Flexible
The self-paced modules provide the flexibility to accommodate learning around your busy work schedule. The program can be completed in 9 to 12 months as your schedule and program selections demand.
December 13, 2023
9 to 12 Months
Online + On Campus
The rise of enterprise technology has accelerated, giving businesses a competitive edge as they embrace the latest developments in their quest to leverage organizational change. While focusing on scalable technology solutions, a chief technology officer (CTO) also must be cognizant of the company’s overriding business goals. As technology’s importance increases, so too does the CTO’s role. They must champion the benefits of emerging technologies to customers, vendors, and partners.
The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Program has been designed by Wharton Executive Education’s prominent faculty and specialists in topics, including innovation management, information technology, strategy, digital transformation, and entrepreneurship. The core modules are organized into three phases: technology strategy; trends in technology; and the tools, techniques, and execution. The electives are designed to provide you with the opportunity to specialize in areas that aid your career growth.
of executives state that technology architecture is becoming critical to the overall success of their organization.
of executives agree their organization must train its people to think like technologists.
The CTO Program is designed with the needs of busy executives in mind. You will learn through online and interactive sessions and guest lectures from global industry leaders. The flexible nature of the program allows you to customize your learning journey for maximum career and business impact.
The self-paced modules provide the flexibility to accommodate learning around your busy work schedule. The program can be completed in 9 to 12 months as your schedule and program selections demand.
A community learning experience with a limited cohort size facilitates interactive discussions with peers, program coaches, faculty, industry speakers, and career advisors — allowing you to implement program learnings in real-world scenarios.
The multimodular learning journey experience, including the executive reflection, allows you to learn and grow as an executive while enabling you to develop business strategies to improve your personal and organizational goals.
“The robust curriculum from Wharton Executive Education, designed specifically for global technology leaders, will empower you to learn from one of the world’s leading institutions and equip you with the tools you need to drive organizational growth through technology.”
— Lori Rosenkopf
Academic Director for the CTO Program, Wharton Executive Education; Simon and Midge Palley Professor; Professor of Management; Vice Dean of Entrepreneurship, The Wharton School
*Electives are subject to change.
Note: Session topics are subject to change.
Meet your cohort peers and faculty in person on the Wharton campus in Philadelphia at a two-day networking and recognition ceremony. This event takes place once every four cohorts, enabling you to network with not just your peers but also professionals from other cohorts and create a lifelong community of global executives.
Over the course of the program, you will work on a reflection journal by leveraging program insights and apply them to analyze challenges in your current or previous organization. For the executive reflection, you will select an issue currently confronting your organization and develop a set of potential solutions to remedy the situation. You can take advantage of weekly live sessions and the Slack channel to ask questions and discuss ideas with your success coach and cohort peers. At the end of the program, you will make a final presentation, which will be a valuable asset when proposing initiatives to decision makers in your organization.
There are three reflection journal submissions in total — one at the end of each phase:
Week 1
Initiate your project by determining a technology challenge or initiative for your organization.
Week 6
Examine the experiences of implementing technology strategies to address the challenge at an organizational leadership level.
Week 12
Examine the experiences of implementing technology trends to refine the chosen initiative or challenge.
Week 18
Examine the tools, techniques, and methods for implementing the initiative and assess its deployment.
Customize your learning journey with a choice of electives in topics aligned with your career goals.
Learn at your own pace with a weekly commitment of three to five hours of sessions and activities.
Glean insights from renowned faculty and industry experts who are at the cutting edge of innovation.
Network with accomplished peers from around the globe and gain new approaches to leadership.
Engage with your success coach to craft your learning journey through regular check-in sessions.
Benefit from experiential sessions combining theory with real-world case studies and apply learnings.
Meet multiple cohort peers, industry experts, and faculty during two days of on-campus networking.
Following successful completion of the program and subsequent open-enrollment programs, subject to further qualification criteria and additional tuition, you have a pathway to apply for Wharton alumni status.
For more than 135 years, Wharton has been the place where visionaries, inventors, and trailblazers get their start. After completing the CTO Program and subsequent open-enrollment programs, subject to further qualification criteria and additional tuition, you have a pathway to apply for Wharton alumni status.
Executives who successfully complete the CTO Program have the option of applying to the General Management Program (GMP). The GMP provides further opportunity to enhance your leadership skills and business acumen with a flexible curriculum. The CTO Program provides one credit towards the six required to complete the GMP and earn alumni status. More details on the GMP are available at Wharton Executive Education.
Upon qualifying for Wharton alumni status, you will be eligible to receive:
Earn a Wharton Executive Education digital certificate upon successful completion of the program. As an alumnus of this transformative program, you get exclusive access to a wide range of professionals, events, and networking opportunities. Furthermore, you can also benefit from additional tuition assistance upon enrolling in further online electives from Wharton Executive Education.
Note: After successful completion of the program, your verified digital certificate will be emailed to you in the name you used when registering for the program. All certificate images are for illustrative purposes only and may be subject to change at the discretion of the Wharton School.
Download BrochurePlease also note that participation in the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Program (a) will not result in a degree from, alumni status with, or earned credit at the University of Pennsylvania or the Wharton School (or, to Wharton’s knowledge, any other institution), (b) will not be recorded on a University of Pennsylvania or Wharton transcript, and (c) does not guarantee or suggest that a participant will be admitted to the University of Pennsylvania, the Wharton School, or to any other university or institution.
The program fee covers teaching fees, all academic material, and access to online coursework. It does not include accommodations for the on-campus networking and graduation event, travel expenses (domestic, international, visa fee, and more), and other expenses not specifically mentioned in the fees.
The CTO Program has been designed with your busy schedule in mind. You will be required to commit not more than three to five hours per week, enabling you to benefit from this transformative program while fulfilling your day to day work responsibilities. The impactful program offers a blend of self-paced modules and live interaction.
The 9- to 12-month learning journey includes live online and video online sessions with renowned faculty, industry experts, and global peers. You can take advantage of weekly live sessions and the Slack channel to ask questions and discuss ideas with your success coach and cohort participants. Real-world examples and a debrief of the program learnings are delivered through a combination of recorded video and live online lectures. The program concludes with a two-day on-campus graduation and networking event on the Wharton Executive Education campus in Philadelphia.
While the program does not grant alumni status or alumni benefits, it opens up a unique pathway to apply for the prestigious Wharton alumni status upon further qualification criteria and additional tuition. As an alum of this transformative program, you get exclusive access to a wide range of professionals, events, and networking opportunities. You can also benefit from additional tuition assistance upon enrolling in further online electives from Wharton Executive Education.
The program fee covers teaching fees, all academic material, and access to online coursework. The fee does not include accommodations for the two-day on-campus networking and graduation event, travel expenses (domestic, international, visa fee, and more), and other expenses not specifically mentioned in the fees.
You can pay the full program fee upfront or pay in easy installments. If you apply well in advance of the program start date, you can receive a tuition fee benefit. If you would like to approach your company with a sponsorship request for this program, here is a customizable template that you can use.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to take any more electives than the specified number. The electives are designed to help you gain specialized skills in areas that are aligned with your career so that you can dedicate focused time for learning and honing those skills.
Yes. We provide closed-captioning and transcripts for all pre-recorded videos as well as closed-captioning for recordings of live sessions.
Flexible payment options available.