Business Impact covers the big challenges facing global management education as the world asks more of its future business leaders.
ISSUE 4 2024 VOLUME 22
THE MAGAZINE OF THE BUSINESS GRADUATES ASSOCIATION (BGA)
LEADERS NEVER STOP LEARNING
Get your bearings A comprehensive guide to management education’s evolving AI landscape
• PRESENCE OF MIND: WHY SCHOOLS SHOULD TEACH PSYCHOLOGY • TEAMING UP TO TACKLE SUSTAINABILITY: ESMT’S REGULAR ROUNDTABLE • FACULTY DEVELOPMENT: HOW TO TRAIN YOUR SIGHTS ON UPSKILLING
PLUS
CBW LATAM CAPACITY-BUILDING WORKSHOP
5 DECEMBER 2024 | ONLINE 16:00-18:00 (GMT) | HOSTED IN SPANISH
ADVANCING BUSINESS SCHOOLS’ IMPACT ON SOCIETY IN LATIN AMERICA
BGA’s 10th LatAm capacity-building workshop will explore strategies and best practices that can help business schools strengthen their societal impact. Held online, it will focus on issues relating to social responsibility, sustainability, diversity and community engagement
Click here to register
Contents ISSUE 4 • 2024 • VOLUME 22
05 EDITOR’S LETTER
28 A BREATH OF FRESH AIR The winner of AMBA & BGA’s Entrepreneur of the Year award on his business school experience 32 SPOTLIGHT ON SCHOOLS Namibia’s Harold Pupkewitz Graduate School of Business 34 GUEST COLUMN Mitigating against toxic cultures 37 WEBSITE ROUND-UP Highlights from our online hub 38 VIEW FROM THE TOP Takeaways from AMBA & BGA’s recent Latin America Conference
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Weighing up the way forward in the crucial areas of technology adoption and the integration of sustainable practices 06 BUSINESS BRIEFING The latest news and research from BGA’s global network 10 COVER STORY A SMART APPROACH A guide to the landscape, opportunities and likely pattern of AI adoption in the management education arena
14 USE IT OR LOSE IT Faculty development warrants greater attention for schools wishing to retain talent and help students and staff realise their potential, says Kakoli Sen, professor at SolBridge 24 JOINING FORCES FOR A FAIRER FUTURE The lowdown on a longstanding ESMT Berlin initiative that convenes companies on ways of integrating sustainability into business practice, while also enhancing the school’s educational offerings
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18 MIND THE GAP To stop graduates from falling short, schools should help high-potential students better understand themselves and others by encompassing psychology in their curricula
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RESEARCH AND INSIGHT: STAY AHEAD OF THE TRENDS IN BUSINESS EDUCATION
With unparalleled access to many of the world’s leading business schools, AMBA & BGA’s Research and Insight Centre offers powerful insight into the issues that matter most in global business education
Recent AMBA & BGA research has tackled: · The metaverse · Climate change · Digital transformation · Student experience and satisfaction · Graduate career paths and aspirations
The annual AMBA Application and Enrolment Report , meanwhile, offers a crucial overview of the MBA market’s health among AMBA-accredited business schools, allowing for benchmarking
AMBA & BGA is always looking to collaborate with business schools and corporate partners to enhance our research offerings. If you
are interested in partnering on a project, or joining one of our roundtables, please contact: research@amba-bga.com
EDITOR’S LETTER
EDITORIAL
Content editor Tim Banerjee Dhoul t.dhoul@amba-bga.com Head of editorial Colette Doyle c.doyle@amba-bga.com
MAPPING OUT THE FUTURE
Art editor Sam Price
Sub-editor Heather Ford
The way forward for global management education in the crucial areas of technology and sustainability forms the focus of this issue’s insights
T he bold claim put forward in our cover feature is that “AI is already able to perform every task currently undertaken within our schools – from marketing and admissions to programme delivery and alumni engagement.” However, Imperial College Business School’s David Lefevre and co-author Rosie Loyd caveat this by arguing that, in the short term at least, we are likely to see a hybrid approach to AI adoption, with humans in the driving seat. This means that schools need not rush into wholesale change, but can ensure they put together strategies to suit their circumstances. “This journey is likely to take longer than we all anticipate due to factors such as capital constraints, organisational barriers and legislative hurdles,” they advise towards the end of their guide to the current landscape. Plotting a path towards the adoption of new technologies is not the only journey business schools must undertake. In our feature from ESMT Berlin, Joanna Radeke and Keerthana Shekhar outline the importance of integrating sustainability into the DNA of business, “moving it from a peripheral concern to a central strategy.” This is the purpose of the school’s longstanding roundtable initiative, in which ESMT convenes companies to exchange
Insight, content & PR manager Ellen Buchan e.buchan@amba-bga.com CORPORATE Membership director Victor Hedenberg v.hedenberg@amba-bga.com BGA accreditation manager Richard Turner r.turner@amba-bga.com Senior marketing executive – digital lead Shareen Pennington s.pennington@amba-bga.com Commercial relations director Max Braithwaite m.braithwaite@amba-bga.com
notes and queries on topics that include regulatory compliance and transitioning from net-zero targets to net-zero operations. An example of how schools can act as connectors, the roundtable also informs the institution’s own sustainability initiatives and teaching. Of course, much of the success of plans to deliver change that meets the needs of a business world in flux will rest on faculty. In this regard, SolBridge International Business School professor Kakoli Sen says that schools need to make greater commitments to learning and development (L&D). As roles in higher education evolve, the risk is that L&D shortcomings “leave faculty and administrators struggling with their roles,” Sen writes. Another area that warrants more focus is the study of the mind and human behaviour, according to Birkbeck Business School’s Adrian Furnham. “Yes, there is a lot of pressure on curriculum time, but neglecting the chance to help students better understand themselves and others is a serious error,” he remarks. In his article, Furnham describes the benefits of exploring the self and one’s impact on others as potentially the best investment students can make at business school.
