Saturday 1 June 2013

Antiquated & to be Annihilated? Is an On-line Revolution Brewing in Business Education?

We hear more and more talk about how the traditional model of business schools will be annihilated by the disruptive innovation of on-line education, so-called MOOCs (massive open on-line courses). An increasing number of voices can be heard to proclaim that business schools with their lectures and study groups are doomed, antiquated, overpriced, and that people who doubt that are just in denial and one day will wake up finding themselves obsolete and plain wrong.

And, arguably, case studies on the effects of disruptive innovation conducted in industries ranging from airlines and newspapers to photography and steel mills, have shown that often the established players in the market are initially in denial, slow to react, suffering from hubris and, eventually, face crisis and extinction.

Yet, when it comes to on-line education, and its potentially disruptive influence on higher education, including business schools, I doubt that on-line education will replace face-to-face lectures and study groups.

The arguments that people use to proclaim that traditional business schools will be replaced by on-line education include the notions that it is much cheaper, can be more easily accessed by a much wider audience, and customers (students) can access the materials wherever and whenever they want.

And this just reminds me of the printing press.

Oral lectures have been around since the times of Socrates and Plato. I am sure when the printing press was invented and became more widespread and accessible, an increasing number of voices could be heard to proclaim that such lectures and schools were going to be replaced by books. That is because books are much cheaper, can be more easily accessed by a much wider audience, and students can access them wherever and whenever they want. But they did not replace face-to-face lectures and study groups.

And that is because books and on-line educational resources offer something very different than the traditional lectures and school community. They are complements rather than substitutes. Of course the arrival of the printing press quite substantially changed schools and education; business schools without books would be very different than they are today. Hence, it would be naïve to think that on-line resources are not going to alter traditional business school education; they will and they should. Business schools better think hard how they are going to integrate on-line education into their courses and curricula.

But this means that it offers opportunities rather than a threat. And research on the effects of disruptive innovation – for example in newspapers – has also shown that established players who treat the arrival of a new technology as an opportunity, rather than as direct substitute, are the ones that are most likely to survive and prosper.

Freek Vermeulen is an Associate Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the London Business School. In 2012, BestOnlineUniversities elected him number 1 in their global list of “top 100 web-savvy professors”. You can find him on-line at www.freekvermeulen.com and at @Freek_Vermeulen. He regularly blogs for Forbes, the Harvard Business Review and The Ghoshal Blog.

6 comments:

AAT CO UK said...

Hats Off!!! to your amazing blog. Your blog content is mind-blowing. It is very useful blog for professional students. Thanks for sharing your blog.

T. Nieminen said...

Maybe, but that tells us at least as much about the business school education as it does about learning technologies.

In engineering, you can open up MOOCs and people who have the necessary prerequisites can actually gain useful knowledge. What's more, you can't keep that knowledge secret, so you might as well disseminate it as effectively as possible.

In business schools, the most impactful benefits to graduates come, not from learning per se, but from the ability to say they have gotten into and graduated from Harvard/Wharton/etc. and from the networks they have built there. And getting into a brand-name business school might actually add more value to the individual than graduating from there. That's because you've been pre-screened and classified as a "suitable" individual in terms of abilities and personal qualities.

Seth Godin joked already over ten years ago about building the most prestigious business school ever: Only one truly exceptional person accepted per year, tuition one million per year, no lectures, but all the introductions and contacts possible.

MOOC builders mistake learning from teachers as the only benefit of attending an university. In reality, there are multiple motives for and benefits to it. But various universities and programs differ in this regard. In engineering, if you can design a demonstrably better mousetrap it doesn't matter where (or if) you graduated, or if you got your skills from watching video lectures. In professions where "fitting in" is more important, belonging to the right alumni club will still count for a long time forward.

Anonymous said...

NO UPFRONT PAYMENTS INVOLVED
Hello,

What are your Financial needs?
We give out loans from a minimum of $5,000.00 to a maximum of $10,000,000.00 with comfortable duration that ranges from 1 to 30 years at a very reduced interest rate of 3%.

Do you need a business loan?
Do you need a personal loan?
Do you want to buy a car?
Do you want to refinance?
Do you need a mortgage loan?

