It’s not unusual to run into a business leader who’s keen on history, watches the History Channel and Ken Burns documentaries, and reads biographies by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
But is there a reason beyond personal interest to consider the past? Should business students study history in college?
As a history professor, I have a vested interest in saying “yes.” But I also have reasons. Here are two:
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Data analysts are in the driver’s seat, as demand for workers is spinning out of control and the stream of qualified applicants can’t keep up. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, by 2018 the demand for deep analytical talent in the U.S could be 50 to 60 percent greater than its projected supply.
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In my previous blog, I put Detroit’s financial condition — or lack thereof — under the microscope. The truth is, Detroit’s story is not unique. Pittsburgh, for example, was on the brink of bankruptcy in 2004. Heavily in debt, the city borrowed $870 million, twice its annual budget at the time. The city teetered on the abyss but didn’t fall in. What happened?
Pittsburgh’s demographics parallel Detroit’s in many ways:
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The billion dollar question: What happened to Detroit? When the U.S. city declared a record-breaking $18 billion bankruptcy in July, Americans looked on in awe. Now municipal workers are left wondering how to survive without a pension and an emergency manager is taking over mayoral duties. But Detroit’s demise didn’t happen overnight.
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On March 14 in Washington, D.C., a group of business school educators and administrators gathered at the National Academy of Sciences to meet with leaders from the private and public sectors and have a conversation on an unlikely topic: climate change education for future business leaders.
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Over the course of our careers, virtually all of us will be faced with an ethical quandary. It could be pressure from a boss to “hit the numbers.” It could be arm-twisting to “be a team player” when dealing with questionable supplier practices. Or it could be our own rationalizations for looking the other way — “Everyone is doing it” or “This isn’t my responsibility.”
Indeed, the world of business can be murky at times.
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The MBA is in trouble. Organized and taught in the same way for generations, the traditional MBA program is increasingly anachronistic.
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What should be the role of the liberal arts in business education? As we witness huge increases in the cost of formal education, every student has a right to ask what the best use of their time and investment in higher education should be. As educators, we owe it to them to justify the mix of professional training and personal enrichment we offer them.
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