Head of marketing and communications Leonora Clement l.clement@amba-bga.com Finance and commercial director Catherine Walke r
Director of accreditation and director of BGA services Mark Stoddard
Chief executive officer Andrew Main Wilson
Executive assistant to the CEO Amy Youngs a.youngs@amba-bga.com GENERAL ENQUIRIES bga-membership@amba-bga.com
Tim Banerjee Dhoul Editor , Business Impact
Copyright 2024 by The Association of MBAs and Business Graduates Association . All rights reserved. Material may not be reproduced without the permission of the publisher. While we take care to ensure that editorial is independent, accurate, objective and relevant for our readers, BGA accepts no responsibility for reader dissatisfaction rising from the content of this publication. The opinions expressed and advice given are the views of individual commentators and do not necessarily represent the views of BGA. Whenever an article in this publication is placed with the financial support of an advertiser, partner or sponsor, it will be marked as such. BGA makes every opportunity to credit photographers but we cannot guarantee every published use of an image will have the contributor’s name. If you believe we have omitted a credit for your image, please email the editor.
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BRIEFING A platform for reducing the environmental impact of single-use products in the health and humanitarian sectors and the benefits of women-only start‑up incubators feature among our updates from BGA member schools across the world. Complied by Tim Banerjee Dhoul , Ellen Buchan and Colette Doyle THE LATEST NEWS FROM ACROSS BGA’S NETWORK Business
WHY CORPORATE CULTURES MUST ENABLE PEOPLE TO QUESTION AND CHALLENGE IDEAS
being unwilling to have challenging discussions was a chief reason for Credit Suisse’s 2021 loss of $5.5 billion, following the collapse of Archegos Capital. “The consequences of a corporate culture where teams are hesitant to challenge leaders can be dire. This can include financial damage and service failure,” explained lead author and academic director of Imperial’s Centre for Responsible Leadership Celia Moore. The paper offers guidance for fostering an organisational culture where issues can be broached and ideas challenged. For example, it suggests putting forward questions that specifically seek disagreement from employees and stakeholders, rather than open-ended questions and general queries.
However, the white paper says that leaders must go further and ensure they acknowledge challenges as legitimate, giving alternative ideas appropriate time. Only offering a platform to such ideas in short meetings, for example, is said to increase the risk of them being shut down before they can develop. The importance of enabling inclusive conversations and an open environment conducive to the participation of all stakeholders is also highlighted. In outlining the paper’s aims, Moore pointed to a lack of “concrete guidance on what leaders can do”, adding that “we wrote this paper to offer business leaders evidence- based strategies that can make a real difference in preventing failure within their organisations.” EB
SCHOOL Imperial College Business School COUNTRY UK
mperial College Business School’s Centre for Responsible Leadership has published
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a new white paper exploring the organisational benefits of having people who are willing to say “no” and challenge the ideas put before them. The paper also underlines the dangers of surrounding yourself with ‘yes people’. In so doing, it references a report that found a culture of
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NEWS & INSIGHT
contributing to a significant waste burden, particularly in low and middle-income countries. The platform therefore invites manufacturers and suppliers worldwide to showcase their bio-based solutions free of charge, expanding the sector’s access to sustainable alternatives. The initial focus is on five high-priority product groups: personal protective equipment such as gloves, gowns and boots, syringes and needles, sharps containers, body bags and temporary water/sludge bladders. As the platform evolves, additional product categories will be added. Commenting on the launch, Hanken’s Gyöngyi Kovács, principal investigator and co-ordinator of the WORM project, said: “This platform is a vital step towards addressing the environmental impact of humanitarian operations. By bringing together humanitarian institutions, suppliers and sustainability experts, we are creating a space for innovation and co-operation in an effort to ‘green’ the sector.” CD “The platform will help institutions access and utilise bio‑based products in critical response operations and health programmes around the world”
NEW SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS PLATFORM LAUNCHED FOR HUMANITARIAN & HEALTH SECTORS
health programmes around the world and involves the collaboration of 16 international bodies. The launch is part of the Waste in Humanitarian Options: Reduction and Minimisation project, or WORM for short, which aims to reduce the environmental impact of humanitarian operations. Powered by Dutch social enterprise Solvoz, the platform offers an open-access knowledge portal and catalogue, along with an integrated market assessment tool designed to support humanitarian organisations, health workers and sustainability experts. Globally, the humanitarian and health sectors use billions of single- use products each year, such as gloves, syringes and protective gear,
SCHOOL Hanken School of Economics COUNTRY Finland
new initiative co‑ordinated by the Humlog Institute at Hanken School of Economics is set to
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transform the landscape of sustainable solutions for the humanitarian and health sectors worldwide. The platform, called the Bio-Based Solutions Catalogue, will help institutions access and utilise bio-based products in critical response operations and
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SCHOOL EMLV Business School De Vinci Higher Education THE BENEFITS OF HAVING INCUBATORS JUST FOR WOMEN
COUNTRY France
ew research from EMLV suggests that women-only incubators can address many of the challenges