Do you need a huge capital to start off your business proposal or expansion? Have you lost hope and you think there is no way out, and your financial burdens still persists?
Please do not hesitate to contact us for possible business co-operation

Contact us via email: (mikerobertloans1@gmail.com)

Unknown said...

When It Comes To Personal Loans * Business Loans etc., Contact Us Today Via E-mail: SuiteCapitals@gmail.com ( SuiteCapitals@post.com ) It’s Imperative To Work With The Right Company. We Help You Get The Best Rate For Your Business Loan Regardless Of Your Credit!!! If You Are Looking For A Personal Loans * Business Loans etc., You Have Come To The Right Place. Contact Us Today For More Information Through Via E-mail: SuiteCapitals@gmail.com ( SuiteCapitals@post.com )

Do You Need A Loan To Consolidate Your Debt At 1.0%? Or A Personal Loans * Business Loans etc. Interested Parties Should Contact Us For More Information Through Via E-mail: SuiteCapitals@gmail.com ( SuiteCapitals@post.com )

We Offers Financial Consulting To Client, Companies Seeking Debt / Loan Financing And Seeking For Working Capital To Start A New Business Or To Expand Existing Business. Interested Parties Should Contact Us For More Information Through Via E-mail: SuiteCapitals@gmail.com ( SuiteCapitals@post.com )

Kindly write us back with the loan information;
- Complete Name:
- Loan amount needed:
- Loan Duration:
- Purpose of loan:
- City / Country:
- Telephone:
- How Did You Hear About Us:

Do You Need A Loan To Consolidate Your Debt At 1.0%? Or A Personal Loans * Business Loans etc. Interested Parties Should Contact Us For More Information Through Via E-mail: SuiteCapitals@gmail.com ( SuiteCapitals@post.com )

We Offers Financial Consulting To Client, Companies Seeking Debt / Loan Financing And Seeking For Working Capital To Start A New Business Or To Expand Existing Business. Interested Parties Should Contact Us For More Information Through Via E-mail: SuiteCapitals@gmail.com ( SuiteCapitals@post.com )

Paul David said...

We are direct providers of Fresh Cut BG, SBLC and MTN which are specifically for lease/sales, our bank instrument can be engage in PPP Trading, Discounting, signature project(s) such as Aviation, Agriculture, Petroleum, Telecommunication, construction of Dams, Bridges, Real Estate and all kind of projects. We do not have any broker chain in our offer or get involved in chauffeur driven offers. We deliver with time and precision as sethforth in the agreement. Our terms and Conditions are reasonable, below is our instrument description. The procedure is very simple; the instrument will be reserved on euro clear to be verified by your bank, after verification an arrangement will be made for necessary bank documents and stock testing expenses, the cost of the Bank Guarantee/Standby Letter of Credit will be paid after the delivery of the MT760, Description OF INSTRUMENTS: 1. Instrument: Bank Guarantee (BG/SBLC) 2. Total Face Value: Eur/USD 5M MIN and Eur/USD 10B MAX (Ten Billion EURO/USD). 3. Issuing Bank: HSBC Bank London, Barclay's bank London,Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank Frankfurt. 4. Age: One Year, One Month 5. Purchasing Price: 32% of face value plus 2% commission fees Leasing Price: 4% of Face Value plus 1% commission fees. 6. Delivery: Bank to Bank swift. 7. Payment: MT-103 or MT760 8. Hard Copy: Bonded Courier within 7 banking days. We are ready to close leasing/Buying with any interested client in few banking days, if interested do not hesitate to contact me Name : PAUL DAVID Email: pauldavid20001@gmail.com Skype: P_david123@outlook.com whatsapp:+447921551354

Awad Elsyed said...

تنظيف مجالس بسكاكا

تنظيف كنب بسكاكا

تنظيف خزانات بسكاكا

تنظيف شقق بسكاكا

تسليك مجاري بسكاكا

مكافحة حشرات بسكاكا

نقل عفش بسكاكا

عزل خزانات بسكاكا

عزل اسطح بسكاكا

كشف تسربات بسكاكا

غسيل مكيفات بسكاكا