Business School – What is it good for?

Just this week our newest cohort of executive MBA students began their programme in Chicago. Over 260 students from 60 countries – and representing our campuses in Chicago...

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Published: 5:30pm, 17 Jul 2015Updated: 11:16am, 28 Aug 2015

Just this week our newest cohort of executive MBA students began their programme in Chicago. Over 260 students from 60 countries – and representing our campuses in Chicago, London and Hong Kong – arrived last Saturday for their first taste of the “Chicago approach” to business education, the beginning of an extraordinary educational opportunity and a lifetime of new connections and perspectives.

One of the things that struck me most about this gathering is that no matter where our students come from – China or Japan, Russia or Ukraine, the US or the Middle East – they are all seeking the same thing: a chance to learn new skills, deepen their understanding of business, build new relationships and expand their career potential. Geopolitical conflicts are nowhere to be seen. Cultural differences are to be explored and celebrated, not denigrated. There is a common focus on developing as individuals, making new friends and mastering the course material.

Given the many conflicts currently underway around the world, it’s always refreshing to see how our students come together in the spirit of inquiry and with a willingness to learn, network and collaborate. I’m sure this happens at many educational institutions, but perhaps it is most profound in business schools. After all, business students have a vested interest in working together – to enhance trade, create new markets, and expand opportunities. Conflict is bad for business. Business leaders around the globe recognise that a stable, peaceful world offers the best opportunity to build and grow a business and enhance your career.

Perhaps there are some lessons many of our political leaders could learn from this experience.

All too often, business schools are viewed as a source of much of the world’s ills. Greed, materialism, income inequality, financial crises, and a host of other issues are all often blamed on business schools and students. In reality, such schools (and businesses in general) are a tremendous force for good and enhance living standards around the world.

Here are just some of the ways that business schools make a difference:

Training future business leaders who will create the products and services that make our lives better. Entrepreneurs and business leaders of all types have brought us innovations in technology, communications, health care, and a whole host of consumer products. They have made the products we buy safer, more energy-efficient, easier to use and focused on the ever-changing needs of the consumer. From Amazon to the iPhone to Lipitor to the Prius, business has made our lives simpler, healthier, safer and more fun.

Conducting research to help understand how our world works and how to ensure effective and productive economic policies and decision-making. Business school faculty have been at the forefront of discovering how to manage organisations more effectively, expand business opportunities and improve government policymaking. Business school research has had an impact on issues as varied as sanitation in India, traffic congestion in London and the most efficient routing of UPS trucks.

Expanding the understanding and involvement in social entrepreneurship and community service. Business schools and business school graduates are adding new weight to the growing interest in social enterprise. B-schools have recognised the power of social enterprise and the need to apply rigorous business concepts to some of the world’s most intractable problems – health, environment, poverty and the like. Leaders of these organisations will benefit from the research work of business school faculty and the leadership of business school graduates.

Educating the business leaders who will create and manage the employers of the future. It has been said that all businesses are social enterprises given their role in providing employment. Business schools create the foundations for leaders to manage thriving companies that have the ability to lift millions out of poverty through new employment opportunities.

To be sure, not all business leaders or their organisations could be considered forces for good – there are plenty of examples of business gone bad. However, its contribution to our overall well-being, and its potential for ideas to address many of the world’s problems, is unquestioned. So, if you are thinking about going to business school, you are in excellent company and you can be confident that you are embarking on a career that has the potential to literally change the world.

This article appeared in Education Post as Business School – What is it good for?

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