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facing female entrepreneurs. Such challenges include those based on gender stereotypes, such as a lack of self‑confidence, as well as those relating to work-life balance, with women more likely than men to experience conflicts between the management of their family life and entrepreneurial pursuits. In the research, the type of group mentoring found in women-only incubators was found to be beneficial for female entrepreneurs’ self-belief through role modelling, for example. The incubators were also seen as safe spaces in which women felt better able to assert themselves through self-exploration, reflection and expression. In instances where women had received negative reactions from their families about their new ventures, the groups also provided psychological support. The findings showcase the advantages of offering gender-specific entrepreneurial support to help to topple the continuing imbalances found in the entrepreneurial space. The research was carried out by professor and associate dean for research at EMLV Pascale Bueno Merino, in collaboration with EM Normandie assistant professor Marie-Hélène Duchemin. EB
IRAQ PROGRAMME SEEKS TO FOSTER FEMALE LEADERSHIP
independent executive mentor Safiyeh Salehi Mobarakeh. A total of 50 women from Iraq’s Ministry of Interior have so far joined the programme which, alongside raising awareness of the importance of female leadership in the security sector, also provides a safe space for dialogue on the challenges facing women in management positions. The first part of the course took place in September and the feedback has already been good: “I’m mind- blown by how these women are so dedicated to driving positive change for their country. One participant promised in her personal leadership statement that she would go back to work as a butterfly spreading love,” Takkenberg enthused. The second instalment will take place in December, consisting of four days of instruction and two networking events. It has been financed by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany and developed by the European Union Advisory Mission in Iraq in conjunction with ECWO. TBD
SCHOOL Rotterdam School of Management Erasmus University
COUNTRY Netherlands
he Erasmus Centre for Women in Organisations (ECWO) at Rotterdam
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School of Management (RSM) is facilitating a programme aimed at empowering women to assume leadership roles and increase their participation in Iraq’s government. “Female leadership is needed to help address the challenges Iraq is facing, to establish sustainable peace, stability and safety,” said Hanneke Takkenberg, an RSM professor of management education who focuses on women in business. Takkenberg is teaching the course alongside ECWO assistant director Dorothy Grandia and
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NEWS & INSIGHT
COLLABORATION TO CO-CREATE IMPACT THROUGH ENTREPRENEURSHIP
SCHOOL Indian Institute of Management Jammu (IIM Jammu)
COUNTRY India
IM Jammu recently held a capacity-building programme in alignment with its efforts to
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promote entrepreneurship and develop individuals who can positively impact business and society. The programme formed part of Project YUVA ( Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan , meaning young entrepreneurs’ development campaign), a collaboration between IIM Jammu and the government of Jammu and Kashmir. A related priority is to accelerate employment opportunities across Jammu and Kashmir by empowering youth, women and vulnerable groups. This three- day programme therefore centred on equipping officials to effectively support entrepreneurial initiatives. At the launch, Kumar Rajeev Ranjan, government secretary in the region’s Labour & Employment Department, spoke about the 4Cs – culture, capital, capacity and connectivity. This is a key pillar of Project YUVA’s teaching and a bid to drive entrepreneurial transformation. IIM Jammu director BS Sahay, meanwhile, noted that the collaboration between colleges, universities, government officials and financial institutions was a first for the region and discussed its potential to act as a role model for similar initiatives. TBD
INCAE BUSINESS SCHOOL BECOMES A PARTNER IN GLOBAL LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE
INCAE, who is leading the project on behalf of the institution. One major effort planned is 25/5/5 , where five anticipatory leadership weeks will be held in five regions of the world. These will seek to provide intensive and immersive training programmes that combine local expertise with global insights. Other participating institutions in GCAL include Sabancı University in Istanbul, IE Business School in Madrid, the Science Diplomacy Capital for Africa in Pretoria and the National University of Singapore. “Solutions cannot be given in silos; on the contrary, they must be co-ordinated between public institutions, the private sector, academia and civil society. They must be inclusive to avoid bias, as well as being multi-stakeholder oriented,” Ilie explained. She added: “Our goal is to promote leaders who can do all of the above while leading with purpose and shared values towards a more sustainable world; one where human beings can live not only longer, but also more meaningful lives.” CD
SCHOOL INCAE Business School COUNTRY Costa Rica
NCAE Business School has joined an international programme designed to
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prepare leaders for accelerated transformations driven by science and technology. The Global Curriculum for Anticipatory Leadership (GCAL) initiative offers a benchmark syllabus that combines a fundamental knowledge of science, international relations, business and economics, with world affairs, leadership and the science of anticipation and diplomacy to facilitate collaborative responses to worldwide issues. “Global challenges are increasingly complex and we require different models of governance, leadership and decision‑making to solve them,” said Camelia Ilie, dean of strategy and institutional affairs at
SHARE YOUR NEWS AND RESEARCH UPDATES by emailing Business Impact editor Tim Banerjee Dhoul at t.dhoul@amba-bga.com
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SMART
Tools powered by artificial intelligence (AI) are already transforming sectors from healthcare to law. However, despite a great deal of energy being expended on the technology at business schools, it isn’t yet clear to what extent it will impact management education; Imperial College Business School’s David Lefevre and Tutello’s Rosie Loyd elaborate
APPROACH
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NEXT-GEN TECHNOLOGY
