Keith Sanders, VP, Sales, GAF Materials Corporation, Wayne, NJ
was awarded the Certificate in Business Excellence from
Columbia Business School Executive Education
Congratulations to Keith Sanders for earning the Certificate in Business Excellence and Columbia Business School alumni status. Connected spoke with him recently to acknowledge his achievement:
Q. Which Columbia Business School Executive Education programs allowed you to earn the Certificate in Business Excellence?
Keith: I attended two programs: Executive Development Program: The Transition to General Management and Finance and Accounting for the Nonfinancial Executive, which fulfilled the requirement of 18 program days.
Q. What do you remember most vividly about Executive Development Program: The Transition to General Management (TGM)?
Keith: It was wonderful. Breaking up into small groups and doing case study analysis was a huge benefit. The program had a nice rotation of guest speakers. There was interaction with people from all over the world—Nigeria, Singapore, Japan—a lot of global thinking, which really opened me up to new ideas. Ralph Biggadike (the faculty director) made sure we discussed those issues in depth. Since the program, I was put in charge of international sales at GAF. My TGM class really bonded—to this day, at the holidays, all 40-plus of us stay in touch and email each other, sharing photos and Christmas notes.
Q. What prompted you to attend Finance and Accounting for the Nonfinancial Executive (FANE)?
Keith: I had signed up for the additional four-hour overview of FANE at the beginning of TGM and was impressed. I’m not a math person, and I’m not a finance guy. But in a senior management position you need to know these things. I came up through the sales ranks. I knew how to sell and lead, but I didn’t know how to explain a P&L statement.
Q. What has been the most significant part of these two Columbia Exec Ed experiences for you?
Keith: The global thinking and case analysis. Also, it was not a competitive environment—more a spirit of making sure you didn’t miss something. The problem-solving approach in these programs and dealing with different personalities is always fascinating and interesting.
Program note
The Certificate in Business Excellence is exclusive to Columbia Business School Executive Education. Participants earn the Certificate in Business Excellence, and alumni status with Columbia Business School, by attending a total of 18 days of learning within a four-year period. Any program from our open enrollment program portfolio can be applied towards the certificate. Click here to learn more.