Personal development gets a high rating

"The EMBA provided me with three distinct benefits - positive affirmation that I'm doing the right thing in my business, insights into areas I can improve and tools to drive that improvement, and personal development."

Michael Stillwell
Director
Stillwell Motor Group

Michael Stillwell is a director of Stillwell Motor Group, an Australian family business with a $500 million turnover, 550 employees, and which sells about 5,000 new cars a year.

As the eldest of five children, four of whom work directly in the business, Michael divides his time between the business and the family council.

As director of the business, Michael coaches and mentors the sales teams across ten dealerships, while controlling and administering capital and general expenditure.

As head of the family council, a good part of his time is spent on family-related issues such as the constitution, family office, the management of vision and values and what he calls general family affairs.

The business is run by a seven-member board, three of whom are family members. Michael claims the family drives the business but the external directors keep them honest.

Michael began his professional education as an apprentice motor mechanic, then later did a certificate of business at Monash in 1993.

His professional career encompasses a stint as a motor mechanic and car salesman for the family Ford dealership for about four years, selling corporate jet aeroplanes for another five years, working for Toyota as national sales promotions area manager for three years, and selling computers for five years, before finally returning to the family business, as a sales person initially and later in management.

He saw the Melbourne Business School EMBA as a personal challenge and recognised it would add value to not only his own business but also to the not-for-profit boards he sits on.

His long term aspiration is to be a part-time company director.

He says, the EMBA provides him with three distinct benefits. The first is positive affirmations on what he's doing right in his own business. The second is some insights into areas he can improve and some tools to drive that improvement. Finally he claims he is getting a lot of personal development, particularly out of the organisational behaviour and leadership subjects.

Michael chose MBS because of the convenience of the modular format (the MBS EMBA is delivered across four one month modules), the breadth of materials covered in different topics, the prestige of the school and the international module (one module is conducted across the US, Germany and China) insights.

EMBA Class of 2009