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mean it will be – far from it. There are more factors at play than technical feasibility and the degree of automation will vary significantly across our sector. AI in management education Each week, those of us in management education encounter at least one new AI start-up and new AI functionalities added to the software we use, plus new pedagogical approaches being proposed. Most of these tools and opportunities can be categorised into five groups, which we've organised here by ease of adoption – from the simplest to the most challenging. Digital assistants : Most current discussion on AI in education is focused on new tools that enable us to perform our work tasks more efficiently, or to a higher standard. AI tools can assist educators with tasks such as curriculum development, teaching delivery, the provision of feedback and in grading assignments. These digital assistants do not replace educators but rather support them, enabling schools to layer AI on top of existing processes without major structural changes. This category of AI is the most accessible and least disruptive, making it an ideal starting point for many institutions. AI for analytics : Many schools already use data analytics to some extent. However, any new digital system is unlikely to be adopted unless it provides ready access to the data it generates. The real potential, though, lies in integrating multiple data sources to deliver real-time, actionable insights. For example, at Imperial College we are working on linking data from 17 different systems that support the student experience. By connecting these data sources, we will be able to understand which elements of a programme contribute most to key outcomes such as student satisfaction, job placement and academic performance. This kind of integrated, analytics-driven approach enables evidence-based course design, more informed decision-making and real-time insights into activities within our schools. Automation and semi-automation of tasks : Once a school’s digital infrastructure is robust and its data sources are integrated, it becomes possible to automate various tasks. This could include automating responses to student enquiries during the admissions process, sending automated communications to students who may be experiencing difficulties, providing personalised curricula and matching students with job opportunities. As the sophistication
Generative AI is a truly extraordinary technology and is rightly dominating current discourse. To consider the broader potential of AI in education however, we need to examine the technology in its entirety and include the possibilities afforded by AI-driven data analysis and automation. When we zoom out, we see that the ultimate potential of AI is not just to assist with certain tasks, but to perform the full range of tasks of which human minds are capable. AI is already able to perform every task currently undertaken within our schools – from marketing and admissions to programme delivery and alumni engagement. In other words, it is already possible to create a fully automated business school. This may sound like an astonishing claim, but we need to factor in how platforms such as Coursera already offer a fully automated educational experience. While very few people would claim that Coursera offers an equivalent experience to a campus-based MBA, the addition of AI can already improve such automated courses to the point that they can be considered serious competitors to many more traditional, online degree programmes. This capability will inevitably increase as the technology matures. While every job within our schools can now be performed by AI, this is not a straightforward, like‑for-like automation: AI will perform tasks differently, sometimes better, sometimes worse. That said, just because a job can be automated doesn’t
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This would represent a solution to some of the major challenges in education, such as the need for societies to train many more workers in advanced digital skills. Platforms such as Coursera and innovative models such as that implemented at the 42 network of schools hint at what’s possible: large-scale, low-cost education with minimal human involvement. It is likely that the adoption of technologies at the start of this spectrum will occur more quickly and perhaps more broadly than those towards the end. However, it is also noteworthy that the value created by AI varies across the spectrum; the more disruptive the AI, the more difficult it is to adopt, but the greater the potential value it can generate. Difficulties with AI adoption While we will certainly soon see individual projects showcasing the possibilities of each category of AI, the broad adoption of such technology across our sector is likely to be slower than generally anticipated and we can look to the past for a precedent. The adoption of internet technologies occurred over several decades and turned out to be less disruptive for most people than many enthusiasts had anticipated. Why is this the case? Capital constraints will hinder the deployment at scale as these technologies will prove to be expensive, particularly in the short term. It will also take time to develop the basic know‑how required to use AI effectively, in the sense of intangible capital. Legislation, such as the EU AI Act, will serve its role as a brake on innovation while stakeholders get organised. Incumbent business schools face additional hurdles. The creation of the necessary digital infrastructure and subsequent automation will require the redesign of business processes and the adjustment of business models. This is hard to do and compounded by the fact that business schools (and their broader universities) are traditionally reluctant to make the significant investments in research & development required for such programmes. Then there are organisational challenges. There will be a need to overcome cultural barriers to AI adoption and a significant requirement for skills development, both of which are time- consuming and entail proficient management. A further factor likely to slow the adoption of AI is that incumbent schools are, in the short term at least, unlikely to experience significant pressure to implement the more radical opportunities provided by AI. The market’s preference is for tradition and
