Foundations of Scaling (FoS)

If starting a company is hard, scaling it is even more demanding. Most ventures do not overcome the “entrepreneurial crisis” at the transition from startup to scaleup and end up stalling.

The Foundations of Scaling program will equip you with the insights and abilities to grow your venture into an iconic, purpose-driven firm. Explicitly designed for founders, this program gathers successful scaleup entrepreneurs, renowned thought leaders and world-class academics, creating an invigorating learning forum. Over 9 high-impact months, you will experience a stimulating blend of theory and practice and acquire mission-critical skills to successfully scale your business.

IESE Senior Lecturer of Entrepreneurship and former head of IESE’s Entrepreneurship Center · Entrepreneur and business angel with investments in numerous startups and scaleups · MBA, IESE.

Recognized Venture Capital and M&A Attorney · Founder of RCD Law · IESE Lecturer · Master of Law, UC-Davis and post-graduate studies in UCLA, UC-Berkeley and Harvard

IESE Professor of Finance and Visiting Scholar at MIT and Wharton · Banco Sabadell Board Member · Co-Founder of Wharton Research Data Services · Expert Expert at World Economic Forum · PhD in Economics, Universitat de Barcelona

IESE Professor of People in Organization · PhD in Management, University of Melbourne

IESE Professor for Accounting and Control · PhD in Business Administration, UPC Barcelona · Former CFO of Holaluz

IESE Senior Lecturer of Organizational Behavior · President of Vistage Spain · Serial entrepreneur and startup investor · Communication consultant and frequent guest speaker at global events

Legendary coach to many Silicon Valley startup founders · Co-Founder of coaching and training firm Reboot.io · Author of Reboot · Former startup investor and partner of Fred Wilson (Union Square Ventures)

Thought leader in the scaleup space · Author of Scaling Up · Founder of Scaling Up, a global executive education and coaching company and of Entrepreneurs Organization (EO)

Managing Partner at Movens Advisory · Expert in pricing · Lecturer Stanford University · Startup investor and advisor · PhD in Management, Warsaw School of Economics

Senior Advisory Partner at Bain & Company · Author The Founder’s Mentality and Profit from the Core · Musician and Producer · MBA, Harvard Business School

Former Chief People Officer at Netflix (1998 – 2012) · Author of Powerful and the famous Netflix Culture Deck

IESE Professor of Operations Management · PhD in Management Univsidad Politècnica Catalunya · M.Sc. In Engineering, MIT

Foundations of Scaling.

The curriculum comprises six parallel tracks delivered throughout the program.

Leadership & Management

People & Culture

Vision & Strategy

Finance & Funding

System & Operations

Markets & Growth

The program supports founders in the transition from startup to scaleup. It is designed for founders in C-level positions of mature startups who want to lead their companies to the next level.

Your firm should have already found product-market fit and identified a scalable business model. It should also have a track record of fast growth and more than 30 employees when you join the program in September 2026.

We are especially excited to welcome founders of businesses that address important societal or environmental challenges to the program. These founders should be humble, ambitious learners with a strong desire to grow as leader.

Learn from successful entrepreneurs and thought leaders, who will equip you with innovative frameworks, perspectives and tools to take your business to new heights.

Share your trials and tribulations with fellow entrepreneurs and forge rich connections and a powerful support network for your learning journey and beyond.

Sharpen your decision-making skills and acquire tools to grow your business exponentially while preserving its vision and culture.

Enhance your self-awareness and your ability to lead by identifying facets of your life trajectory, personality and leadership style that could be impeding your success.