Business Schools post-Covid-19: A Blueprint for Survival
This chapter explores the function of cutting-edge technologies including artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and the metaverse in teaching Chinese as a foreign language. It's an example of how AI is being put to use in tailor-made programs for mastering Chinese and all its subtleties. The chapter covers how to use augmented reality and how it can help you have more meaningful conversations with others. The potential of ChatGPT and the metaverse as interactive learning environments is also discussed in this chapter. The effects on educational policy and teacher preparation, as well as an examination of students' independence in technologically advanced classrooms, are discussed in the last section.
The clothing sector is one of the biggest polluters in the world. Aware of the growing number of environmentally conscious consumers, several fashion brands aim to become more sustainable. Artificial intelligence (AI), defined as “a system’s ability to interpret external data correctly, to learn from such data, and to use those learnings to achieve specific goals and tasks through flexible adaptation,” may be applied to fast fashion as a means of greening the apparel industry. This chapter explains how AI can enhance the sustainable production and consumption of clothing products. First, it provides an overview of AI and analyzes and decodes its potential and associated risks and challenges. Numerous examples describe AI’s application to the retail and clothing industries, such as supply chain optimization and fostering eco-responsible consumption patterns. Second, this chapter illustrates how AI can help the fashion industry significantly reduce its carbon footprint. Third, three case studies of fashion companies that have started implementing artificial intelligence into their operations to improve sustainability are put forward, including two fast-fashion companies (H&M and Zara) and one luxury fashion retail platform (Farfetch). Finally, the chapter concludes with suggestions for the future of fast fashion.
This book analyses higher education's digital transformation and potential disruption from a holistic point of view, providing a balanced and critical account from a variety of interdisciplinary viewpoints. It looks at case studies on educational and emerging technology, their impact, the potential risk of digitalization disrupting higher education, and also offers a glimpse into what the future of digitalization will likely bring. Researchers and practitioners from countries including New Zealand, Russia, Eswatini, India, and the USA, bring together their knowledge and understanding of this rapidly evolving field. The contributors analyse academia's digitalization along the broad topics of the sector's general digital (r)evolution. The book looks at changes in instructional formats from the Massive Open Online Courses to Small Private Online Courses and artificial intelligence. This work also provides analysis on how skills, competences and social networks demanded by future jobs and job markets can be further integrated into higher education.
This study evaluates the influence of ranking reports on university brands’ credibility and perceived differentiation. Signaling theory is applied to link ranking with credibility and perceived differentiation. An experimental approach was used to collect data and to test the hypothesis. Data was collected from 328 participants in the UK regarding the two university brands with that they are the most familiar. Covariance analysis was applied to test the hypothesis. The results indicate that the ranking of HEIs influences the brand credibility and perceived differentiation of university brands, particularly when they send signals and messages about attributes associated with academic success. Although experts debate the ranking tables’ validity, these results indicate that prospective students and their families evaluate ranking reports as independent corroboration. This paper provides evidence on how critical the ranking is to create a solid and distinctive university brand.
This paper evaluates how three different international accreditations for business schools (AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA) affect student preferences, expressed via enrollment decisions. Focusing on the French context, we build a relative preference indicator to compare schools using data collected by the central clearinghouse that allocates students to schools. We observe that all three accreditations positively and significantly influence students, but that the impact of the AACSB accreditation is larger than the other two accreditations. Having an AACSB accreditation is equivalent to moving up four places in rankings by L’étudiant magazine, whereas the impact of having EQUIS or AMBA is similar to moving up two places. We also find a sizeable “triple crown” effect, meaning that the three accreditations tend to complement each other. Our results are robust to different ways of assessing potential self-selection into accreditation.
This chapter explores the mechanisms and measures for implementing and evaluating the impact of networking practices in the online higher education environment. It draws on the extensive experience of a fully online Australian business school for working adults in using social networking and social activities to enhance learning, build community, impact professional advancement and create lifelong learning opportunities for alumni. This chapter also offers key insights into a pertinent question regarding the extent to which social activities should be facilitated by the institution, be self-initiated and administered by students or alumni themselves or be a hybrid of the two. Using the example of the Australian Institute of Business, we demonstrate that the latter is the most effective approach. The evidence-based best practices contributing to mutually beneficial formal and informal interactions are discussed in terms of student-centred institutional networking and engagement initiatives, networking opportunities using social media platforms, institutional benchmarking and data collection and institutional further learning activities.
