Texas Executive Education rose two ranks to no. 15 in the nation in Financial Times’ (FT) survey of customized executive education programs—development courses that are tailored to individual company needs.

The top three contenders in the 13th annual global ranking were Duke Corporate Education, HEC Paris and IESE in Spain.

As is the case with all FT business school rankings, international programs are heavily represented. Only 25 percent of the 70 ranked programs are based in the United States or offer coursework there.

On the global front, the McCombs program gained 11 spots, reaching a rank of 40. The sharp increase was exceded among American schools only by Stanford, which rose 12 ranks to no. 20.

There is growing demand from corporations for customized programs. “The number of programmes provided by these schools rose 15 percent to around 6,200 in 2012,” reports FT’s Laurent Ortman, “[and] a quarter of these are new programmes for new clients.”

Chantal Delys, assistant dean and director of Executive Education, echoes this growth and its affect on reputation: “The global reach of our programs has expanded significantly in the last two years, especially in Europe and Asia. This really helps us gain visibility in international publications such as the Financial Times.”

Delys sees a growing trend in executive education toward applicability and focus. “Clients demand increasing customization of our programs so that participants can immediately implement the new ideas and skills gained in the program in their own projects and activities.” she says. “We are delighted to work closely with companies to meet their precise needs.”

The ranking’s methodology focuses primarily on client companies (80 percent) who are surveyed on everything from course preparation and faculty to accommodations and likelihood of repeat business. A school survey, addressing such things as international clients, partner schools and faculty diversity, receives the remainder of the weight (20 percent). Complete details can be found here.