of AI increases, so too can the complexity of the tasks that are automated. While this level of automation requires a solid digital foundation, it can lead to significant improvements in both the student learning experience and operational efficiency. Algorithmic management : At this stage, AI begins to take on a more directive role, akin to the way algorithms manage tasks in sectors such as healthcare or logistics. Algorithmic management involves AI systems allocating tasks to educators or students based on data-driven insights. This approach, while potentially unsettling due to the reduced human agency it may entail, offers the potential for more personalised and efficient experiences. System-level AI : The final stage is a fully automated, AI‑driven educational system, analogous to ‘lights-out’ factories in manufacturing, where robots completely manage production and maintenance. This could potentially revolutionise education by enabling high-quality learning at scale and at very low cost. “It is easy to imagine schools adopting digital assistants, but more challenging to picture them pursuing paths to a system-level AI”
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NEXT-GEN TECHNOLOGY
professional development, will be more susceptible to disruption by AI-driven education providers. Bridging AI & human support For those already working in a business school, the impact of AI is likely to be less radical and more evolutionary. In the short term, the future will be characterised by a hybrid approach. One AI start-up exploring this hybrid future is a recent Times Higher Education award winner, Tutello. This London-based education firm is collaborating with several business schools to develop a human-+-AI tutoring system. The platform provides personalised tutoring and support through AI while ensuring that human educators remain central to the learning process. By putting faculty in control of the content and interactions, Tutello ensures that educators can guide and oversee the AI’s responses, minimising the risk of inaccuracies and ensuring alignment with the institution’s educational goals. This kind of technology – which aims to enhance the student experience and make the lives of faculty easier while integrating with existing IT infrastructure – is likely to gain most traction within incumbent institutions for the foreseeable future. Navigating the AI landscape The adoption of AI in management education will be a complex journey, fraught with challenges but also filled with significant opportunities. As we have discussed, this journey is likely to take longer than we all anticipate due to factors such as capital constraints, organisational barriers and legislative hurdles. Incumbent business schools can strategically navigate these challenges to arrive at solutions that enrich the student experience across the board. AI start-ups such as Tutello will enable this hybrid model by integrating AI with human support, providing a balanced approach that leverages the strengths of both. AI champions and new entrants to the market will provide beacons for us all by demonstrating what is technically possible. However, the immediate future of management education will be hybrid, with AI serving as a powerful tool to complement and augment human capabilities, rather than replace them. As the landscape evolves, those institutions that can adapt and innovate while maintaining their core values will lead the way in creating a smart, effective and human-centred educational experience for both the educator and student alike.
David Lefevre is a professor of practice in digital innovation at Imperial College Business School and co-founder of Tutello, where he is academic lead. Previously, he led Imperial’s award- winning Edtech Lab, launching the school’s first online courses and delivering more than 220 online modules. After stepping down in 2022, Lefevre began exploring AI applications in education Rosie Loyd is the founders’ associate at Tutello. She graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2023 with a degree in Spanish and contemporary Chinese studies. At Tutello, she is involved in all aspects of operations, from client onboarding
to ongoing support, as well as marketing and communications
reputation and both students and employers are likely to continue to value these attributes. All these factors limit how far along the adoption spectrum incumbents are likely to travel. It is easy to imagine schools adopting digital assistants, but it is more challenging to picture them pursuing paths to a system-level AI. Traditional institutions are unlikely to embrace the radical opportunities afforded by AI automation. The focus of these institutions is therefore likely to be on enhancing the quality of education through AI. The role of new entrants New entrants to the education market, unburdened by existing practices and structures, are likely to advance further along the automation spectrum. Incumbent schools can also foster innovation by creating separate entities at arm’s length, known as ‘skunk works’. Harvard and MIT exemplified this approach with the creation of the edX project. These new players could offer innovative, low-cost educational solutions at scale, challenging established institutions and creating a bifurcated market – one where traditional institutions continue to offer personalised, high-quality education, while new entrants gain traction in the low-cost mass education space. It is also important to note that the more radical forms of AI adoption will occur primarily in the digital realm. Many students, including undergraduates, will still value the campus experience and the personal interaction that comes with it. However, the ‘rest-of-life’ market, which includes lifelong learning and
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Use it
lose it OR
Without paying due attention to staff and faculty development, institutions risk losing talent and ground on their competitors. Kakoli Sen , professor at SolBridge International Business School, explains how investing in faculty upskilling can nurture cultures of lifelong learning, enhance teaching quality and help students realise their full potential
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FACULTY DEVELOPMENT B corporate network. Conversely, industry experts who join academia often report facing challenges undertaking the traditional tasks associated with academic research and teaching, such as managing classrooms, producing course syllabi, assignments and other rubrics, writing academic research papers and securing government funding. It is clear that job descriptions for higher education faculty have evolved over the years. However, while there are now expectations for them to be a good teacher, researcher, administrator and mentor all at once, insufficient attention has been paid to faculty training and development. Addressing shortcomings in L&D Currently, a lot of faculty development concerns the use of technology in teaching, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence and the metaverse. However, there is a dearth of in-house training to support academic administrator roles and help practitioners become more student-centric. In addition, higher education leadership roles Based on the findings of Gallup’s State of Higher Education Report 2024 , the extent to which students feel supported and cared for by faculty members is central to their experience of good high-quality education and a top reason for enrolling and persevering with their studies. When an aspiring student is deciding which
