About TW

Thunderbird Worldwide brings together the full impact of a top-ranked business school with a consultative emerging market approach acquired through on-the-ground experience.  This pairing of elite knowledge with local understanding allows Thunderbird to provide training and education solutions for everyone from mid-level management to senior executives across the full range of industries that operate in Kazakhstan. 

Offering professional development and executive education programs on a full range of business and management subjects, Thunderbird Worldwide uses a variety of delivery methods ranging from traditional face-to-face classroom learning environments to our online learning portal.

Our mission

We educate global leaders who create sustainable prosperity worldwide

Our Vision

The rapid spread of globalization has greatly increased the complexity of management decisions and has created a global economy in which the fortunes of individuals, businesses, and societies are inextricably linked.  Through this lens the Thunderbird 2020 Global Vision was created to center on four strategic priorities:

1. Strengthen Our Unique Approach to Global Leadership Education

2. Innovate for Scale and Impact

3. Engage Deeply in Emerging Markets

4. Build a Global Community of Learning and Practice

Key to our success in fulfilling these objectives is Thunderbird Worldwide, an initiative that emboldens Thunderbird’s core commitment to remain a world leader in management education and dramatically extend the impact we have in emerging markets, by combining best practices in global business with the necessary tools to create immediate and positive impact on your business.

Our History

ThunderbirdSchool of Global Management

ThunderbirdSchool of Global Management is the oldest and largest graduate management school in the United States focused solely on preparing international business leaders. It was founded in 1946 following World War II by Lieutenant General Barton Kyle Yount, the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Air Training Command.

A pioneer and visionary of his time, General Yount saw a growing demand for international executive talent and had a dream to create the first school of business to focus exclusively on international management. That dream was realized April 8, 1946, when the School received its charter and General Yount became the school's first president. The school was founded as a nonprofit organization known as the American Institute for Foreign Trade. Classes began Oct. 1, 1946, and its first class graduated June 14, 1947. The school has since graduated more than 38,000 students who live and work in more than 140 countries.

Thunderbird is recognized by major publications around the world, which have consistently named Thunderbird as a leader in global business education. Learn more.