The Fundação Dom Cabral was created in 1976, when it was spun off from the Pontifícia Universidade Católica of Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, the state capital about half an hour down the road.
FDC have post-graduate specialisation and Executive MBA programmes, but its speciality is tailor-made, highlyfocused courses often involving immersion at the FDC or at a site in another Brazilian city for middle- to top-level management. Courses are sold to companies, not to individuals, and aim to deliver results in the form of programmes to address their targets or concerns.
One programme that typifies this approach is known as PAEX, or Partners for Excellence. Middle- to senior-level management of medium-sized, non-competing companies take part in tailor-made courses designed to address shared management challenges. Courses typically total 400 hours spread over a year, and include a period in which the FDC's teachers visit participating companies to help implement the solutions developed over the year.
The FDC is quickly building a reputation internationally and has alliances with Insead of France, the Kellogg School of Management of the US and the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia, Canada. It regularly attracts high-profile visiting professors and speakers - Hank Paulson, the US Treasury secretary was one speaker last year.

Original text published at The Financial Times web site: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/170b809c-1fbd-11dd-9216-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1