Making Hard Decisions in Study Abroad Leadership with John Christian - Part 2

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Running a global education company is complex and challenging enough, but what happens when the entire globe shuts down over night, your students are stranded and scared across four continents, and you're not sure when or if things will ever get back to normal? 

In this episode, I'm talking with John Christian, President and CEO of CAPA The Global Education Network, who candidly and openly pulls back the curtain on:

• How the global pandemic hit CAPA's leadership and center teams
• How they were gathering information and making decisions in the early weeks of the crisis, and
• The even tougher decisions John and the CAPA board had to make as the world stopped traveling for over 18 months. 

This interview is a masterclass on what it really means to be a leader, make difficult decisions, and navigate an organization through very rough waters. 

John is the first to admit that you can't make perfect decisions in an imperfect situation - you just do the best you can for your team, your students, and your partners with the information you have at the moment. 

LISTEN ON: APPLE - SPOTIFY - STITCHER

In this episode you’ll learn: 

• How John became President and CEO of CAPA
• Why and how CAPA moved from a direct-enroll model to a Center-based model plus CAPA's approach to "transnational learning" 
• The ways CAPA was integrating virtual/remote learning even before the pandemic
• How the pandemic has impacted John personally and the larger CAPA team and why they decided to take on Infinedi Partners 
• What this new relationship means for CAPA  

SHOW NOTES: 

• CAPA Global Education Network
• John on LinkedIn
• Book: Outliers
• Tool: Zoom
• Audible 30-Day free trial + your first book for free
• Listen to John's first interview from 2012

 Editor's note: A few corrections/clarifications on some of the numbers John shared. 

1. They didn’t have students on the ground in Shanghai who had to be moved—they were still in the US and were moved to other centers.
2. They had 17 students in Spring 21 instead of 11.

Whenever you're ready, there are 2 ways I can help you:

1. If you're still looking for traction in your global education career, I'd recommend starting with an affordable course:

→ The Global Pro Labs & Certificate Program: Gain the skills and foundational knowledge needed to launch and grow a career in global education. These Labs focus on five core functional areas of the field that every global education professional should understand. Receive a Certificate of Completion to share on LinkedIn. Join 150+ students here.

→ The Global Pro Career Institute: Steal my secrets that have helped me and my students build standout personal brands, stunningly impressive bodies of work, powerhouse networks, and dream candidate applications. Join 500+ students.

2. Promote your business and brand to 17,000+ Inside Study Abroad subscribers and community members by sponsoring the podcast and newsletter.