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Executive MBA students tour Infiniti EuropeExecutive MBA students tour Infiniti Europe

Executive MBA students from Thunderbird School of Global Management in Glendale, Ariz., capped 10 days of intensive coursework this fall in Switzerland with a visit to Infiniti’s new European headquarters.

Andreas Sigl, a 1995 Thunderbird graduate and head of marketing communications for Infiniti Europe, hosted the group and gave a presentation on the Japanese automaker’s strategy for entering the European performance car market.

"There's nothing to beat a real-life case study,” said Thunderbird Professor Anne Stringfellow, Ph.D., academic director of the Executive MBA program. “The session with Infiniti was a perfect example of what we teach at Thunderbird — a multinational firm preparing to enter a challenging region with stiff competition and cultural differences that require a modified advertising message for each sub-region.”

Sigl said Infiniti plans to establish itself in Europe as a challenger brand for performance car enthusiasts who want to drive something different than the usual European brands such as Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Porsche.

Although the target audience is the same across Europe, Sigl said Infiniti has modified its advertising message in different countries. He gave the example of an Infiniti billboard that used the slogan: “Is this socialism? Or why does everybody drive the same car?”

Sigl said the message worked well in former Communist countries such as Poland. But the same message needed to be softened in Western European countries such as Spain.

Thunderbird’s executive MBA program requires three weeks of concentrated coursework overseas, including the classes in Geneva from Nov. 14-23.

The degree program for working professionals is ranked No. 3 in the world by the Wall Street Journal and No. 23 in the world by the Financial Times.