Corporate scandals in recent decades have prompted business schools to advance programs to better develop the next generation of responsible business leaders. Despite these efforts, some scholars have raised concerns about the effectiveness of responsible management education (RME), particularly that business schools have decoupled pedagogical practices from stated RME objectives. That is, a school's actual RME implementation does not match its stated commitment. Given limited empirical evidence verifying decoupling and its conditions, we surveyed undergraduate students at U.S. business schools, applying the theory of planned behavior to assess factors influencing student intentions to practice responsible management in their careers. We found some evidence of decoupling, including indication that a school's external commitment to RME as well as its level of RME curriculum integration do not reliably overcome decoupling to improve RME effectiveness. The results thus indicate that business schools may not fully walk their responsible management talk. We provide feedback on how to help resource-constrained schools combat decoupling, highlighting the need to particularly strengthen faculty subjective norm and student perceived behavior control to better influence student responsible management intentions.
According to various international reports, Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIEd) is one of the currently emerging fields in educational technology. Whilst it has been around for about 30 years, it is still unclear for educators how to make pedagogical advantage of it on a broader scale, and how it can actually impact meaningfully on teaching and learning in higher education. This paper seeks to provide an overview of research on AI applications in higher education through a systematic review. Out of 2656 initially identified publications for the period between 2007 and 2018, 146 articles were included for final synthesis, according to explicit inclusion and exclusion criteria. The descriptive results show that most of the disciplines involved in AIEd papers come from Computer Science and STEM, and that quantitative methods were the most frequently used in empirical studies. The synthesis of results presents four areas of AIEd applications in academic support services, and institutional and administrative services: 1. profiling and prediction, 2. assessment and evaluation, 3. adaptive systems and personalisation, and 4. intelligent tutoring systems. The conclusions reflect on the almost lack of critical reflection of challenges and risks of AIEd, the weak connection to theoretical pedagogical perspectives, and the need for further exploration of ethical and educational approaches in the application of AIEd in higher education.
A decade ago, we published an article in Business Horizons about the challenges and opportunities of social media with a call to action: “Users of the world, unite!” To celebrate its anniversary, we look at artificial intelligence and the need to create the rules necessary for peaceful coexistence between humanity and AI. Hence, we now are urging: “Rulers of the world, unite!” In this article, we outline six debates surrounding AI in areas like artificial superintelligence, geographical progress, and robotics; in doing so, we shed light on what is fact and what is utopia. Then, using the PESTEL framework, we talk about the six dilemmas of AI and its potential threat and use. Finally, we provide six directions on the future of AI regarding its requirements and expectations, looking at enforcement, employment, ethics, education, entente, and evolution. Understanding AI’s potential future will enable governments, corporations, and societies at large (i.e., the rulers of this world) to prepare for its challenges and opportunities. This way, we can avoid a scenario in which we return in 10 years to write the article: “Dreamers of the world, unite!”
This introduction to this special issue discusses artificial intelligence (AI), commonly defined as “a system’s ability to interpret external data correctly, to learn from such data, and to use those learnings to achieve specific goals and tasks through flexible adaptation.” It summarizes seven articles published in this special issue that present a wide variety of perspectives on AI, authored by several of the world’s leading experts and specialists in AI. It concludes by offering a comprehensive outlook on the future of AI, drawing on micro-, meso-, and macro-perspectives.
Artificial intelligence (AI)—defined as a system's ability to correctly interpret external data, to learn from such data, and to use those learnings to achieve specific goals and tasks through flexible adaptation—is a topic in nearly every boardroom and at many dinner tables. Yet, despite this prominence, AI is still a surprisingly fuzzy concept and a lot of questions surrounding it are still open. In this article, we analyze how AI is different from related concepts, such as the Internet of Things and big data, and suggest that AI is not one monolithic term but instead needs to be seen in a more nuanced way. This can either be achieved by looking at AI through the lens of evolutionary stages (artificial narrow intelligence, artificial general intelligence, and artificial super intelligence) or by focusing on different types of AI systems (analytical AI, human-inspired AI, and humanized AI). Based on this classification, we show the potential and risk of AI using a series of case studies regarding universities, corporations, and governments. Finally, we present a framework that helps organizations think about the internal and external implications of AI, which we label the Three C Model of Confidence, Change, and Control.
