top. There’s no reason whatsoever that we, as universities, cannot have the same capabilities as these banks. You just need the funds and the vision to do it.” Ronan Carbery “This isn’t going to go away, so a degree of digital and AI literacy is going to be important. Google’s recent relaunch of Bard, for instance, is going to be integrated with your Gmail Suite and Google Docs in the same way that you would use a spellchecker. We’re going to have to embrace the fact that students will be using [this technology] in their day-to-day lives and we must train them in the correct use of AI.” Richard Hodgett “I think we are behind. Higher education uses all these legacy systems that aren’t interconnected. So, we’re not getting data-driven decision-making. I think that we need that first before we can make full use of AI.” Mark van der Veen “A lot of people are very positive about the use of chatbots in the private sector, but I know that many are frustrated when they encounter a chatbot instead of a real person and that’s even for simple services, like banking, let alone something that is as highly complex as education. “I don’t see such good examples outside our industry, so I think we should have a little more self-confidence. During the Covid-19 pandemic, we also learned how important it is to have students in a social environment on campus and to be motivated by real people. This is a strength we have – the real person and the connection and not just the software.” Where are the opportunities for students and/or faculty to use the technology behind robot writing, or similar technologies, at business school? Javier Yanez-Arenas “I asked ChatGPT a question. Then, two hours later, I asked the same question; then, the following day, I changed the question a little and asked it again. I brought these three answers to the students in one of my classes and asked, ‘What do you think? What is the uniqueness in each of the answers? What are the differences?’ There were some differences, but it was basically providing one insight. And the students had to spot that and start thinking out of the box.” Oksana Gerwe “It’s important to ask what we’re really preparing our students for. As an MBA director and educator, I’m thinking about what employers will expect my students to demonstrate. Will they expect some basic familiarity with ChatGPT? I can’t ignore that in my classroom so, at the beginning of my strategy course in September, I will ask students to check out definitions of ‘strategy’
The panel members agreed that business schools should actively engage with AI technology
we couldn’t do without them. Now, give a young person a paper map and ask them to go from A to B – they will not have a clue.”
Oksana Gerwe “A lot of my time at primary school was spent practising cursive handwriting. It’s a valuable skill and develops your fine motor skills, but my children don’t write cursive because it’s no longer relevant to their success. Does this mean that they are less intelligent? It’s nice to have good handwriting, but I think we evolve and, as educators, I don’t think we should look back and think that we are now worse off.”
Should business education be more tech-oriented, given the anticipated changes to workplaces and careers?
Oksana Gerwe “Our students live in a world where everything is excellent. You want to date? You can use apps that are excellent. You want to watch content? Netflix is excellent. You want to do your banking or invest online? The apps are excellent. You walk through a university’s doors and the quality of experience drops. Somehow, we think that this is okay, but it’s not. The pressure is on us to find ways that will allow students to have a similar level of seamlessness in their experience.” Javier Yanez-Arenas “Some people say [certain technologies and software] are too expensive. No, it is expensive not having them and not using the appropriate tools that are used across the world.” Pauline Parker “Most of the systems being used by, for example, investment banks are actually more than 30 years old, with layers added on
16 | Ambition JULY/AUGUST 2023
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