Which MBA?
Mastering bits and bytes
Schools need to integrate new technology into their MBA teaching. But doing so still involves plenty of trial and error
IN THE world of business they call it “the consumerisation of IT”: employees who are used to powerful smart phones and tablet computers in their personal lives are now demanding similar tools in their professional ones. Now business schools are also coming to terms with students who are increasingly tech savvy. Some even see the way they integrate technology with pedagogy as an opportunity to differentiate themselves from the B-school pack. The beauty of MBA courses is that students can try out new technologies without fear of a serious backlash if the trials don’t pay off. “The threat level is just a grade, not a career,” explains Michael Koenig, the director of MBA operations at the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business, which is among the vanguard of schools incorporating new technologies in their programmes.
Yet there are still concerns about whether new technology in the classroom will enhance the MBA experience or diminish it. Some professors fret that embracing gadgets for the sake of appearing “wired” will detract from the quality of classroom discussions. That has not deterred schools from experimenting. Innovations designed to help students manage information more efficiently, interact with their peers wherever they are and imbibe important business lessons via virtual simulations are all being tested.
The pioneers are discovering that some technologies are not yet ready for prime time. Consider the experience of Darden. In a recent experiment the school gave a random sample of MBA students Kindle DX e-readers, as well as standard printed handouts and textbooks for their first-year courses. It then encouraged them to use the electronic versions instead of the paper ones.
The students did just that—and many concluded that the Kindle’s limitations were too great to justify its widespread adoption on the programme. Switching between text, graphs and charts, they complained, took far longer than on paper-based alternatives. This made it hard for them to keep up with fast-paced class discussions. Nevertheless, some schools are toying with the idea of testing the Apple iPad to see if that has greater success.
As well as trying out gizmos designed to help students handle large volumes of content, schools are also using technology that helps members of study teams to keep in touch with one another. Darden, for instance, has equipped some classrooms with widescreen TVs and software that allow students who are off campus to share data and opinions with those who are on it. “Our job is to stretch skills as well as minds,” says Mr Koenig, who points out that many executives now need to be able to influence virtual teams they rarely meet face-toface.
Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business has taken this a step further, installing a Cisco “Telepresence” system in one of its lecture theatres. Giant plasma screens and cameras display life-size video images of people in remote locations to an entire class. The school reckons the new system allows professors seamlessly to include overseas participants in class discussions, although further refinement is needed before it can accommodate large numbers of folk joining all at once.
INSEAD, which has campuses in France and Singapore, as well as an executive education centre in Abu Dhabi, has turned to Second Life, a popular virtual world, to help bring students together. It has constructed a cyber campus in which its MBAs can interact and it has begun to integrate Second Life into a few of its courses. One elective, focusing on business-to-business marketing, requires students to roam around the virtual world assessing how firms are using its capabilities to market their wares.
Schools are also using technology to bring academic theory to life in other ways. Some institutions use online trading rooms to give students a taste of how real financial markets work. Other web-based simulations that enhance the classroom experience are becoming popular. At Stanford, for instance, James Lattin, a marketing professor, has worked with the school’s it team to create a web-based program that lets students work in, and run, a sales team touting a disruptive new product. Using the simulation to teach them about the challenges of sales forecasting has produced far better results than simply lecturing, he says.
Yet there are still concerns about whether new technology in the classroom will enhance the MBA experience or diminish it. Some professors fret that embracing gadgets for the sake of appearing “wired” will detract from the quality of classroom discussions. That has not deterred schools from experimenting. Innovations designed to help students manage information more efficiently, interact with their peers wherever they are and imbibe important business lessons via virtual simulations are all being tested.
The pioneers are discovering that some technologies are not yet ready for prime time. Consider the experience of Darden. In a recent experiment the school gave a random sample of MBA students Kindle DX e-readers, as well as standard printed handouts and textbooks for their first-year courses. It then encouraged them to use the electronic versions instead of the paper ones.
The students did just that—and many concluded that the Kindle’s limitations were too great to justify its widespread adoption on the programme. Switching between text, graphs and charts, they complained, took far longer than on paper-based alternatives. This made it hard for them to keep up with fast-paced class discussions. Nevertheless, some schools are toying with the idea of testing the Apple iPad to see if that has greater success.
As well as trying out gizmos designed to help students handle large volumes of content, schools are also using technology that helps members of study teams to keep in touch with one another. Darden, for instance, has equipped some classrooms with widescreen TVs and software that allow students who are off campus to share data and opinions with those who are on it. “Our job is to stretch skills as well as minds,” says Mr Koenig, who points out that many executives now need to be able to influence virtual teams they rarely meet face-toface.
Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business has taken this a step further, installing a Cisco “Telepresence” system in one of its lecture theatres. Giant plasma screens and cameras display life-size video images of people in remote locations to an entire class. The school reckons the new system allows professors seamlessly to include overseas participants in class discussions, although further refinement is needed before it can accommodate large numbers of folk joining all at once.
INSEAD, which has campuses in France and Singapore, as well as an executive education centre in Abu Dhabi, has turned to Second Life, a popular virtual world, to help bring students together. It has constructed a cyber campus in which its MBAs can interact and it has begun to integrate Second Life into a few of its courses. One elective, focusing on business-to-business marketing, requires students to roam around the virtual world assessing how firms are using its capabilities to market their wares.
Schools are also using technology to bring academic theory to life in other ways. Some institutions use online trading rooms to give students a taste of how real financial markets work. Other web-based simulations that enhance the classroom experience are becoming popular. At Stanford, for instance, James Lattin, a marketing professor, has worked with the school’s it team to create a web-based program that lets students work in, and run, a sales team touting a disruptive new product. Using the simulation to teach them about the challenges of sales forecasting has produced far better results than simply lecturing, he says.
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