I took Harvard University’s $12,500 celebrity-filled 4-day media course. It’s worth it

• Manuelle Pires attended a four-day Harvard course on entertainment, media and sports.
• The course, designed by Anita Elberse, costs $12,500 and includes room and board.
• Pires applied the course’s strategies to improve the business models of content creators in Brazil.

This essay is based on a conversation with Manuelle Pires, a 32-year-old senior strategic partner manager for YouTube based in São Paulo. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I manage gaming partnerships for YouTube Brazil, including Nobru, which has over 15 million subscribers. I attended university in Brazil and did a postgraduate certificate in marketing at UCLA before starting at YouTube in 2021.

For years I’ve dreamed of going to Harvard to study with Anita Elberse. She designed The Business of Entertainment, Media, and Sports course in 2013 and is a rockstar in the entertainment industry. I wanted to know what she teaches the best leaders in the world.

I had the chance to take her course this year and it was great.

It is a four-day course designed for working professionals not enrolled at Harvard Business School

The course costs $12,500, including all accommodation and meals, and is worth every penny. Google covered about 40% of the course through the company’s education grant program, but I had to pay for the rest myself.

The online application will ask you what you would like to learn from the course and what you can contribute to the course based on your previous experience in your industry. My main goal was to improve my leadership and strategic management skills. I wanted to understand global trends, challenges and untapped business opportunities for those I serve.

I spent an entire weekend working on the application because I really wanted to do it, and it took about a month or two before I heard that I had been accepted. I referenced my experience helping celebrities and creatives expand their online presence and develop new revenue streams for their businesses.

I flew to Boston in early June

There were about 80 of us from all over the world in different industries. My classmates were of all ages and at different stages of their careers, all the way up to CEO.

I met people in the music and sports industries who had the same problems and challenges as me, such as securing exclusive content deals and managing distribution rights.

Another common challenge is talent management. There is a shared need to effectively manage talent contracts and negotiations and maintain strong relationships to ensure mutual growth and success.

All students have their own rooms on campus, and several rooms are attached to an apartment. The learning groups consist of students from the same course of study. Therefore, we discussed case studies during workgroup hours before going to class.

There were several celebrities in the class with me

My class included a former professional soccer player, a comedian, and a UFC champion fighter. They were there to learn the business side of the industry as they move into the next phase of their careers.

It was really cool to learn from these people and people who are more closely connected to my industry. It was fascinating to understand the perspectives of executives from the US compared to those from other countries when it comes to content acquisition, distribution rights and talent management.

I also now have access to an incredible network of people from all over the world. We have a WhatsApp group from the course where we stay in touch. There is also a WhatsApp group for all Brazilians who have completed the course in the last 10 years to network.

The course ran from 9am to 6pm, Wednesday to Saturday, but we had about eight case studies to read beforehand

There is no option to submit the application online – you must be there in person.

I spent about two weeks before my arrival reading all the material Anita had sent us.

It was very intense. Before the first day we had to prepare with answers and questions for each case as well as the data and information.

I found this MrBeast case study be the most interesting and useful for my work

Anita explained a lot about the process that MrBeast uses in his company to create a video, from producing the scripts and choosing the right script, to pre- and post-production, to creating thumbnails for his videos to make the numbers to test. He is very data-oriented.

He is considered a benchmark for the platform and I found it valuable to learn how he not only makes a profit but also builds a brand for himself.

Other case studies included Beyoncé, Lionel Messi and David Beckham

We also had two exceptional guest lecturers: Karim R. Lakhani, who led insightful sessions on AI and its role in the entertainment industry, and Kristin W. Mugford, a financial specialist who presented a fascinating case study on Beyoncé.

The lecturers explained how, after reaching the top of their field, these superstars can remain relevant in the industry even if they stop acting or making music. This was relevant to my work with gamers and content creators.

I have already been able to put some of what I learned into practice

I have started implementing the strategies we discussed in the BEMS course. I’m more focused on diversifying content to meet changing audience preferences and using data analytics to better understand these trends. I also encourage talent to collaborate across industries, which allows them to discover new audiences and opportunities.

Another important strategy is to help creators launch their own brands to diversify their revenue streams. By developing products or services, a more sustainable and resilient business model can be built.

I am very glad that I took the course

It has been instrumental in improving my ability to help content creators transform their online presence into a profitable business with diverse revenue streams.

Since returning to Brazil, three people I know have applied for next year’s program based on my positive experiences. This course is particularly suitable for entertainment, music and sports professionals, especially investors, public figures, athletes, managers and senior executives working in business development, marketing or strategic planning.

Have you taken a business course that changed your career path? Email Lauryn Haas at [email protected].