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A response to FT 'Moving Targets' article

Written by Guy Pfeffermann Monday, 30 January 2012 15:50

Guy Pfeffermann I am delighted to read Della Bradshaw’s “Moving targets” article (on FT.com today), because it touches on hugely important issues. The vast majority of the world’s population is already living outside the US, Europe and Japan, much of it in mega-cities. These cities are continuing to grow at phenomenal rates.

Meanwhile, most top business schools are in what looks increasingly like an island, albeit still a large island – the “developed” high-income countries. The list of mega- cities that need more quality business schools is even longer than what Bradshaw elicited from her Business Education colleagues: if Mumbai and Shanghai are underserved, how about Jakarta (19 million), Metro-Manila (16 million), Calcutta (15 million), Cairo (14 million), Lagos (13 million), Karachi (12 million) or Dhaka (11 million)? Among the runners up are Lima, Teheran, Bangkok and Bogota.

Top-ranked business schools have made some forays into these huge markets – through partnerships, capacity-building, direct implants and on-line programs – and organizations like the Global Business School Network are working to increase these efforts. But by and large it is increasingly true that the world’s managerial talent pool remains in one place – the “developed” economies – while global economic growth is happening in another – the developing world.

Click here to read the full article from the Financial Times

Guy Pfeffermann is the founder and CEO of the Global Business School Network. Follow him on Twitter @GPfeffermann

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Filling the Pool of Managers for Africa's Growing Economy

Written by Guy Pfeffermann Monday, 30 January 2012 15:30

Guy Pfeffermann Africa’s economic growth, among the fastest in the world, is rapidly draining the pool of local managers. Large firms, entrepreneurs, investors, NGOs, educators, trainers and consultants from across the continent speak of a widespread shortage of knowledgeable managers: of a disconnect between theoretical knowledge and practice; of companies struggling to find the right local people to launch their brands in new markets; of entrepreneurs battling to identify employees to help them drive growth; of NGOs seeing their missions founder because of lack of human capacity. They all cite an acute shortage of quality local managers as a major obstacle to growth.

Well over a million additional managers are needed to sustain the continent’s next phase of development. According to Africa’s employers, we are far from reaching this goal.

It is therefore great news that GBSN, the Association of African Business Schools, the Tony Elumelu Foundation and the Lundin for Africa Foundation have formed a partnership - the African Management Initiative - dedicated to finding practical ways to train the local managers Africa so badly needs. In a first phase the partners have been drafting an initial report: Catalyzing Management Development in Africa: Identifying Areas for Impact, available to the public soon.

I am very excited about GBSN’s involvement in what I expect will grow into a major capacity-building effort in support of local African management education. I shall keep you posted in coming months as the project advances.

Guy Pfeffermann is the founder and CEO of the Global Business School Network. You can follow him on Twitter @GPfeffermann.

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Thanks to Beta Gamma Sigma for an Interesting Evening of Discussion on Business and the Developing World

Written by Guy Pfeffermann Monday, 30 January 2012 09:39

Guy Pfeffermann The Beta Gamma Sigma Washington DC Chapter invited me to speak at a very interesting event on International Business and Emerging Markets last Thursday at George Mason University in Arlington. More than 30 alumni participated, some from Kenya, Benin and other African countries. Among the other panel members was Sebastian Stolorz, who represents the Polish government on the Board of the World Bank Group. He and I had a great discussion about the importance of management training in development. He noted how basic business education had been of the essence in building an entrepreneurial society in Poland after the fall of communism.

Dr. William Beach of the Heritage Foundation saw a gloomy future for young people in the US and Europe, because they would bear a huge debt burden. Despite the gloom – after all economics is the dismal science – this was a most enjoyable evening.

Here is a link to the video of the event http://bgsdc.org/media

Guy Pfeffermann is the CEO of the Global Business School Network. You can follow him on Twitter @GPfeffermann.

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Too much of a good thing?