often end up being based on one’s personal style and preferences, rather than formulated around what is organisationally good. As a result, learning and development (L&D) for faculty, administrators and leaders remains a tick-box exercise and the ensuing shortcomings leave many faculty and administrators struggling with their roles. To develop a robust faculty pool that is interested, skilled and motivated to contribute to the academic ecosystem effectively, business schools need to help their staff develop skills in areas that include modern and remote teaching techniques, digital tools and student-centricity. They might also need support to explore potential avenues of research and enrich their teaching content. As technology advances and pedagogical approaches shift, the need to support the continuous development of faculty and administrative staff becomes all the more paramount and offers wide- ranging benefits. For example, Learning Policy Institute research led by Linda Darling-Hammond has demonstrated the links between faculty members’ professional development and positive student outcomes, such as enhanced engagement and learning. In addition, research from Margery Ginsberg and Raymond Wlodkowski indicates that institutions prioritising faculty development see higher rates of student retention and satisfaction, while further research showcases how professional growth
institution to apply to, faculty is often one of the first resources they look at. They can, for example, research faculty members’ background and any feedback available from past students and then form their own opinion based on the information gathered. It’s important to note that many students will not only consider the subject-matter expertise, real‑world perspectives and career advice that a faculty member can offer, but also the potential to which they might be able to forge a positive, lasting relationship with them and receive the kind of support that could be critical to their wellbeing and academic development. However, not all faculty members will have had the training to fulfil this last point effectively. Plus, even the most qualified educators range from the exceptional and very good to the decidedly average. It all depends on how much they have kept up with the latest developments in their fields of expertise. The evolution of technology and dynamics of the modern, ever-evolving business world means that faculty must maintain a constant level of interest and awareness. Some faculty members might not have any industry experience, limiting their applied knowledge and
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opportunities can contribute to job satisfaction and retention among faculty and staff. Here are some areas in which higher education institutions (HEIs) stand to gain the most by investing in upskilling. Technological proficiency There are already multi-generational workforces in corporates but there is more to come for HEI educators. As members of Generation Alpha (those born between 2010 and 2024) come into the classroom, their learning expectations will differ widely from what has come before. In the year 2010, the iPad was launched, Instagram was created and ‘app’ was named word of the year by the American Dialect Society. From their earliest years, therefore, Alphas have been ‘screenagers’ and catching students’ interest in the classroom will warrant far greater attention than it currently receives. There will also be much more emphasis on digital learning environments and personalised experiences. As a result, faculty members will need to be proficient in various educational technologies. HEIs must pre-empt the coming changes by helping faculty members to become adept at using an agile learning management system (LMS), online assessment tools and digital communication platforms. Faculty members must also be encouraged to experiment with technology integration to enhance student Traditional teaching methods alone will not be enough to engage the current and the next generation of learners. If you invest in faculty members’ continuing professional development, you can ensure they stay up to date on innovative pedagogical strategies, such as those related to active and fun-oriented learning, flipped classrooms and competency-based education. In addition, as classrooms become increasingly diverse, faculty and staff will need to overcome stereotypes and be open to managing and creating inclusive learning environments that respect and accommodate different backgrounds and learning styles. Training in cultural competency and equitable teaching practices is, therefore, essential. Education as a service Generation Alpha students and those who follow will increasingly look at higher education as a means to an engagement and learning outcomes. Innovative pedagogies
HOW DO LEADING UNIVERSITIES PROMOTE FACULTY DEVELOPMENT?
• In addition to the University of Cambridge Centre for Teaching and Learning’s focus on active learning and assessment strategies, peer mentoring is encouraged, with experienced faculty guiding newer educators. • ETH Zurich offers faculty training sessions focused on teaching methodologies and digital tools, with educators also encouraged to incorporate research findings into their teaching practices. • The University of Toronto ’s Centre for Teaching Support & Innovation offers programmes aimed at enhancing teaching
Some of the world’s leading universities are already adopting multifaceted approaches to help their faculty develop, as the following examples showcase. • Harvard University offers extensive professional development opportunities through its Bok Centre for Teaching and Learning where faculty can engage in workshops and peer- observation programmes focused on enhancing teaching effectiveness. • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) ’s Teaching + Learning Lab provides faculty with research-based insights into teaching practices, with online courses on delivering content in digital formats also available.
quality, with an emphasis on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) training and creating supportive learning environments.
