Thursday, December 3, 2009

MBA-Need for creative/cross discipline students

A current article in The Economist discusses the importance of academic diversity in MBA programs. The article delivers a message that in addition to cultural and gender diversity, academic background diversity is an important aspect that is often overlooked by MBA programs.The article cites economics professor Dr. Gauthier Lanot from Keele University, Staffordshire, UK
Professor Gauthier believes schools should not just be selecting ‘usual suspect’ candidates from traditional sectors such as banking, consultancy and industry. They should also be seeking individuals who have backgrounds in areas such as political science, the creative arts, history or philosophy, which will allow them to put business decisions into a wider context(Nov 18, 2009, The Economist).
From the magazines interview with Professor Gauthier and other professionals they try to tackle the question of structural and operational deficiency's in the business world. Building an argument that a more integrated and interdisciplinary background for some MBA students may help the overall strength of business decision making.

While I have been interviewing various Western College Alumni, I have realized that they all possess very succinct problem solving skills. The Western Program has provided its students with the tools to creatively solve and think about problems whether the students focus is in economic development, gender equality, or environmental science the culture of thought at Western paves the way for future success. The open minded and collaborative style of the seminars that make up the core of the Western Program serve as incubators for creativity. Myself being a more business minded student--studying entrepreneurship and marketing-- have found these seminars irreplaceable. This article in The Economist shows there is still a great need, particularly in the business realm for open minded and creative thinkers.

Here is a link to the article feel free to read and comment!

"Conformity and MBA's: Different Strokes for similar folks"

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