Student Engagement @ Brierley

Learn from the Experts

It doesn't get any better: You'll learn directly from visionary Hal Brierley, along with the Harold M. Brierley Endowed Professor and Academic Director of the Brierley Institute for Customer Engagement, Venkatesh “Venky” Shankar.

Hal served as the sole outside consultant for American Airlines in designing the AAdvantage loyalty program and has engineered over 175 loyalty programs. Professor Shankar, in addition to his extensive body of award-winning research in customer engagement and marketing, brings expertise in digital business, marketing strategy, retailing, international marketing, and pricing to the Brierley Institute. 

The Brierley Institute at SMU Cox is one of the only places in the world where you can get live consulting experience as an MBA student.

-Layton Cox, MBA '20, Strategy Consulting Senior Associate at Strategy&

The Curriculum: Designed for the Real World

Whether you plan a career in marketing, business analytics, or consulting, the Customer Engagement curriculum gives you a competitive advantage. You'll learn to leverage both digital and traditional media to build customer relationships, measure financial impact, and design experiences that engage customers and create value.

Customer Engagement is a 4-course specialization within the SMU Cox School of Business Marketing concentration. MBA candidates interested in marketing, business analytics, consulting, and other analytical fields are encouraged to explore these courses as elective offerings. Covering a spectrum from loyalty to analytics, the curriculum connects theory and practice, preparing you to be an influential player in a fast-growing field.

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Projects in a Hands-On Learning Laboratory

The SMU Cox School of Business is renowned for connecting students with Dallas's corporate leaders and driving innovation in experiential learning. The Brierley Institute's specialization in Customer Engagement opens even broader horizons. From the airline loyalty programs pioneered by Institute founder Hal Brierley to today’s digital personalization models, customer engagement programs drive success. As a student in specialized courses through the Brierley Institute, you’ll gain expertise in this evolving field by learning from thought leaders and working hands-on with top companies to tackle real-time customer engagement challenges.

Dynamic Project Opportunities

Brierley Institute’s Corporate Project Sponsors present students with projects on current customer engagement challenges. The result: An opportunity to provide a fresh perspective and present recommendations that leveraging cutting-edge analytics and customer insights.

Building Brand Preference with Millennials

MBA students are selected to manage consulting projects for sponsoring companies. Brierley Institute corporate member Synchrony recently brought a new business challenge to students featuring one of their own clients, Sam's Club. 

Synchrony Project Feature

The Brierley Institute Advantage

With opportunities to work on classroom projects and extracurricular consulting work, the Brierley Institute allows MBA candidates to leverage customer engagement skills throughout their education and after graduation.

Read a Student's Story

What motivates diners?

Executive MBA candidates learn fundamentals in the Customer Engagement Strategy course, designed for seasoned professionals to apply concepts on projects featuring their own companies. Read how Fuzzy’s Taco Shop benefitted from a student team’s insights.

Learn more about the EMBA Course

Interested in studying at the first academic institute in the nation devoted to customer engagement? Learn about our MBA program at the SMU Cox School of Business.

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