“They also need agility and flexibility, given that some traditional career paths may change. At the same time, networks, credibility and community will continue to matter. Future MBA graduates will not be valuable simply because they know more facts than others, but because they can integrate knowledge, technology and human judgment, work across disciplines and mobilise people around complex decisions.” The strategic importance of diversity, equity and inclusion is widely recognised in the business world; however, evolving political landscapes can present challenges to the implementation of these principles. How does your institution ensure that it equips future graduates with the strategies necessary to embed these practices responsibly in complex, real-world scenarios? “There has been a backlash against DEI, especially coming from the US, and of course that affects the conversation everywhere. But for me, the concept is really about equity: enabling people to have the same opportunities. It is not about putting someone
different challenges and conversations about career paths that are more aligned with purpose. “The second dimension is research. We want our research to be relevant and focused on important challenges, while maintaining academic rigour and publishing in top journals. Many of our research centres work closely with practitioners and policymakers, combining theory with practical insights to push the frontiers of knowledge. “The third dimension is the impact our students and research eventually have on companies and society. That means understanding our graduates’ careers, the organisations they influence and how they continue to engage with Esade through executive education and lifelong learning. “Measurement is essential. Course evaluations are useful, but I would like us to go further by measuring student skills and perspectives both when they arrive and when they graduate. We are working on making this happen. “Esade has also used the Business School Impact System developed by EFMD to look at its contribution in educational, professional, social and environmental terms. This is not about
measuring simply to report; it is about understanding how we can do better.” What skills do you think are necessary nowadays for MBA graduates to become efficient and productive leaders? “Things are changing very quickly, especially with the evolution of AI; we are all trying to understand how
in a role just because she is a woman or because someone comes from a different background. Sometimes people say, ‘but we have to find the best person for the job.’ My question is: who decides who the best person is and based on what standards?
That can be an eye-opener, because the people defining those benchmarks and making decisions may not see that other equally relevant criteria could give women, or people from more disadvantaged backgrounds, a fairer opportunity. “At Esade, we do not shy away from this topic. It is included in the curriculum and reflected in representation across programmes: female professors and role models, women as protagonists in case studies, female guest speakers and so on. Projects such as the Esade Women Initiative, Esade Alumni WE Club and the Women with Impact newsletter, as well as recent events held in collaboration with the Forté Foundation, help keep this conversation active across the school community. “There are also specific DEI-related courses in our MBA, including work around race and inclusion. Future leaders need to understand diversity, equity and inclusion not just as slogans, but as real management challenges: questions about criteria, opportunity, power and fairness that must be applied responsibly in complex organisations. We also need to be realistic: diverse teams do not perform better simply because they are diverse. They need trust, good leadership, listening and the ability to work through disagreement.”
With its focus on a comprehensive range of topical issues, Esade Business School equips MBA graduates to deal with any scenario
this will affect the job market and the skills graduates will need. MBA graduates still need to understand the core functions of business: strategy, finance, operations, marketing, people management and all the fundamentals. But those fundamentals now have to be taught in a context shaped by AI, regulation, sustainability, geopolitical risk and changing expectations from employees, customers and society. “Graduates will increasingly work with AI agents and digital tools, so they need to understand what they can delegate and what they should not. That makes critical thinking essential: they must judge conflicting evidence, understand where information comes from, probe deeper and not accept things at face value. “At Esade, the launch of the bachelor’s in business and artificial intelligence reflects the need for future managers to understand both the language of business and the language of AI. For MBA graduates, the challenge is similar: they do not all need to become engineers, but they do need enough technological fluency to lead responsibly in organisations transformed by AI.
14 Ambition • ISSUE 4 • 2026
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