Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/58915
The MBA That Delivers The part-time MBA landscape is fundamentally changing—location and duration, cost and content. mg business periodicals. Also, we developed a limited num- ber of PowerPoint slides that could be used in class each week. We not only found these meetings valuable in terms of keeping the course on track, but in keeping ourselves engaged as academics. Meeting the Challenge The first sessions of "Managing in the Global Economy" were offered in fall 2004, and more than 180 students enrolled in the first six sections. Course evaluations were outstanding. One student wrote: "I was not keeping up much with what is happening in the world when I started the MBA program, and this class was an eye-opener for me. I am reading the WSJ almost on a daily basis, and I keep up with news. And the best thing is that I find it all fascinating." The first students to take "Managing in a Global Econo- my" eventually enrolled in the capstone strategy course for the MBA program. Instructors found these students are more engaged in the class and more active in pursuing the global angles to the cases discussed in the capstone course. Not only do they consider the issues in the case at hand, but they ex- tend the implications of the decision making to other areas of the organization. In short, after finishing the introductory course, they are more deeply engaged with the problems and the solutions—just as we hoped. We know, however, that we will need to constantly refresh the course to keep it relevant. We continue to hold weekly LEADS THE FIELD in creating innovative solutions for part-time students: BABSON Fast Track MBA • Nationally ranked MBA taught in 24 months • Collaborative, team-based learning environment • Unique combination of Web-based and classroom learning Evening MBA • Nationally ranked MBA taught in 36 months • Team-taught "cluster courses" encourage learning from multiple perspectives • Career Contexts help students design their electives with a career focus The MBA That Delivers www.babson/edu/mba TH E BABSON M BA FOR WOR KI NG P ROF E S S IONALS The #1-ranked MBA in entrepreneurship by U.S. News & World Report for the 12th straight year. meetings to discuss what worked in the previous class and what might be needed in the next class. In addition, we still anticipate that we eventually will expand our roster of teach- ers, which will also affect the composition of the course. Keeping the curriculum current and relevant is clearly one of the challenges facing business schools today. It is our hope that "Managing in the Global Economy" will help students expand their understanding of international business before they enter the marketplace. As another first-year MBA stu- dent told us: "For me, the most beneficial aspect of the class is the type of assignments that require us to think critically, synthesize information from a variety of sources, and learn how to make decisions based on incomplete and sometimes contradictory information. By taking this class during the first semester of my MBA program, I learn how to see things, not through a silo, but at the strategic and big-picture level." Nonetheless, we know that, as global business faces rapid changes, our cornerstone course must change along with it. We must constantly draw on fresh, current material from a wide variety of sources, and seek perspectives from a diverse group of faculty and students, to truly prepare our students for managing in a global economy. ■ z Alfred Mettler is an assistant professor of finance, Bill Bogner and Susan Houghton are associate professors of managerial sciences, and Chris Lemley is a marketing instructor at Georgia State University's J. Mack Robinson College of Business in Atlanta. BizEd JULY/AUGUST 2006 33