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FACULTY DEVELOPMENT
members should be encouraged to share their ideas and develop new skills with confidence. Building upskilling programmes Conducting a comprehensive assessment of learning needs is a good way to start identifying the specific skills and knowledge gaps among faculty and staff. This can be done through surveys, focus groups and performance evaluations, culminating in the development of tailored training programmes that address the unique challenges and requirements of an institution’s faculty and staff. Here, it’s important to ensure an open environment to guarantee a programme’s effectiveness and ensure that faculty and staff are enthused about participating, without having any fear of reprisal for sharing their views. To facilitate this, ‘buddies’ can be assigned to any new/younger members of the faculty. Meanwhile, the training itself can take the form of workshops, online courses or self-paced exercises. As enablers of cultures of continuous improvement, learning communities should be reinforced by reserving a mandatory number of hours for every employee’s personal growth and development. Regular evaluation of these initiatives is also essential to ensure their effectiveness and improvement. Higher education continues to navigate a complex and dynamic environment, making the upskilling of faculty and staff a critical component of institutional success. By investing in the professional development of their personnel, HEIs can nurture an ethos of lifelong learning, enhance teaching quality, improve student outcomes and foster a culture of innovation, inclusion and active mentorship that helps both faculty and students realise their full potential.
end and think of educational institutions as, first and foremost, service providers. They will expect to be able to tailor offerings to their individual preferences, as well as to measure and compare institutions in ways that go far beyond placement statistics. Students’ level of attachment to an institution, when compared to older generations, is also likely to change. Instead of investing in an assumed and gradual return on investment, students will want more visibility of the benefits they can expect to look forward to. Higher education will require more of a ‘here and now’ environment akin to the immediate gratification offered by many products and services in the modern world. To adjust and thrive in this context, HEIs will need to develop the right mindset and bring greater levels of professionalism into all their activities. Peer-learning cultures Institutions must inspire their faculty members to go beyond their comfort zones and co-create new ideas through peer-learning communities. In this, mentorship programmes that pair experienced faculty with newer educators can benefit both parties and lead to enhanced learning experiences for students. These relationships facilitate knowledge sharing and support professional growth, while offering great potential for the cultivation of collaborative research. Additionally, peer-learning communities allow faculty members to work together on the development and use of innovative practices, enhancing teaching methods for our new age of learning and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Nurturing the right mindset Faculty members should be shown the merits of focusing on getting the best from every student, rather than judging individuals on a standard competency scale. This necessitates ensuring that faculty members are open minded and providing them with training on how they can create safe spaces in which students can be creative and speak freely. Instilling an environment of enterprise and encouraging students to think differently will motivate them to give their best. Adopting a mindset of lifelong learning, fuelled by an ability to comprehend the need to change and be flexible as they carve out their learning journeys, is also essential. Faculty members need to receive training on this if they are to instil this mentality effectively in their students. This approach will also be instructive in interactions with industry experts, where faculty
Kakoli Sen is a professor at SolBridge International Business School in South Korea. She is also a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council and the Advisory Board at the WomEnablers Foundation. She teaches and trains in the areas of organisational behaviour and leadership
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Mind
Business leadership is a contact sport and those who don’t know how to form and motivate teams effectively are likely to fall short. Birkbeck Business School’s Adrian Furnham explains how encompassing psychology in postgraduate management education can help high-potential students better understand themselves and others Gap the
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CURRICULUM DESIGN
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T The latest themes relating to the study of the mind, such as the psychology of disgust, greed and grit, plus gamification, neurodiversity, machine learning and micro-aggressions might not all be of equal stature. Some are, by nature, ‘bigger’ than others, but while a few might turn out to be temporary fads, others – perhaps cyber-psychology, for example – may endure. However, the question is whether any of these topics should appear in business school curricula. Over the years, different groups have lobbied for the introduction of new subjects and disciplines, putting great strain on the timetable. Consider the following fictitious course examples: Mindful leadership in the digital era ; Leading in digitised workplaces ; Green growth as competitive advantage ; Executive power and sensemaking ; Digitisation, innovation and business models ; and Persuasion and power from a leadership perspective . I am half-tempted to derive a course from the brilliant and frank Rules for Life often attributed to Bill Gates. My personal favourites among the 11 tenets are: “Life is not fair – get used to it”; “The world won’t care about your self-esteem”; “If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss”; “If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault, so don’t whine about your mistakes, learn from them”: “Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not”; and “Be nice to nerds, chances are you’ll end up working for one.” The psychology of leadership derailment In reality, what I would teach would not be a course that covers one or two of the subjects and ideas mentioned above, but
instead one that takes up a theme I have developed over many years: leadership derailment. Estimates vary, but failure rates for business executives run as high as 65 per cent. There are two big reasons for falling short. It can happen when strengths are overused, such as when confidence turns into narcissism, and it can happen when managers become greedy, even though there are many who still believe that “greed is good”. Let’s start with the evidence for business failure. A 20-year review of the highest-paid CEOs in the US from the Institute for Policy Studies showed that 38 per cent of the country’s top leaders failed between 1993 and 2012. These CEOs either wound up getting fired, had to pay massive settlements or fines related to fraud charges, or led firms that crashed or were bailed out during the 2008 financial crisis. More recently, Heidrick & Struggles conducted a study of 20,000 senior executive placements and found that 40 per cent failed within 18 months. Here, a failure meant the executive either left, was asked to leave, or was performing significantly below expectations. Its review noted that “the Corporate Leadership Council puts the failure rate at nearly 50 per cent. The Harvard Business Review gave a range of failures on new management hires of between 40 and 60 per cent. Finally, the Centre for Creative Leadership estimates a failure rate of 40 per cent for new CEOs”.
