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.
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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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Business Impact • ISSUE 4 • 2024
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