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ulations is often overshadowed by this real-worldemphasis, so is the insight provided by our research. Even as our faculty are creating knowledge and finding new solu- tions, our students often pass through our programs with little exposure to professors' best work. Giving students more access to cur- rent research wouldgive them insights andtools for the future that may be unknown andunavailable in any company or industry training program. Furthermore, exposure to faculty research opens students' eyes to the research process itself and demonstrates how they can find new solutions and develop new analytical tools—a valuable skill for managing in an always uncertain future. Unlike for-profit business, a uni- using simulation. Sixteen years later, many business schools eschew simu- lations in favor of throwing students directly into so-called "real-world" experiences. Just as the learning power of sim- real worldas it now is, business schools should provide platforms for experimentation andcreative explo- ration of new management approaches. What better place to put new theories of management into play than in an institution unconstrainedby the needto show quarterly earnings? What better place than business school to give free rein to the ideas of young future managers who will be asked to develop innovations in industry? Let business deliver real-world experience. We must teach students to evaluate what works and what doesn't, absent real- world consequences. We must versity is built to provide an open exchange of ideas. We can present speakers with conflicting views of the future, sharp criticisms of business, wildproposals, andalternative solu- tions. In this rich environment of competing views, which might pres- ent a public relations nightmare for a private firm, students learn to devel- op anddefendtheir own values and solutions to challenges they may face as future managers. In this regard, our "ivory towers" are actually far less insular than many corporate headquarters and provide a great learning benefit to our students. Rather than trying to advance ourselves by following existing busi- ness models, we should be trying out our own new models and new ideas. Rather than recreating the give them freedom to experiment and open up the field to innovative new approaches. Many students may even prefer to wait to get their on-the-job training on the job, where they'll actually get paid for it. should tout our hidden gem. Some critics warn of the proliferation of corporate universities and expanded company training programs. But despite the rising cost of higher edu- cation, we have a clear cost advan- tage in training managers for the vast majority of businesses in the world. Only a few employers can justify committing the immense resources required to develop an internal struc- Finally, as business educators, we the business community when we focus on the essence of who we are as educators and what we do better than anyone else. Let business deliv- er real-worldexperience. We must teach students to evaluate what works and what doesn't, absent real- worldconsequences. We must give them freedom to experiment and open up the fieldto innovative new approaches. Many students may even prefer to wait to get their on-the-job training on the job, where they'll actually get paidfor it. As educators, our primary mis- ture that can deliver the depth and breadth of business knowledge need- ed to educate top managers. Business schools, on the other hand, already have an education infrastructure in place—portions of which may come at virtually no cost—andcan addfur- ther value by offering programs tai- lored to the unique needs of a com- pany. Most companies are better servedby "outsourcing" manage- ment education to us. Business educators can best serve sion should be to broaden the vision of our students, so that they analyze situations andproblems more effi- ciently than any untrainedobserver. We shouldhelp them to see oppor- tunities others do not see; to hear, understand, and effectively address all types of criticism andinput; to solve problems not yet encountered; andto know how to experiment with new solutions. We must teach them to work with tools that haven't yet been tested. More important, we must prepare them to test tools they'll needto invent for themselves. s z Yash Gupta is dean of the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business in Los Angeles. BizEd SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2004 53