Campus outdoor recreation programs and facilities have faced a number of public attacks questioning their value for students. Climbing walls in particular have become, to some, emblematic of waste and financial excess in higher education. Despite these claims, this literature review uncovers numerous benefits for participants and schools provided by campus outdoor recreation specifically and campus recreation more generally. For colleges and universities, these benefits include positive effects on student recruitment, retention, and satisfaction and the opportunity for recreation programs to support academic programs directly. For students, benefits include increased academic success, smoother transitions to college, better mental and physical health, lower levels of stress and anxiety, better and more numerous social connections, better intra- and interpersonal skills, increased environmental sensitivity, and better connectedness to nature and to place.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to focus on different types of university-based business school dean (BSD) in a context of insecurities within the business school business and more widely with changing business and educational models and disruptions such as the global financial crisis and Brexit. The position of the BSD is contextualised within the industry sector, institutionally, and in relation to individuals’ tenures to make sense of how BSDs are operating on a burning platform. A well-established middle management strategic role framework is applied to the empirical data.
Design/methodology/approach
– In total, 50 one-to-one interviews were conducted with deans and their colleagues. Deans’ behaviours were analysed according to attention paid to “facilitating”, “synthesizing”, “championing”, and “implementing” strategic activities.
Findings
– Behaviours from primary professional identities as scholars and educators were identified as prevalent. It is suggested that to achieve greater legitimacy in declining mature markets, future deans will need to re-negotiate their roles to champion as public intellectuals the societal impact of business schools more widely in a context of shifting business and educational models.
Practical implications
– The study is relevant to current and aspiring deans and for those hiring and developing business school deans.
Originality/value
– The dean is conceptualised as a hybrid upper middle manager besieged by multiple stakeholders and challenges. Novel first-order insights into a typology of strategists are highlighted.
Distance learning—that is, providing education to students who are separated by distance and in which the pedagogical material is planned and prepared by educational institutions—is a topic of regular interest in the popular and business press. In particular, MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses), which are open-access online courses that allow for unlimited participation, as well as SPOCs (Small Private Online Courses), are said to have revolutionized universities and the corporate education landscape. In this article we provide a nuanced analysis of the phenomenon of online distance learning. We first provide an overview of its historical evolution, and subsequently define and classify key concepts. We further discuss in detail the optimal target group in terms of participating students and teaching professors and propose corresponding frameworks for driving intrinsic student motivation and for choosing a successful online teacher. We also outline the benefits that institutions can achieve by offering online distance learning. Finally, we speak about the specific connection between online distance learning and social media by focusing on the difference between MOOCs based on traditional lecture formats (xMOOCs) and connectivist cMOOCs.
This book provides an overview of important Western philosophies and their significance
for managers, management academics and management consultants. The theories
taught in management schools are based on different but unacknowledged philosophical
perspectives that are important not so much for what they explain, but for what they
assume. Although rarely made explicit, these conflicting assumptions cannot be
reconciled with the result that the study of management has been dominated by
contradictions and internecine intellectual warfare. The ability to critically evaluate
these diverse perspectives is essential to managers if they are to make sense of what the
experts profess. Moreover, since management is primarily an exercise in communication,
managing is impossible in the darkness of an imprecise language, in the absence of
moral references, or in the senseless outline of a world without intellectual foundations.
Managing is an applied philosophical activity and any attempt at improving the teaching
of management and the practices to which it has led would do well to accept this
conclusion as its premise.
This book analyses higher education's digital transformation and potential disruption from a holistic point of view, providing a balanced and critical account from a variety of interdisciplinary viewpoints. It looks at case studies on educational and emerging technology, their impact, the potential risk of digitalization disrupting higher education, and also offers a glimpse into what the future of digitalization will likely bring. Researchers and practitioners from countries including New Zealand, Russia, Eswatini, India, and the USA, bring together their knowledge and understanding of this rapidly evolving field. The contributors analyse academia's digitalization along the broad topics of the sector's general digital (r)evolution. The book looks at changes in instructional formats from the Massive Open Online Courses to Small Private Online Courses and artificial intelligence. This work also provides analysis on how skills, competences and social networks demanded by future jobs and job markets can be further integrated into higher education.
