student is 27. This, he said, was noteworthy given that it means most candidates are from Gen Z. He then went on to define the characteristics of a typical Gen Zer: “They are self-drivers who deeply care about others, strive for a diverse community, are highly collaborative and social and value flexibility, relevance, authenticity and non-hierarchical leadership. While they are dismayed about inherited issues like climate change, they have a pragmatic attitude about the work that has to be done to address those issues.” Schools offering the MBA programme can boost enrolment in three ways according to Wei: namely, by offering micro- credentials and learner-centric experiences and through the use of enhanced analytics. He then broke these down into more detail: creating micro-credentials involves modularised learning; shareability on social media platforms; backlinks to increase engagement and customisable branding to enhance awareness. Learner-centric experiences, meanwhile, entail the secure management of trusted digital credentials; building learning pathways; creating a customisable and shareable profile; and being able to access verified experience and testimonials. Finally, the concept of enhanced analytics is focused on assessing the performance of curriculum on a modularised basis; unlocking verification statistics; using AI and machine learning for collaborative and content recommendations; and creating dynamic course content through the use of big data. The opportunities & pitfalls of ChatGPT The rise of generative AI has “multiple implications for us all”, according to Elsamari Botha, MBA director at New Zealand’s University of Canterbury. Speaking at the Asia Pacific conference, she noted that ChatGPT had been expected to completely revolutionise the working environment when it first came out, but a year later it is “not that well accepted and we are still struggling to use it at scale in business”. Some of the most common concerns surrounding the technology in Botha’s opinion are the possibility of a ‘super AI’ that establishes its own goals, which may conflict with those of humanity; the rise of deepfakes and misinformation; job displacement and social unrest; cyber attacks and warfare; and biases and hallucinations. She also remarked on how many business school faculty are worried that students won’t learn to write “because AI will do the work for them”. Generative AI most increases the potential for technical automation in occupations requiring higher levels of educational attainment, commented Botha. Another way to interpret this result is that generative AI will “challenge the attainment of multi- year degree credentials as an indicator of skills, meaning that some have advocated for taking a more skills-based approach.” A further point of note, according to the Canterbury MBA director, is that “who this technology impacts is different from who was affected by previous technology”, resulting in so-called “white collar disruption”. She recommended that delegates look at “upskilling versus transformation” in the context of future- focused skills, industry engagement and personal development.
Canterbury’s Elsamari Botha focused on policies to harness the power of AI
Botha then set out an AI policy framework, incorporating data privacy – ensuring that all data collected and stored complies with the relevant privacy policy and the need to obtain informed consent – and transparency, which requires you to clearly communicate to key stakeholders the role of AI and how data is being used, as well as discussing with them the pros and cons of using AI. Then there is fairness in the sense of ensuring that the application of AI does not discriminate against or disproportionately impact certain stakeholders; and lastly mitigation of bias, which involves the need to proactively identify and address potential biases present in the data and potential biases that could emerge from using AI tools. Linking real learning with real business Wilert Puriwat, dean of Chulalongkorn Business School, briefed delegates on Chula Business Enterprise during his presentation, a company created under the auspices of the school to “synchronise teaching and learning in business school with real practice in business”. The initiative develops and promotes business innovation to give students work experience at real-world companies. This venture gives students the chance to run an actual business and utilise the skills that they learn in class, with the role of faculty shifting from that of business educators to business facilitators. It also engenders collaboration between Chulalongkorn and business enterprises, students, alumni, employers and other stakeholders, as well as giving a portion of the revenues earned back to society, something that is consistent with the school’s mission of developing students with a philanthropic spirit. “We must give students a reason to come here, otherwise they might as well learn online,” declared Puriwat, adding that
26 | Ambition | FEBRUARY 2024
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