Jeanne Liedtka of Darden School of Business

A prime task for leading business schools is to prepare executives to meet tomorrow’s challenges in industries where stiff competition and fast-paced disruption are very much the norm. 

That requires a specific focus on innovation and the development of a mindset which understands the essential value of new tech- based solutions and an inventive approach to management.        

“We need to create globally-minded, innovative thinkers,” says professor Jeanne Liedtka, a faculty member at the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business, who was in Hong Kong in June to meet alumni and canvass views on possible enhancements to the school’s MBA and executive education programmes. “Therefore, our emphasis is on preparing leaders who are not only experts in their own field, but who understand the all-round importance of ethics, strategy, innovation and technology in running any modern-day organisation.” 

To this end, the teaching methodology is never to lecture. Instead, classroom sessions are centred on case studies and projects, allowing students to learn from each other, as well as from faculty members. This approach also helps build a sense of community and an esprit de corps among graduates that is not always found in other academic environments. 

“Over a third of our students are from outside the United States, which is very important in our conversations,” Liedtka says. “I don’t think you can be global as a business school if you are sitting in a room with people who are all from the same country. So, diversity in the student body, and the ability to travel and experience other countries and cultures, are key aspects of being able to create global thinkers.”   

For example, Liedtka teaches a week-long class in Barcelona, where a group of MBA students explore design through the city’s art and architecture and are immersed in the local culture. Others head to destinations like South Africa, India and Japan, with this emphasis on “going out” to see the world regarded as fundamental to the curriculum.  

This addresses a specific challenge facing many course leaders.