Written by Lisa Leander Thursday, 26 January 2012 14:03

Lisa Leander

As I read through previous year’s conference evaluations a recurrent complaint from participants arises: You have too many interesting sessions at the same time, I can never choose! In fact, if this were an interview question I would consider it one of those “weaknesses” you are secretly proud to admit. (i.e. Oh I am just SO organized and detail oriented, it really is a horrible weakness.)

As always, this year’s conference will provide ample networking opportunities to build relationships and develop partnerships. However, for those times when you aren’t meeting a fellow colleague over high tea and curry, or chatting on the bus while you visit a local industry site, you’ll once again have some decisions to make. I am “sorry” to say that we are building another exciting and comprehensive agenda full of sessions on this year’s theme “Management Education Powering Development”.

Here is a preview of just a few of the sessions we’ll be offering at GBSN 2012.

Have you ever wondered what is the best way to scope for new student experiential learning projects? How to determine whether they align with your goals and how to incorporate them into your curriculum? Join us for this nuts and bolts session on how to actually secure a project. A business school professor will share her secrets on scoping projects while a former client will share their successes and challenges so you can fully prepare your clients BEFORE they accept a student team.

Are you almost ready for accreditation, but just not quite there yet? Have you wondered how to measure quality without an AACSB or EQUIS measuring stick? Join the session, Going Beyond Accreditation: How to Measure Quality, for a practical discussion on this complicated subject.

How do you know that what you are teaching is actually making a difference? What are the ways to measure the impact? Assessing Impact of Management Programs and Projects will review actual methodologies and surveys carried out by different business schools along with the presentation of survey results.

Curious about the landscape of management education in Africa? We will bring together deans, directors and faculty from Africa, and elsewhere, to learn about what is happening in management education in the region from recent research survey work in the breakout session: Catalyzing Management Education in Africa.

So the dilemma is, which session will you attend? (The bad news… this isn’t all! The full agenda is at www.gbsnonline.or/2012)

For those of you who haven’t figured out how to create an evil twin to attend extra sessions for you, go ahead and complain. If this is the only problem I have to worry about, then I will consider this conference a success.

For more information on the 2012 GBSN Annual Conference and the agenda please visit: www.gbsnonline.org/2012.

Lisa Leander is the GBSN Member Services Officer and she coordinates the GBSN annual conference.

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Case teaching in developing countries - Students driving professors!

Written by Guy Pfeffermann Tuesday, 17 January 2012 11:55

Guy Pfeffermann

A great article on the European Case Clearing House web site (www.ecch.com), Developing countries on the case, shows developing world students eager to acquire practical business skills, and pushing their faculty to offer locally relevant cases.

Why do they need to be pushed? Because "for many faculty, teaching with cases is a new experience." Because researching cases costs the schools money. And in some countries, because case teaching isn’t recognized by higher education government authorities.

Participant-centered pedagogy such as the case method is a powerful tool that brings real-world management decision-making into the classroom. Students become what emerging markets need most: problem-solvers.

Significantly, even though India, Malaysia, Colombia and Rwanda, the countries mentioned in the article, are vastly different in culture and business climate, the demand for case teaching is strong in all of them. One of the biggest issues for educators is training on case teaching and finding cases, so some are getting creative.

"In Rwanda, Dr Gaurav Bajpai, Senior Lecturer at the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology, finds he does not have the capacity to write his own, much needed, local cases from scratch, because of the considerable research time and attention required, however he has developed a creative approach: ‘Taking existing cases and adapting my teaching of them to fit my course modules and the precise needs of my students has proved most effective,’ he says."

Since inception, GBSN has encouraged faculty development in case writing and teaching. It’s heartening to see how cases are increasingly being used around the developing world.

For more on case study method, check out the archives of our “Case Method Month” (September 2011).

Guy Pfeffermann is the CEO and founder of the Global Business School Network.

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Food for Thought

“One of the major drivers, in recent years, has been students’ growing interest in engaging in developmental activities in emerging markets. The best and brightest will pick a business school that offers such opportunities – and this is equally true for top-of-the-line company recruitment. Hence the degree of business school engagement in Africa and other developing regions has become an increasingly important competitive offering.”

- Guy Pfeffermann, "Into Africa", Global Focus, Summer 2008