ACCREDITATION FORUM REVIEW
In terms of the nitty-gritty of completing the documentation required, Villemagne advised that “200 pages is way too long – you don’t have that much to say”, and said she believed 100 pages was more than enough to avoid repetition: “Focus on what makes you different”. Amat concluded by noting that schools must “push their competitive advantage and tell a good story”, but added a note of caution: “Don’t leave finishing it until the day before the deadline.” Triple crown accreditation overview Statistics presented by AMBA accreditation director George Iliev showed that as of November last year, some 121 schools were triple- accredited, with AMBA, Equis and AACSB certification; this figure grew by 33 per cent between 2018 and 2022. The UK is home to the highest number of triple-accredited schools, with 25 such institutions, followed by France (18) and China (14). Speaking at a panel debate featuring a range of triple crown schools, Luis Vives, deputy dean for programmes at Esade business school, described such accreditation as “a way to showcase to the world that we check our quality standards and that we are serious about improving the way we deliver our programmes.” Guerra from Imperial agreed, calling it “an important marketing tool with great PR impact”, demonstrating that the school “has gone the extra mile”; it is something that enhances its reputation which, in turn, influences students. She added that each body brings a different perspective, so all three “provide a 360-degree outlook, bringing value to the different stakeholders”. ESSCA’s Villemagne noted that it enables the school “to reach out to different audiences”. Vives likened it to becoming a member of a club that other people recognise: “it sends a signal to the market – here we are and this is what we do”. In terms of the different bodies, Guerra noted that Equis tends to “focus on specific KPIs, whereas AMBA is very refreshing, a dedicated space where you can discuss the MBA programme and speak with like-minded people”. Villemagne said she liked Equis for its “international perspective”, while US body AACSB focuses more on “continuous improvement. Each one brings a different outlook: AMBA is on the consulting side, looking at a specific programme and how to develop it, whereas Equis is very data-driven.” Vives advised schools aiming for triple crown status to “build upon the work that you did previously. It helps you to gain an insight on what the data has to say”. He refrained from using the term, “copy & paste” but noted that “there is information you can leverage”. Guerra assented, noting that there is “no need to reinvent the wheel, you don’t have to rewrite everything from scratch, content can be repurposed, reflect on your KPIs and your achievements”. She ended by posing an intriguing question: “How far away are we from getting artificial intelligence to compile our reports for us?” How to use humour in education The event concluded with a fascinating talk from Dr David Stolin, professor of finance at Toulouse Business School (TBS), who
Esade business school boasts triple-accreditation status
propounded his theory that humour can be beneficial when teaching MBA classes. Humour is something that is initially perceived as incongruous but, after a moment’s reflection, makes sense and is a highly valued business skill, argued Stolin. The impact of this approach is positive student feedback, as well as higher video engagement and learner quiz scores. It is used at more than 100 business schools across 30-plus countries and has garnered awards from bodies such as AMBA, QS and the Academy of Management. Stolin has been collaborating with comedian Sammy Obeid, known for hosting the Netflix series 100 Humans , on various ‘edcom’ initiatives. Together with his TBS colleagues, he has made several humorous videos that students and educators can access on demand. He gave the example of students having difficulty grappling with a statistical formula called Bayes’ theorem. In response, he devised a video that examined the likelihood of a clown appearing in a horror film. He has also created other short films based on colleagues’ requests, focusing on such diverse and seemingly uninspiring topics as loan amortisation, the efficiency of financial markets and iPhone pricing. He then doled out some advice to delegates on the art of polishing a joke: the need to wildly exaggerate topped the list, then came the importance of using specific words, rather than general ones. You should also abbreviate as much as possible, put the least important information first, remember not to telegraph the punchline and end on the laugh trigger. Stolin noted that those faculty staff who give humour a try in their classes may end up developing their own “sharable recipes for creating educational humour”. Even if they come up short, by taking the time to look at the material through their students’ eyes, they will have taken a meaningful step towards becoming an even better teacher.
Ambition | FEBRUARY 2023 | 15
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