Why are so many MBA programs focused on teaching technical skills like finance, accounting and operations as opposed to courses on staff development?

MBAs in a Post-Recession World

Where MBAs Went WrongAccording to Peter Navarro’s 2008 book on the

subject, current MBA courses and programs are

missing the mark in five key areas:

1. MBA programs should take a multidisciplinary

approach to teaching leadership-development

and problem-solving by including areas such

as sociology, psychology, human relations,

communication, cultural studies and

diversity studies.

2. Business programs should prepare students

for the challenges of the real-world by

combining theory with real-world application

through experiential learning.

3. As new technology develops and business

influences become more global, business

schools should focus on building global

leaders by teaching adaptability,

communication, innovation, collaboration

and organizational-development skills.

4. As the world becomes flatter, MBA programs

should focus on valuing diversity, cultural

competence and international business.

5. In the wake of major corporate scandals and

collapses, ethics, sustainability and

corporate social responsibility

(CSR) should provide a context

that is woven throughout all

courses of an MBA program.

Shifting StrategiesAccording to Warren G.

Bennis and James O’Toole in

their 2005 Harvard Business

Review article, the MBA degree

is no longer useful in today’s market

as the programs lack creativity, design

and innovation in their curriculum and

teachers. Adapting to the strategic leadership

skills necessary for today’s businesses and

practitioners, many MBA degree programs should

instead be driven by real-world case studies and

applied research in university programs like the

In light of the international financial challenges in the auto, banking, insurance, mortgage and real estate

industries, not to mention the international corporate scandals, such as those of Enron, AIG and Bear Stearns, criticism is growing over the value of the MBA for developing effective business leaders who are ethical, professional and respectful of their employees and communities. After all, if the definition of management is getting work done through staff or human resources, why are so many MBA programs focused on teaching technical skills like finance, accounting and operations as opposed to courses on staff development?

A Google search for ‘MBA curriculum’

renders roughly 223,000 results. During the

same period of time, a Peterson’s search for an

MBA program presents approximately 127

possible concentrations for aspiring graduate

business students to choose from. What is

most interesting is that even though most of

the results referenced thousands of individual

graduate business programs, the curricula

appear to be extremely similar in theory

and in pedagogy. Has the graduate business

school become an institution that produces

management executives through an assembly

line process?

Dr Emad Rahim and Dr Darrell N. Burrell

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Biographies

Ø Emad Rahim, D.M., PMP, University Dean of Business and Management is a PMI Certified Project Management Professional®. Dr Rahim has more than 10 years experience in business development, nonprofit administration, management consulting and project management. Connect with him on Twitter @DrEmadRahim.

Ø Dr Darrell Burrell currently serves as an Adjunct Faculty member in the Global and Community Health Department at George Mason University. Prior to his academic appointment he worked for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and was a recipient of the Presidential Management Fellowship.

working executive programs offered by Colorado

Technical University, Green Mountain College

and Norwich University. Students entering these

programs participate in practical, case-study

driven courses that require them to practice

making tough leadership decisions that influence

people, organizational longevity and growth.

When considering the nature of the

global economy, modern managers require

business programs to be more flexible, global,

technologically focused, relevant and compatible

with their particular needs and busy time schedule.

These facets are critical, as MBA candidates are

expected to diagnose problems, analyze data

and make decisions that can have long-term

implications. These new programs use

case studies and simulation exercises in

an attempt to provide students with

real-world application and plenty

of academic practice in crisis and

strategic decision-making. In these new

programs, students learn to apply theory

to management practices in ways that

are analytically rigorous and managerially

decisive, in a manner that is required in times

of corporate uncertainty. In times of global

economic chaos, business education programs that

develop managers who can effectively influence

practice through the use of sound decision-making

are a vital necessity.

From the Front LinesWe studied a focus group consisting of 24

management professionals who used their in-depth

understanding of today’s business world, plus their

own extensive and firsthand experience working

in that environment, to identify a potential

list of course topics that could be beneficially

incorporated into modern MBA programs. Focus

group participants were selected at random and

represented six different business organizations.

Participants were asked to respond to the

following question: Based on your leadership

experience and the challenges facing managers

in 2013, which skill-development courses do

you feel would help MBA students cultivate

the necessary leadership, decision-making and

management skills?

The answers were telling. Here, in order from

most to least important, are their responses:

1. Career Planning and Development: One

participant made the point that having a

career plan and strategic career goals were the

biggest driving forces behind career mobility

and development. The participants also agreed

that a sound grasp of career development and

planning skills on the part of executives would

make them better mentors.

2. Employee Performance Management and

Coaching: Participants said that one of the

hardest things is learning how to effectively

manage and motivate poorly performing

employees. The other essential aspect of

coaching is having the ability to help an

employee who has raw talent develop into a

star performer.

3. Critical Thinking and Decision-making

Skills: Today’s managers must routinely

make difficult decisions and subsequently

develop creative and effective solutions

that account for complex variables

and consequences.

4. Understanding Organizational Politics

and Culture: Making the right kind of

relationships can make or break a career,

just as not knowing the politics of an

organizational culture can damage it.

5. Managing and Valuing Diversity: Effective

leadership requires the kind of skills that can

develop diverse teams and get them to work

successfully together.

The focus group’s results heavily emphasized

the importance of leadership-development

training as well as communication and

relationship building skills.

In conclusion, the purpose of this study

was to explore and understand the nature of

leadership coursework required for young

managers today. Assessment was based on

feedback driven from practical and real-world

experiences. The insights offered provided

an interesting framework for the kind of

leadership training that is needed now, and that

will be required of future business leaders and

frontline managers.

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