Your UNICON membership gives everyone on your team access to the consortium's resources and activities. Here is what is on the agenda for FY27, and how to get the most from each.
If you have seen the video of FY25-26 Board Chair Shalini Bhatia discussing the highlights of UNICON's activities and member engagement during that year, you may be wondering what is to come in this next fiscal year. If you haven't seen it yet, take a look here.
Shalini Bhatia, UNICON Board Chair 2025-26, on the year that was.
UNICON fiscal years run from July 1 to June 30.
Activities and resources
What is coming up, and how to make the most of it
Team Development Conference
Nov 18-20, 2026Hosted by Arizona State University in Phoenix, Tempe and Scottsdale. Three days of keynotes, workshops and signature experiences.
- Send a group of team members and task them with presenting back to your whole team on key takeaways, actionable ideas, and questions to explore further.
- Offer to present in the "How We Built It" sessions.
- Early-bird registration closes September 4, 2026.
Leadership Academy
Applications open nowEnrol one or more high-potential team members in this eight-month course on the executive education business model and its success factors. It kicks off in September 2026, and applications are due as soon as possible.
- Monthly online sessions with instructors who are practitioners in the industry.
- An in-person classroom day.
- The Team Development Conference in November.
Professional Development Accelerator Series
From Sept 2026Invite your business development professionals to enrol in the Business Development Accelerator, a five-session online programme led by experienced practitioners from member schools.
- Watch for additional programmes on Operational Excellence and Marketing, launching later in the fiscal year.
Benchmarking
Deadline Aug 31, 2026Submit your data to our third-party research firm, which handles it confidentially, and receive the comprehensive benchmarking report: proprietary access to data on financials, programming, staffing and more.
- Compare your executive education operation against the entire group, or filter by geography, size category, or a combination of both.
- Commission up to three customised reports benchmarking your school against five competitors of your choosing.
Directors' Conference
May 4-7, 2027A first-of-its-kind dual-city immersion, hosted by the Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM) at UNSW and Melbourne Business School, across four days in Sydney and Melbourne.
- Have your most senior one or two leaders attend, to network with 50-90 other senior executive education leaders from top universities and business schools across six continents.
- A chance to learn about the Australasia market for executive education.
Research
OngoingAccess the latest research on topics requested by the membership.
- Read and analyse the latest report, How AI is Reshaping Demand, Delivery, and the Learning Partnership.
- Keep an eye out for two upcoming reports: Microcredentials in Business Schools and Executive Education: Practices and Opportunities, and Beyond ROI - Measuring What Matters: the Impact Intelligence Report.
- The entire research archive is on our website.
Peer Pods
OngoingFormerly known as Coffee Groups. Share this with everyone on your team who would benefit from a peer group at other schools with whom to discuss pressing issues.
Affinity Groups
OngoingEdTech, CRM, the European Meet-Up and the Latin America Online Group.
- Invite team members with an interest in EdTech or CRM to join the respective group. The conversations, shared resources and webinars have proven invaluable to those specialising in these areas.
- If your school is based in Europe, your most senior leader can attend the annual in-person European Meet-Up. Schools in Latin America can join a similar group that meets virtually.
Annual Prime Reps Meeting
Feb 2027, TBAEnsure your primary representative attends. It is a valuable chance to network with other senior executive education leaders and provide actionable input to UNICON.
Webinars
Throughout the yearEncourage everyone on your team to look at the webinar offerings and sign up for any that pique their interest. They are complimentary, and are listed in our monthly newsletter and on the events page.
Monthly Newsletter
Each monthInvite all of your team members onto the recipient list. The newsletter covers executive education research, webinars, blog posts, conference and professional development opportunities and more.
More information on each of these is available on our website. Feel free to contact us if you would like to know more.
Why it matters
The benefits of membership and engagement
You and your team stay at the forefront of global trends, industry development and the competitive marketplace. You are the knowledgeable, confident experts in this field in your school.
You have proprietary access to industry data available only through UNICON membership and participation in annual benchmarking.
Every team member can access the only portfolio of professional development created purposefully for university-based executive education.
You establish a network of colleagues to rely on over the long term, and in the crucial situations we all face from time to time.
Your school is recognised as a bona fide member of this application-only consortium of esteemed business schools and universities on six continents.
Looking ahead
Our three areas of focus for FY27
Our aim for FY27, as shared by Board Chair Aldemir Drummond of Fundação Dom Cabral, is to strengthen UNICON's position as a globally relevant, high-quality and highly engaged consortium, where membership provides sustained value through meaningful exchange and capability development.
Activate the network as a high-impact learning platform
Reinforce UNICON's role as an active, member-driven learning platform by deepening engagement, increasing the quality and frequency of peer exchange, and ensuring members derive consistent, high-value insights and practices from the network.
Curate a high-quality, globally representative membership
Define and implement a selective membership model that preserves network quality and cohesion, while enabling targeted expansion into strategically important geographies.
Lead capability development in executive education
Establish UNICON as the global reference for capability building in executive education by advancing structured learning, best-practice exchange, and collaborative initiatives across the network.
Everything in this piece, and everything we do, is based on input and contributions from our members. In other words, it is customised by and for you. We appreciate hearing from you through the activities above, and at any other time you wish to talk with me, another member of our team, or a member of the board.
With kind regards,
Melanie Weaver Barnett