With more than 14,000 business schools worldwide, what is included in their curricula matters for how the economy and the corporate system are managed. Business schools should be subject to scholarly inquiries and critical reflection. While many studies of business schools examine its general role in the tertiary education system and in society more broadly, this volume examines how one specific theoretical perspective and a normative model derived therefrom were developed and gradually appropriated within the business school setting. This volume demonstrates that agency theory, based on a daring conjecture that firms can be construed as bundles of contacts, rose to prominence in the business school context. It examines how the elementary proposition of agency theory, that the firm is to be considered theoretically and practically as a "nexus of contracts," was never consistent with corporate law and contract law, and it was empirically unsubstantiated. Business schools are under pressure to teach not only practically useful theories and models, but also theories that are also scientifically qualified. Despite having this ambition, certain theories are widely taught despite failing to live up to such declared ambitions, which means that business schools may be criticized for including theories on ambiguous grounds in the curricula. This book examines how business schools seek to honour the ambition to teach both scientifically verified theories and practically useful concepts and models, and how the tensions derived from this duality may be problematic to handle. It will be of interest to researchers, academics, and advanced students in the fields of management education, organizational studies, and legal theory.

A clarion call to shut down the business school!

With more than 14,000 business schools worldwide, what is included in their curricula matters for how the economy and the corporate system are managed. Business schools should be subject to scholarly inquiries and critical reflection. While many studies of business schools examine its general role in the tertiary education system and in society more broadly, this volume examines how one specific theoretical perspective and a normative model derived therefrom were developed and gradually appropriated within the bushiness school setting. This volume demonstrates that agency theory, based on a daring conjecture that firms can be construed as bundles of contacts, rose to prominence in the business school context. It examines how the elementary proposition of agency theory, that the firm is to be considered theoretically and practically as a nexus of contracts, was never consistent with corporate law and contract law, and it was empirically unsubstantiated. Business schools are under pressure to teach practically useful theories and models, but also theories that are also scientifically qualified. Despite having this ambition, certain theories are widely taught despite failing to live up to such declared ambitions, which means that business schools may be criticized for including theories on ambiguous grounds in the curricula. This book examines how business schools seek to honour the ambition to both teach scientifically verified theories and practically useful concepts and models, and how the tensions derived from this duality may be problematic to handle. It will be of interest to researchers, academics, and advanced students in the fields of management education, organizational studies, and legal theory.

When business, government, and other professions fail to meet their responsibilities, it is most often not from an inadequacy of tools, techniques, and theory but from an absence of vision and a failure of leadership that saps all sense of individual or organizational purpose and responsibility. To address this concern, management education must be more than the transfer of skills. It should be a moral endeavor, a passing-on from one generation to the next of a kind of wisdom about responsible moral commitment in complex contexts. Faculty at professional schools have an opportunity and a responsibility to help students connect their capacity for high achievement to a sense of purpose and a set of principles. This book is an explanation of how one business school is trying to place leadership, ethics, and corporate responsibility at the center of its mission. It is a call to rebalance the educational trilogy of values, knowledge, and skills. Can Ethics Be Taught? traces the evolution, strategy, and implementation of the pathbreaking Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Responsibility program at the Harvard Business School. It describes in detail the origins of the initiative for this program, the sophisticated research that went into the approach, timing, and appropriate interventions for working with students and faculty, as well as the design of the program strategy itself. The accomplishments of this program have been substantial; and the lessons drawn from the experience of the Harvard Business School can prove instructive to other professional schools-in such fields as management, public administration, and law-and to corporate leaders as they design and implement their own programs on leadership, ethics, and responsibility.

This book channels the debate on the relevance, value, and future of business schools. Could the Business School be like the Titanic, thought to be unsinkable, but ultimately doomed? And if it sinks, what of it? Or is it a ship which can adapt to the changing waters it sails in? In this book, authors from around the world debate the current and future legitimacy of the Business School from different contexts and perspectives. While some see very little or no hope at all to the future of the Business School as a legitimate centre for research and education, others remain critical, but see a way forward to rectify today’s concerns, such as around sustainability and inclusivity. This book highlights to readers thought-provoking complexities on the Business School playground and its legitimacy.

Business schools are arguably some of the most influential institutions in contemporary society. The research and education they provide set the standard for how future leaders manage local and global organizations - a responsibility requiring continual discussion, development and challenge. This exciting book explores the role of business schools through 3 key dimensions: - How business school legitimacy has been challenged by the recent economic crisis and corporate scandals; - How schools contribute to shaping and transforming business conduct; and - How institutions, past and present, develop their identities to face the challenges presented by the ongoing globalization process. Combining global perspectives from business school Deans, scholars and stakeholders, this book presents a unique discussion of the current and future challenges facing business schools and their contributions to society.

An essential handbook to the unwritten and often unspoken knowledge and skills you need to succeed in grad school Some of the most important things you need to know in order to succeed in graduate school—like how to choose a good advisor, how to get funding for your work, and whether to celebrate or cry when a journal tells you to revise and resubmit an article—won’t be covered in any class. They are part of a hidden curriculum that you are just expected to know or somehow learn on your own—or else. In this comprehensive survival guide for grad school, Jessica McCrory Calarco walks you through the secret knowledge and skills that are essential for navigating every critical stage of the postgraduate experience, from deciding whether to go to grad school in the first place to finishing your degree and landing a job. An invaluable resource for every prospective and current grad student in any discipline, A Field Guide to Grad School will save you grief—and help you thrive—in school and beyond. Provides invaluable advice about how to: Choose and apply to a graduate program Stay on track in your program Publish and promote your work Get the most out of conferences Navigate the job market Balance teaching, research, service, and life