Human Centred Education in a Fast Changing World: An Interview with Professor Arie Elbelman
At ESEI Business School, our community is strengthened by the educators who guide students on their academic and personal journeys. Professor Arie Elbelman is one of those people. His approach to teaching, his multicultural background and his commitment to meaningful communication all reflect the values that define ESEI. We spoke with Arie about his professional path, his teaching philosophy and the skills he believes students need for the future.
A Background Rooted in Communication and Community
Arie begins with what he considers most important. “My name is Arie Elbelman. I am first of all and most importantly the father of two,” he says. Born in Chile, having lived in Israel for almost ten years and now based in Barcelona since mid-2019, Arie brings an international outlook that enriches his classroom.
“I have a background that mixes many different things,” he explains. “I have a first degree in advertising and strategic communication… diplomas in leadership and community-building, and another degree in non formal education that includes group dynamics and how people interact when you involve them in the learning process.”
His career has been equally varied. After working for many years in high tech, he moved into an edtech start-up, which allowed him to combine communication, branding and education. This experience eventually led him to establish LEÓN Marketing in 2017. Later he created “Innova Tu Liderazgo”, where he provides one to one coaching on brand identity, effective communication and stakeholder alignment.
Alongside teaching at ESEI, Arie is also involved in two start-ups. One is Plann, an all in one events, community-building, and community member engagement platform. The other is KESHER Experience, an experiential tourism company in Spain that focuses on meaningful cultural and transformative experiences. “If you just want to take a picture in the Sagrada Família, another selfie at Parc Güell, and that’s it, do not come with us,” he notes, “but if you want to actually experience and discover the city, to understand -through hands-on experiences- the stories and main figures behind different parts of Spain, that is what we offer.”
Arie also gives an entrepreneurship workshop at a local high-school, having the chance to help 15 year old students build their own businesses and give their first steps towards creating meaningful solutions to real problems they find.
Human Centred Teaching for a Human Centred Future
Arie’s teaching style draws directly from his professional experience. “All of my approach when building my own businesses has always been human centred,” he says. “I always tell my students, do not ever forget that on the other side of the screen there is a person.”
His classes follow the same philosophy. They are interactive, practical and based on learning through doing. “My classes are always hands on,” he explains. “I will give you a tool and then you will use this tool and show me what the results are.”
He believes that education and business share a similar principle. People need to be actively involved in order to understand both processes and progress, and see their development clearly. This sense of engagement, he says, empowers students and professionals alike.
Skills for an Unpredictable Future
When asked what skills he hopes students will gain, Arie emphasises the importance of equipping them for a future that is still uncertain. “We have no idea how the future is going to look,” he says. “Especially with the boom of AI. But people need the right tools to face that, and to succeed in a future scenario we don’t know much about (…).”
For him, those tools include critical, creative and analytical thinking, combined with the ability to use a wide variety of available resources to create something meaningful for themselves and for society. He has recently watched some of his Master’s students take these skills forward into real pitches. “Some of them are about to pitch their ideas to real investors,” he shares. “They are building things that are breathtaking, and that will make our world a better place.”
Adapting to Trends and Student Feedback
Arie adapts his courses continuously. “Always, every single day,” he states. He requests feedback after every class, not only at the end of the semester, in order to respond to students’ needs in real time. In addition to feedback, he integrates lessons from his own work in the start-up world. “I see trends every single day and I incorporate these trends and new discoveries from the industry into the classroom,” he says.
The Most Important Trend: Real Human Connection
When discussing emerging trends, Arie offers an unexpected perspective. He believes that the more technology advances, the more students should focus on something very ‘old’. “Because of the boom of AI and technology, we should all pay attention to quite the opposite,” he explains. “People are craving real human connection.”
He encourages students to observe how human relationships are formed, to improve their networking skills and to immerse themselves in the city. “Meet a lot of people, go to different meetups, move around this wonderful city they are coming to live in,” he advises. “And understand how they can build a better future for themselves with the human connections they create, by truly understanding human needs from within the field. Let’s train our eyes to identify needs and motivations by nurturing real, long-lasting relations with other humans.”
Advice for Future Students
If he could give one piece of advice to anyone preparing to take his course, it would be simple and direct. “Get ready to do a lot. Get ready to think a lot. You will get your hands dirty,” he says. He wants students to feel confident in experimenting and making mistakes. “The classroom is the right place to be wrong. There are no wrong answers,” he insists. Every step, including failure, is an essential part of the learning process.
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