A new chapter for Executive Education at Wageningen Academy

When we asked Miel what has defined Executive Education at Wageningen Academy over the past years, he did not start with formats or course titles. He started with the sector itself.

Food & Agribusiness, he explains, is moving into a future that will look very different from the past. In such a complex system, there is no single answer or ready-made solution. “You have to understand the context of the Food & Agribusiness sector,” he says. That context is never purely business. It includes soil, water, climate, supply chains, policy, technology and society. It also includes people from different parts of the system: companies, governments, NGOs and other organisations that all influence how Food & Agribusiness develop.

This broader view has shaped the portfolio Miel helped build. Wageningen University & Research has always been strong in knowledge and research, but over the years Miel saw that strategy requires more than knowledge alone. It also asks something from the person leading the change.

“Strategy is always an integration of different aspects,” he explains. “What I have learned is that the personal development of leaders is very important to make it a success.” That is why personal development has become increasingly integrated into the programmes: not as a separate skills training, but as part of working on real challenges.

One of the strongest developments in the portfolio has been the move towards Living Business cases. Rather than only listening to experts or discussing theory, participants work on real-life challenges from the Food & Agribusiness sector.

This approach runs through several parts of the Executive Education portfolio, from the Executive MBA Track and Lighthouse Farm Academy to Masterclass Nature Positive Finance and custom-made programmes for organisations. The goal is not to give participants one correct answer, but to help them understand complexity, explore possible directions and learn how to move forward with others.

In Miel’s view, this is what makes Executive Education different from traditional business education. Fixed models and two-dimensional frameworks are no longer enough for the challenges that Food & Agribusiness leaders face today. “We need leaders who can manage complexity, but also see it, feel it and play with it,” he says.

For Food & Agribusiness, that means starting from a different point. Not from the economy alone, but from the living system underneath it. “You start with nature, soil, water and climate. You have to understand that, and from there you create the business.”

Alexandra brings a complementary perspective to the portfolio. She spent around 15 years working in the food industry, across operations, R&D and learning and development, and was actually also part of the first MBA cohort herself. That combination of industry experience and participant perspective gives her a broad view of how organisations work, where professionals can get stuck and what Executive Education can offer in practice.

“Future leaders need to look beyond their own organisation or expertise. Systems thinking starts when you step out of your silo and work with people who see the challenge differently.” she says. For Alexandra, education can help bridge those gaps, both within organisations and between organisations and the outside world.

She sees professionals operating in a world that is less predictable than before. Supply chains are under pressure, AI is changing roles and ways of working, and companies are trying to adapt at high speed. This also affects professionals personally. Roles that once felt secure may change. Knowledge that once seemed sufficient may need to be updated.

For Alexandra, one of the big questions is how professionals can remain relevant in a world that keeps moving. “That means people need to reinvent themselves into a version that is resilient for the future,” she says.

What connects Miel and Alexandra’s views is the belief that Executive Education at Wageningen Academy has a specific role to play. Wageningen is not a business school in the traditional sense. Its strength lies in knowledge of sustainable transitions, food systems and the agri-food sector. Alexandra sees this as a clear advantage. Wageningen has the knowledge and the ability to influence the system, but knowledge alone does not create change. “For the system to change, we need people who are able to lead that change.”

That is where Executive Education comes in: connecting research-based knowledge with leadership, practice and action. Participants do not only learn what is changing in the sector. They work on how to translate knowledge into decisions, collaboration and concrete steps in their own organisation or value chain. This focus on the “how” is central for both Miel and Alexandra. Many people know what needs to change, but making change happen is often the most difficult part. For Miel, that practical translation is the essence of the portfolio. “Without the how, there is no Executive Education.”

One of the ways this “how” comes to life is through the people in the room. Executive Education at Wageningen Academy deliberately brings together participants from different backgrounds: business, government, NGOs, technical roles, general management, supply chains, research and innovation.

This mixed classroom is part of the learning design. Participants learn from Wageningen experts, but also from each other. They practise working with people who may see the system differently, have different interests or even represent organisations that would normally be considered competitors.

Alexandra sees this as increasingly important. In a turbulent system, companies can no longer only focus on becoming stronger than their competitors. They also need to ask how they can work together to stabilise and improve the system they are all part of.
“The only way to stay in business is actually to work together,” she says.

As Miel looks back on almost ten years at Wageningen Academy, he is proud of the portfolio that has been created: different programmes, different formats and a clear foundation for the future. “The foundations are there,” he says. He is especially proud of the practical way of working that has become part of the programmes: bringing people and knowledge together around Living Business cases, and always asking how insights can be translated into action.

For Alexandra, taking over this portfolio means building on those foundations while keeping it relevant for the future. “The programme will be different in 2030 than it will be in 2026, because the challenges will be different and more complex.” she says. She sees opportunities to further develop the portfolio around urgent societal themes, such as climate resilience, and to support leaders who need to drive change in complex systems.

The conversation with Miel and Alexandra shows a portfolio in development, but not in search of a new identity. Miel leaves behind a portfolio built around systems thinking, Living Business cases and personal leadership. Alexandra steps in with corporate experience, fresh energy and a strong belief in learning as a bridge between people, organisations and the wider system. Together, their perspectives show that Executive Education is not only about understanding what is changing. It is about preparing professionals to take responsibility, work with others and make change happen.