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CURRICULUM DESIGN
Business school students are very smart and highly driven. I have taught at various institutions in Africa, Asia, the US and Europe and I used to say that the programme content is often smarter than that taught on other postgraduate courses but it is often deeply extrinsically, rather than intrinsically, motivated. These students invest a great deal of money in their degrees (often more than $100,000) and plan not only to recoup it as soon as possible, but also to earn at least that amount per annum over the next few years. Any courses and ideas that do not immediately seem to contribute to this end are thought of as irrelevant, whereas topics that appear new and disruptive, such as those encompassing the magic term “AI”, are considered surefire choices. Skills and attributes to watch for Executives don’t fall short because they don’t understand accounting and economics or didn’t spot world trends. Rather, they fail because they do not understand how to motivate their staff. Leadership is quite simply the ability to form and motivate teams better than your competitors. Business leadership is a contact sport. Modern literature, based on both psychiatric and psychological theory, suggests that underlying all leader derailment (and, indeed, all personality disorders) are three fundamental markers. While there are many factors that might indicate the
WHEN LEADERSHIP GOES WRONG: PSYCHOLOGICAL INSIGHTS Here are six lessons on leadership failure that summarise the developments and findings made over years of research, as described in a paper for Consulting Psychology Journal led by US organisational psychologist Robert Hogan
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There is a dark side to every personality and it consists of counterproductive tendencies that emerge when we are stressed, distracted, or simply unconcerned about the impression we are making. It is important to distinguish between identity – ie how we see ourselves – and reputation – ie how others see us. The dark side is more apparent from the outside-in. A leader’s effectiveness is best measured by the performance of the team and organisation, not by how they rise in the hierarchy. Charisma isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. It has a dark side, too. Boards and compensation committees place great faith in charismatic leaders, but the research shows mixed and often undesirable results in terms of organisational performance.
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• A surprisingly high number of leaders are AWOL (absent without leave). They don’t work closely with their teams, resolve conflicts or bottlenecks, develop their people, or hold them accountable. • Winning the struggle to get to the top of the organisation can result in losing the struggle to stay on top of the competition.
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possibility that a leader could derail, there are three that are always most important. Covering empathy, intimacy, identity and adaptation, the markers outlined below make a useful and simple checklist at selection interviews without the use of a questionnaire. • Personal relationships : Can the person establish and maintain healthy, happy and long-term relationships with various types of people, ranging from colleagues and customers to suppliers and competitors? While nearly all researchers have demonstrated that difficulties
with interpersonal relationships are at the heart of the problem for derailing managers, it has been
suggested that these are often compounded by various self‑defeating behaviours, including being rigid, hostile, defensive, overcommitted and suspicious. • Self-awareness : Does the individual have personal insight? This is defined as the accurate appraisal and understanding of your abilities and preferences and their implications for your behaviour and impact on others. It is essentially reality testing, or a calibration against the facts of life. • Adaptability, learning and transitioning : It has frequently been observed that a derailed leader’s early career success was often responsible for their later failure because they failed to learn. At various times in a professional career, people must learn to let go of old, odd or dysfunctional assumptions and beliefs. Furthermore, they need to acquire new skills and ideas. This often means exposing oneself to learning situations that can be threatening and may involve failure. Discovering strengths and limitations Self-awareness is partly knowledge about the self: strengths and weaknesses, vulnerabilities and passions, idiosyncrasies and normalness. It can be derived in many ways. Sometimes self-insight arises from a sudden epiphany that could come in a crowded classroom, or simply from sitting on the couch. It can even occur at an appraisal. Sources of self-insight stem largely from success and failure, what others say (for example, in 360 reports) and from various tests. However, a pathological form of self-awareness can be detected in some CEOs. This is manifest in hyper-vigilant, self-obsessed individuals who are interested in nothing but themselves. Many of these people are technically described as ‘vulnerable narcissists’. It can take years to find out who you are, where you belong (in the family, organisation and community) and knowing what you can best contribute to others. Some people are lucky; they are given opportunities to test their skills and see their impact. As a result, they become more aware of their potential,
“Many ambitious, clever and determined graduates come unstuck because they did not attend to their soft skills”
what they like doing, what they are good at and how others perceive them. Do you know whether you are good in a crisis, or do you in fact cause them? Are you (really) emotionally intelligent? Why do certain types of people clearly not like you? Are you a natural at negotiation and sales? Are you aware of what stresses you and what your fundamental values are? Do most people trust you? How perceptive are you about others’ motives? Three techniques can help draw out answers and insights here. Self-testing and exploration by attempting new tasks and situations is a good place to start. People make discoveries late in life and often by chance through processes we
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