This book analyses higher education's digital transformation and potential disruption from a holistic point of view, providing a balanced and critical account from a variety of interdisciplinary viewpoints. It looks at case studies on educational and emerging technology, their impact, the potential risk of digitalization disrupting higher education, and also offers a glimpse into what the future of digitalization will likely bring. Researchers and practitioners from countries including New Zealand, Russia, Eswatini, India, and the USA, bring together their knowledge and understanding of this rapidly evolving field. The contributors analyse academia's digitalization along the broad topics of the sector's general digital (r)evolution. The book looks at changes in instructional formats from the Massive Open Online Courses to Small Private Online Courses and artificial intelligence. This work also provides analysis on how skills, competences and social networks demanded by future jobs and job markets can be further integrated into higher education.
This book analyses higher education's digital transformation and potential disruption from a holistic point of view, providing a balanced and critical account from a variety of interdisciplinary viewpoints. It looks at case studies on educational and emerging technology, their impact, the potential risk of digitalization disrupting higher education, and also offers a glimpse into what the future of digitalization will likely bring. Researchers and practitioners from countries including New Zealand, Russia, Eswatini, India, and the USA, bring together their knowledge and understanding of this rapidly evolving field. The contributors analyse academia's digitalization along the broad topics of the sector's general digital (r)evolution. The book looks at changes in instructional formats from the Massive Open Online Courses to Small Private Online Courses and artificial intelligence. This work also provides analysis on how skills, competences and social networks demanded by future jobs and job markets can be further integrated into higher education.
This book analyses higher education's digital transformation and potential disruption from a holistic point of view, providing a balanced and critical account from a variety of interdisciplinary viewpoints. It looks at case studies on educational and emerging technology, their impact, the potential risk of digitalization disrupting higher education, and also offers a glimpse into what the future of digitalization will likely bring. Researchers and practitioners from countries including New Zealand, Russia, Eswatini, India, and the USA, bring together their knowledge and understanding of this rapidly evolving field. The contributors analyse academia's digitalization along the broad topics of the sector's general digital (r)evolution. The book looks at changes in instructional formats from the Massive Open Online Courses to Small Private Online Courses and artificial intelligence. This work also provides analysis on how skills, competences and social networks demanded by future jobs and job markets can be further integrated into higher education.
The crisis has revealed challenges of business models for business schools. At the same time, as history shows, institutions of higher education are resilient organizations with a high adaptive capacity. Hence, responses to the crisis range from strategic continuity to disruption caused by financial impediments. It can be assumed that a new landscape of schools and programs will emerge.
In order to investigate the adaptive structures of business schools, this chapter has three objectives:
• Analyze the main uncertainties of the future.
• Present different scenarios of adaptive structures of business schools.
• Develop models of business schools in the future.
For this purpose, the chapter draws on the extensive literature of adaptation in higher education institutions and uses learnings from recent accreditation experiences. Implications for practice, with a special emphasis on structure and strategy, conclude this chapter.
The European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) is the largest international accreditation body for business schools, with more than 950 members across 92 countries, including the world's highest-ranked schools. A not-for-profit, mission-led institution, the EFMD plays a central role in shaping a global approach to management education, emphasizing the development of socially responsible leaders. As part of EFMD's fiftieth anniversary celebrations, its President, Professor Eric Cornuel, has edited this volume, featuring contributions from leaders in management education, including the presidents and deans of the top business schools from across the world. Each contribution will address the challenges and dilemmas facing business schools today, with respect to four key themes: the 'higher purpose' of business schools; the social impact of business schools; the internationalization of business schools; and crisis management within business schools, with a special focus on the impact of COVID-19. This volume is also available via Open Access.
