Introduction
During
the past decades, globalization brings opportunity as well as enormous pressure
for the corporations to strive for its survival and growth. One of the key
determinants to survive and strive is knowledge management and how to equip its
management with updated concepts and skills. A firm’s competitive advantage depends more than anything on its
knowledge: on what it knows, how it uses what it knows and how fast it can
learn something new (HR Magazine, 2009, p. 1).Management education
becomes one of the most important and prevailing way for company to gain
knowledge since the first MBA School in 1900. However, through the evolution
through one century, today’s management education changes a lot from the earlier as the needs of the students
and company shift.
Shift from mastery of theories to mastery of skills
According
Pfeffer & Fong (2002), research showed that the curriculum of the
management education was too focused on analytics, with insufficient emphasis
on problem finding as contrasted with problem solving and implementation. Also,
there is not much evidence that the mastery of business concept could make the
graduates advance their careers in today’s
complex business environments. The driving forces to change are imperative,
especially in the 21st century, the market forces like
globalization, technological advancement, cross cultural diversity and etc.
To cope with the challenging environment in the
global village, a company should have “the competitive advantage, it depends
more than anything on its knowledge” (HR Magazine, 2009, p. 1). Davenport
pointed out “knowledge management system requires that information be useful,
timely, and accurate” (Davenport, p. 24).
We believe that the management education is
essential and
important for the sustainability of an organization and individual in the complex business environment. Therefore, we have seen that in
the early stage, the collaborative practice of the business schools are the
students and professors but now also including the private or public
organizations.
Networking
For studying
the management education programs, like a MBA degree course, it is not only to
impart management education to an individual but also impart a symbolic
status to him or her to build a social network in the
business environment. It is said that globalization has further strengthen the
social network into a global network of the students of management education. Classmates would interact with diverse groups,
executives from various industries, functions & region, share
experience and insights in various perspectives; so as alumni and the faculty –
to build a new network for the possibility of future collaboration, it’s admitted that once admitted by a school, the
alumni identity accompanies whole life.
Culture: an emergent
topic
Also, with the increasing trend of doing business
across the globe, the diversify culture among countries is a challenge to the organizations
and individuals. The management education program should also implant the
culture issues into various core courses, like marketing management, communication
skills and business ethics.
Ethics education becomes prevailing
After
financial crisis in 2008, public awareness of corporate integrity was highly
increased. Stakeholders now see boards as more accountable for the
effectiveness of their overall governance process (Delotte, 2013). “Company
fosters a trusting culture will have an advantage in the war of talent” (Hurley,
2006). The change of business practice put a pressure on the management school
redesign the curriculum in ethical development of their students.
The
management schools are required to persuade the employer that their students
are educated with business ethics and behave ethically. There are six
fundamental principles of persuasion (Cialdini, 2001) and management schools
are using Liking, Consistency, Authority and Scarcity for persuasion. Management schools are also required to
work closely with industries and corporation to maintain the quality of
education (Gupta, 2011). They
need to regularly review their curriculum and bring necessary change according
to the needs of the corporation and environment.
It
is showed there are many strategic partnerships between corporations and
management school to increase the value add to the distribution role in the
industry (Paul et al, 2003). For example, Management schools invited guest
speakers, business managers or religious leader to deliver seminars and class. However,
strategic partnership between corporations and management school on ethics
education is limited. To cater complex world and demand for ethics education, collaboration
between the consulting firm and management schools on the business ethics
researches and development of education program me is expected.
Conclusion
Collaboration is about bringing ideas together,
about sharing perspectives and insight and effort, for the purpose of getting
useful thing done. Company and schools are the main character in management education.
Schools have to adapt its curriculum to changing business environment and in return,
companies supply ideas and practice for schools to deliver knowledge more
effectively to the students. It’s also time for the corporation to partner with
university to achieve synergy to deliver the essence of good management
education and train people for managerial positions.
Reference
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