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effort, especially in MBA programs. For example, AACSB standards state that the management of curricula requirements should ensure "learn- ing experiences in communication abilities" in undergraduate pro- grams. It also states that MBA pro- grams "presuppose the base of gen- eral knowledge and skills appropriate to an undergraduate program." In other words, AACSB accreditation sets virtually no real standards for communication training in MBA programs and requires no true meas- urement of the communication skills of MBAs. Is there any hope for this gap to be narrowed? One might assume that the overwhelming use of PowerPoint in the classroom might make the prob- lem less noticeable. Unfortunately, PowerPoint seems to reinforce a decline in oral communication skills as cogent arguments are reduced to a few slides of brief bullet points. Furthermore, the rapid rise of e-mail messages has resulted in even more turgid and incomprehensible writing among business school students. Business schools that wish to give communications skills the attention they deserve need to turn to several strategies to make the subject a truly integrated part of their programs: s Don't hire tenure-track faculty to teach business communications unless there also is an effort to help those individuals obtain tenure. s If faculty are in tenure-track positions, recognize their research contributions. Realize that strong research in business communications is worthy of merit when it comes time for tenure consideration. s Don't use faculty from the English or communications depart- ments to teach business communi- cations courses, unless absolutely necessary for financial reasons. Hire adjunct or professional faculty instead, preferably in full-time positions. s Create a clear strategy to help faculty and students realize the importance of business communica- tion skills. Students should never hear professors in other courses implicitly or explicitly diminish the value of the "softer" business school courses. The few successful business communication programs also require students to do more than just write papers and give oral presenta- tions for instructors—they require students to put those skills to work in consultations and competitions, as well as in the classroom. For example, the School of Business at The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, replaced a tenure-track faculty member in communications with a full-time professional instructor and developed a required course in business communications for all of its MBA students. The school then set up a competition where the best teams from each MBA class made comprehensive presentations to the top executives on the school's advi- sory board, thus insuring that stu- dents were motivated to pay atten- tion in the classroom. The Kenan- Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has an eight-person communications team, including several assistant professors in com- munications, to send a strong mes- sage that the school believes this subject is important. The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, requires that all first-year students take a communications course, which is creatively titled "Informing and Influencing Business Audiences" rather than simply "Business Communications." The title alone helps students realize the subject is something they'll need throughout their careers. Fuqua also utilizes its communications courses to support a strong student-run consulting program to area businesses. Finally, while the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia only requires a mini- course in communications for first- year MBA students, students are not allowed to waive this course for any reason. The moral of this story is that, while top-tier business schools may be giving communications training a more prominent place in their cur- ricula, the vast majority of business schools do not. At the moment, most current business students and recent graduates are on their own. They must reach outside of business schools and seek out other resources, from Toastmasters to con- tinuing education courses, if they wish to improve their verbal and written skills. That alone should be the incen- tive business schools need to add more faculty positions in business communications. The time has surely come for all business schools to listen to what employers and recruiters have been requesting for so long. It's time for business schools to fill the communications gap.s z Al Page is a former dean of four schools, including the Bloch School of Business at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He is cur- rently a professor of management, finance, and communications at UMKC. BizEd NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2005 53