The European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) is the largest international accreditation body for business schools, with more than 950 members across 92 countries, including the world's highest-ranked schools. A not-for-profit, mission-led institution, the EFMD plays a central role in shaping a global approach to management education, emphasizing the development of socially responsible leaders. As part of EFMD's fiftieth anniversary celebrations, its President, Professor Eric Cornuel, has edited this volume, featuring contributions from leaders in management education, including the presidents and deans of the top business schools from across the world. Each contribution will address the challenges and dilemmas facing business schools today, with respect to four key themes: the 'higher purpose' of business schools; the social impact of business schools; the internationalization of business schools; and crisis management within business schools, with a special focus on the impact of COVID-19. This volume is also available via Open Access.
The European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) is the largest international accreditation body for business schools, with more than 950 members across 92 countries, including the world's highest-ranked schools. A not-for-profit, mission-led institution, the EFMD plays a central role in shaping a global approach to management education, emphasizing the development of socially responsible leaders. As part of EFMD's fiftieth anniversary celebrations, its President, Professor Eric Cornuel, has edited this volume, featuring contributions from leaders in management education, including the presidents and deans of the top business schools from across the world. Each contribution will address the challenges and dilemmas facing business schools today, with respect to four key themes: the 'higher purpose' of business schools; the social impact of business schools; the internationalization of business schools; and crisis management within business schools, with a special focus on the impact of COVID-19. This volume is also available via Open Access.
The European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) is the largest international accreditation body for business schools, with more than 950 members across 92 countries, including the world's highest-ranked schools. A not-for-profit, mission-led institution, the EFMD plays a central role in shaping a global approach to management education, emphasizing the development of socially responsible leaders. As part of EFMD's fiftieth anniversary celebrations, its President, Professor Eric Cornuel, has edited this volume, featuring contributions from leaders in management education, including the presidents and deans of the top business schools from across the world. Each contribution will address the challenges and dilemmas facing business schools today, with respect to four key themes: the 'higher purpose' of business schools; the social impact of business schools; the internationalization of business schools; and crisis management within business schools, with a special focus on the impact of COVID-19. This volume is also available via Open Access.
In their 2005 Harvard Business Review article, Bennis and O’Toole described business schools as being “on the wrong track” as a result of their focus on so-called scientific research. Some commentators argue that business schools have slowly lost their relevance since the end of the 1950s when they undertook a major overhaul in response to the harsh criticism of the Ford and the Carnegie Foundations on the state of theory and research in business administration. Inspired by Khurana’s (2007) book on the development of American business schools, this article describes the debate on the relevance of scientific business research that can be found in the popular business press and the academic literature, and suggests a number of structural and cultural changes to increase the relevance of business research and its impact on practice.
Business education is undergoing paradigmatic changes, and business schools are feeling the brunt of these changes. This article proposes that “business as usual” is over for traditional business schools. Using Ohmae’s 3Cs—customers, competitors, and
company—as an analytical framework, I examine important changes from different vantage points. From the perspective of customers, the focus lies on technological and value changes. In terms of competitors, the analysis centers on the growing number of alternative suppliers of business education and the geographic shifts in the business school landscape. As to the company dimension, I comment on the vast number and heterogeneity of business schools and suggest that they are heading toward a business model competition. In considering potential development paths for business schools, the article concludes that they require radical innovations to stay relevant.
Academic research in marketing has produced many useful insights and tools over the years. Lately, however, an increasing number of scholars have voiced concern that much of the current academic research is not particularly useful. We explore reasons why this may be the case, and offer a set of recommendations to address them. We first identify three general factors that must be present in order for academics to develop important marketing insights: (i) awareness of important marketing issues, (ii) ability to address these issues, and (iii) motivation to address them. Using this as a framework, we identify several variables that may be reducing the likelihood of our studying important marketing issues. These variables suggest actions that we may take to increase the likelihood of our producing important marketing insights and tools.
This paper aims to analyze the strategic drivers used to achieve the accreditations issued by the three most important business school accreditation agencies (AACSB, EQUIS, and AMBA). The study consisted of semi-structured interviews with the team members who led the accreditation processes. The information was coded, categorized, and analyzed using the thematic analysis methodology. The results show that the dean’s leadership and commitment, budget commitment, faculty and staff participation, quality management systems, accreditation team, active participation, hire and retain qualified professors, encourage research, improvement of physical facilities, internationalization, local engagement, assurance of learning, innovation, stay-up-to-date and maintain records are the most important key drivers to approach business schools accreditations.
