An MBA, outside the box - Charlotte Business Journal:

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"The average age of students in our executive MBA program isabout 40, and they can be a cynical buncn if we only offer them theor y and equations," says Bill Berry, directoer of the executive MBA programk at the McColl School of Businesxs at . More than 40 studenta are enrolled in its executive MBA and the evening MBA programhas 161. "We are not a theoreticalp shop," says Dan Fogel, dean of Charlotte programs for 'd Babcock School of Management, where 170 students are enrolle d in its eveningMBA program. "We help peopld practice, so relevance is somethingh we worry about allthe time.
" Area business schools take a variet of steps to make their offeringe relevant, such as the use of case studies and the inputt of advisory boards composed of corporate But administrators must balance "contemporary practices with tried-and-true principlex that enable you to analyze anything that comezs up in the future," Fogekl says. "These don't change, and while applications and contentt have tobe fresh, we want to stay away from he adds. "We'll conduct lots of research before we'll change our base principles.
I don't apologizse for using case studies that are 20yearx old, for they are classic examples of these Among them, Fogel explains, are accountin rules and analysis of financial statements. The basics of buildingy a business -- developing a marketing position, implementingv it and defending its marketspace -- don't has its own take on giving studentas hands-on experience to put business principleas into action. In the Student-Managed Investment Fund classmates manage several hundred thousand dollars ofthe university'sz endowment from an actual trading floor on campus.
"Thiz is real money that belongs to the saysRon Veith, director of graduate programs at UNC Charlotte'ws Belk College of Business. He says the classd often outperformsthe market. There are abouyt 300 students inthe school'ws full-time and part-time MBA There's a number of other, more traditionap routes business schools take to keep theire degrees relevant. One way Queens maintains its "pragmatic Berry says, is by hiring faculty with industry experiences and by encouraging teachers to maintainconsulting practices. Otherr colleges do the same. "Consultint keeps our faculty fresh and createsw additional linkages to the peoplr who send students to our Fogel says.
Robert Spear, director of the MBA program at , agreeds with this approach. "By working in the our faculty members stay in touch with and they keep a good finge on the pulse of what is relevanrt and whatis passé." Pfeiffer has more than 500 students in its eveninbg and online programs at its Charlotts campus. Discussing case studies -- eight to 12-pags analyses of real-world business challenges -- is a commohn teaching tool. "Case studies provide a much bette appreciation for the richnesss of a situation than an abstraction created throughcomputerized models," Berry says. "Theuy are a way of teaching outsidethe box.
" At Wake Fogel says, faculty members are encouragedd to write those studies "Our basis is research, and that keeps you inquisitive and questioning. A good university generates knowledge anddisseminatesa it." Administrators also listen to their advisor boards and survey graduates on the usefulness of course But this, too, is not just an academic and administrators use the feedbaci to tweak the curricula. "It's an ongoinvg process," Spear says. At Berry has moved coursez in business strategy and finance to an earlier poinrt inthe two-year program and addec a short course on the historyh of business. "We never teach the same curricul two years ina row.
It createz an administrative nightmare, but it is pedagogically useful. If you teach people to get out ofthe box, you need to get out of it During a discussion of UNC Charlotte's MBA curriculum at an advisoryh board meeting last year, members told Veith they wantedf more emphasis on effective communications and critical decision-making skills. They also wanteed more time spent on businessethicxs -- not in a singlse class, but integrated into every coursd in the program and supplemente by outside speakers. And although international businesz is arequired course, board members thought it, too, was a subjecty that needed to be woven into all courses, whether management or finance.
Local collegew also look at what other schoolsaare doing. Veith says the University of Californisa at Berkeley has addex a requirement that students must demonstrate writing competenc to graduate and provides assistance to helpstudents improve. Although UNC Charlotte hasn't made writing skilld a requirement, it does offer writing workshops and seminars for MBA Sometimes the response to industryh needs can be totallyunew programs. The Belk College will debut a MBA concentration this fall in sports marketingyand management. In addition to the MBA concentration in real estatse financeand development, it will also offet a graduate certificate in the subject.
The university has also gone beyoncd the MBA to respond to the needs of the bankinvg industry by offeringa master'xs in math finance. Pfeiffer takes their responses astep further, offering customized MBA programse for companies that enroll a minimum of 20 Classes are often held at the firm's location.