus on the conversation.
Peer Pods in Action
When Charles Kiamie of Georgetown McDonough raised the challenges of running programs on an open, urban campus, his pod had an answer ready: cardstock safety reminders in every participant's welcome bag. Georgetown adopted the idea. In return, Charles walked his pod through the AI-assisted after-action review process he built, and peers are now modeling it at their own schools.
"There have been many tips and tricks I have picked up from colleagues during these calls. A favorite moment of the month!"
— Charles Kiamie, Assistant Dean, Custom Executive Education, Georgetown McDonough School of Business
Meet Charles. He is also part of the UNICON Spotlight series, another great opportunity for members to get to know each other. Want to recognize someone on your team?
Nominate for the Spotlight"I love my group! The chance to build a relationship with peers experiencing challenges similar to my own, to learn, guide and support one another over time, has been absolutely invaluable."
Stephanie Hodnett
Executive Director, Rotman Executive Programs, University of Toronto
"These chats have been a very good and informal way for me to get to know colleagues from other business schools. The chats have been very open and friendly, and I have really appreciated meeting so many interesting people and discussing our challenges that often are similar."
Henrik Björck
Director, Customized Solutions & Corporate Sales, SSE Executive Education
Four schools, three continents, one conversation
On a recent call, Kamran Bilgrami of IBA Karachi joined peers from Carnegie Mellon, Rutgers Business School, and Fundação Dom Cabral in Brazil for an exchange on the changing landscape of executive education. The discussion ranged across regional economic realities, growth trajectories in Asia, shifting geopolitics, evolving leadership development needs, and opportunities for cross-border collaboration and applied research.
What struck him most, as he later shared on LinkedIn, was what the group did not talk about: for the first time in recent memory, AI was not the anchor of the conversation. The dialogue stayed grounded in context, complexity, and institutional relevance, exactly the kind of perspective an international peer network makes possible.
"UNICON is global in reach, but built through conversations that remain deeply human."
— Kamran Bilgrami, Director, Center for Executive Education, IBA Karachi
Kamran Bilgrami, Director, Center for Executive Education, IBA Karachi
Complete the short interest form at the top of this page and choose the focus area that best matches your responsibilities, from business development to learning design.
UNICON places you in an existing pod or forms a new one around you. Most pods have 5 to 10 members from other schools who hold similar roles and face similar challenges.
UNICON schedules your pod's Zoom calls and sends the invitations. Before each call, every member receives a reminder and a shared agenda where you can add the topics you want to discuss.
Your pod sets its own rhythm, and UNICON keeps scheduling the calls unless your pod prefers to manage them yourselves. UNICON checks in each quarter, shares what other pods are discussing, and gathers your feedback twice a year.
What started in 2020 as a handful of coffee break calls between colleagues has become one of UNICON's most popular member benefits. The numbers tell the story.
members have taken part since 2020
active pods meeting regularly
focus areas matched to your role
continents represented
The first 100 members formed 16 groups in 2020. By late 2022 that had grown to 280 participants in 39 groups. Today more than 300 members meet across 40+ pods worldwide, and over 400 members have taken part along the way.
Pods are organized around eight focus areas so every conversation is relevant to your day-to-day work. Two pods also meet in Asia-Pacific friendly time zones.
Deans, executive directors, and managing directors compare notes on strategy, portfolio, faculty engagement, and growing the whole enterprise.
Rising leaders share how they manage teams, portfolios, and stakeholders while building the skills for the next step in their careers.
The largest Peer Pod community. Client development, corporate partnerships, and sales professionals trade approaches to pipelines, pricing, and winning custom work.
Marketing directors, managers, and coordinators discuss campaigns, brand, enrollment marketing, analytics, and doing more with lean teams.
Operations leaders cover facilities, finance, client success, guest services, and the systems that keep programs running smoothly.
Program managers and delivery teams exchange practical solutions for participant experience, logistics, and running open and custom programs.
Instructional designers and program developers explore learning innovation, digital and blended formats, and designing for executive audiences.
EdTech advisors, platform managers, and IT leaders talk tools, AI, learning platforms, and the technology behind modern executive education.
Fill out the interest form and we will be in touch as soon as the next round of pods is scheduled to begin. Peer Pods are available to UNICON members only.
Questions? Contact Taryn Streed, who manages the Peer Pods program.
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"The groups are a great resource. They let us share challenges and ideas with people in similar roles at similar organizations. Without the groups, we wouldn't know each other and have this opportunity. The groups are an informal, safe space to share and exchange suggestions, and provide support and advice."
Pam Knight
IT Director, Administrative Systems, The Wharton School
"The best thing about these groups is that you quickly find out that all those issues you deal with every day, complex clients, quirky faculty, intricate contracts, and more, are the same issues your peers deal with every day at their schools. That in and of itself keeps you coming back time after time."
Jonathan Gurevitch
Senior Director, Custom Program Development, Wharton Executive Education
"These sessions are a terrific opportunity to connect with peers, discuss executive education trends and deepen personal relationships. They are an invaluable complement to UNICON events and the day-to-day conversations I have with our clients and colleagues. I always look forward to connecting with my group and comparing notes."
Phil Barta
Executive Director, Tuck Executive Education at Dartmouth
"My group has been a wonderful way to connect with my marketing peers, to share insights and learnings, ask questions, and make new connections."
Julie Harju
Director of Marketing and Communications, MIT Sloan School of Management
Relationships built in Peer Pods mean familiar faces at every UNICON event.
Ready to join a Peer Pod?
Join the Interest List