Abstract
In the present chapter, we review the role of branding in the higher education sector. We focus on contemporary issues such as brand equity in higher education, the positioning of the university brand, the branding of business schools and their MBA programs, the emergence of online programs, brand personality and communication, and student perceptions of the university brand. Finally, we combine the previous sections and suggest how branding can be used to create a successful brand in the higher education sector.
Keywords – Branding, Higher Education, Brand Image, Brand Identity, Brand Equity, Brand Personality, Brand Communication.
Introduction
Brand Definitions
Brand Equity in Higher Education
University Brand Image and Positioning of University Brands
Branding Business Schools and MBA Programs
Online Programs
Brand Personality and Brand Communication
Student Perceptions and Choice of University Brands
How to Build a University Brand
Conclusion
Discussion Questions:
References
The article reviews challenges facing colleges including the need for actions to address new circumstances of educating college students and preparing them for productive roles following graduation. These challenges are balanced by resources colleges are developing to facilitate college-to-career transitioning to first destinations following graduation. In a review of support services offered by colleges the article identifies innovative programs that show potential for improved career support for students. Sources, including surveys of students and employers, published writing by leaders in education, and reported data from colleges, provide a present view of career support functions and suggest patterns of evolution. Colleges are strengthening their support to student’s department by department, but programs and activities across-departments need to be integrated to improve services for students. Leveraging synergies among campus support functions improves services to students. The use of student support case managers may eliminate the silos among college support functions. Designing programs around students and bridging gaps among support services can deliver more relevant and timely results. The article introduces the voices of students expressed in an upper division business course Management Theory and Practice. The actual words of students were acquired as byproducts of class assignments and course evaluations. Collecting these indirectly rather that as the focal point of student input lends a candid perspective. The comments interject both students’ requests for assistance and their appreciation for the support they received.
Business schools, defined as educational institutions that specialize in teaching courses and programs related to business and/or management, are facing major challenges. These challenges stem from a number of major shifts in the business education landscape, including the rising importance of rankings and accreditations, the increased weight placed on ethical decision making, the ongoing debate on rigor vs. relevance in research, the digital revolution, and the significant decrease in public funding. In fact, they are so fundamental that the coming decade is likely to represent a new era in the history of business education, the fourth since the concept of the business school was created in 1819 with the establishment of ESCP Europe. The purpose of this article is to outline these main changes (TASK: T—from tower to Twittersphere, A—from auditorium to anti-café, S—from stakeholder to shareholder, K—from knowledge to know-how) and to discuss how they impact the different AS-SE-TS of a business school (alumni & students, staff & equipment, teachers & scholars). The article ends with a proposed classification of schools along four corners (culture, compass, capital, and content) and a discussion of which types of schools are best suited to adapt to these changes.
Power is an essential component of leadership and has many complex forms. The article explores how a sample of higher education leaders in the United Kingdom engages with and uses power. It examines how we might understand leaders’ orientation to power in an environment where many disapprove of its use. The analysis suggests leaders habitually use varying forms of power, though often this is denied or obscured by a range of strategies. The purpose of this positioning in relation to power is suggested to be not mere impression management but an adaptation that enables leaders to function effectively in an environment often hostile to leadership. Nevertheless, leaders, and those responsible for their appointment and development, need to encourage greater self-awareness in order that ethical choices can be made about the use of power. Rational, psychodynamic and political perspectives are suggested to be useful tools to develop deeper reflection.
This article reveals an a priori link between the effective management of corporate brands and the strength of corporate brand identification by customers and stakeholders. The article introduces a model of corporate brand management and corporate brand identification. This research, undertaken within leading business schools, resulted in three propositions: (PI) corporate brand management is analogous to strategic general management and involves nine connate activities – adapting, communicating, embracing, endorsing, investing, leading, maintaining, reflecting, and supporting; (P2) a stakeholder and values approach is more likely to result in there being a strong corporate brand identification on the part of students; (P3) an institutional and functional approach to corporate brand management results in weak/indifferent corporate brand identification by scholars. The pivotal importance of corporate brands to contemporary organisations and to their policy advisors, are illustrative of the saliency of this study. This inductive study draws on insights from policy makers and scholars in top business schools. This article throws light on why and how general managers should accord importance to corporate brand management. In broader contexts, leading business schools are regarded as repositories of best practice in terms of scholarship in business administration and, in terms of operations, general management per se. As such, this study has an especial significance for general management of corporate brands among contemporary organisations.
Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to address the lack of relevance of business school research and how the potential gap between research and practice may be related to the lack of interaction between faculty members and non-academic stakeholders (e.g. industry, professions, society).
Design/methodology/approach
– The review of the extant literature in this area is combined with the experiences and discussions with business school leaders from around the world.
Findings
– The problematization of the lack of relevance of business school research leads us to conclude that it is a case of reward folly; the authors hope for relevance to external stakeholders but the authors reward for relevance to academic stakeholders. Drawing on Stokes’ (1997) research taxonomy, the authors conclude that business-school research should combine internal and external validity, which would involve business school faculty performing rigorous and relevant research, and interacting with practitioners; that is, an “academic triathlon”.
Social implications
– Faculty members should conduct research and teaching activities as well as interact with industry, and act to disseminate their research findings among external stakeholders. Consequently this should have implications for both the academic structure at business schools and the resources available to faculty members. Proceeding in this way will result in the narrowing of the gap of understanding between faculty members and management, and ultimately, to bridge the gap between contemporary versions of the Agora and the Academe.
Originality/value
– The authors provide a taxonomy of stakeholders of business school research and outline changes in the structure of business schools, resources provided to faculty members and impact on accreditation agencies.
Purpose
This paper aims to examine current trends in business accreditation by describing and comparing the major international business accreditation agencies (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, European Quality Improvement System, Association of MBAs, Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs and International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education), and analyze their recent market expansion strategies (development and penetration using Ansoff model) as they compete for the schools seeking initial or continuing accreditation.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a comparative study of the business accreditation agencies and their competitive strategies, using publically available data such as lists of accredited schools published by the agencies as main data collection method.
Findings
Business accreditation agencies have utilized the market penetration and market development strategies to expand their market share in recent years. The key growth areas are international schools, regional teaching-oriented institutions, two-year institutions and for-profit institutions.
Research limitations/implications
This study is based on publically available data published by accreditation agencies. More in-depth analysis with survey method could be utilized in future study to identify more specific strategies and their impact on business schools seeking accreditation.
Practical implications
Accreditation is no longer a luxury but a requirement for business schools, but they have to make an informed decision on which agency to pursue to assure an appropriate fit.
Social implications
The public needs to understand the value and the requirements of accreditation. Multiple agencies provide different options to fit the missions of the different types of schools.
Originality/value
This study is valuable to business school stakeholders for understanding accreditation, the need for accreditation and the options they have available.
The AACSB claims that its accreditation provides evidence of business school quality in a variety of areas. This paper reviews and synthesizes existing research on the value of AACSB accreditation on four key topics of importance to schools, prospective students, and employers: effect on obtaining quality students, students job placement, faculty recruitment, and teaching quality. The very limited research comparing AACSB to other business accreditation is also examined. Overall, the analysis indicates very mixed support, at best, for the claims of AACSB schools superiority in these areas. This analysis should be useful for business schools, employers, and prospective business students.
La chambre de commerce de Paris est un bon point d’observation des pratiques de régulation économique du XIXè siècle. En théorie seulement consultative, elle joue un rôle indispensable pour l’élaboration et l’application de nombreuses normes. Elle démontre, d’une part, des lacunes de l’administration en matière de connaissance de l’économie, qui confèrent un pouvoir certain aux experts et, d’autre part, l’aspiration des acteurs économiques à obtenir une sanction officielle de leurs usages.
Performing and Reforming Leaders critically analyzes how women negotiate the dilemmas they face in leadership and managerial roles in Australian schools, universities, and continuing education. To meet the economic needs of the post-welfare nation state of the past decade, Australian education systems were restructured, and this restructuring coincided with many female teachers and academics moving into middle management as change agents. The authors examine how new managerialism and markets in education transformed how academics and teachers did their work, and in turn changed the nature of educational leadership in ways that were dissonant with the leadership practices and values women brought to the job. While largely focused on Australia, Performing and Reforming Leaders strongly resonates with the experiences of leaders in the United States and other nations that have undergone similar educational reforms in recent decades.