LEADERSHIP & BUSINESS SCHOOLS

Jim Danko, the Dean of the Villanova School of Business, wrote an opinion piece on the role of business schools in the education of business leaders and the current global financial crisis. It was printed by Forbes. Dean Danko lays out what business schools in general should be addressing at a strategic level. He sets forth what VSB is doing in particular.

He writes that in the undergraduate programs, first year business students must take a year long course on how business works and how business contributes to society. This is done so that students have a context to learn functional skills.

I like that he readily admits that the Villanova approach is not the only approach nor is it the only school attempting to address the situation. He does call on more institutions to look at the teaching content and methodology to be responsive to the 21st century demands.

What schools really need to teach is leadership! Granted it is not easy to define leadership let alone teach it, but it must be done. In our leadership workshops, Gail and I are emphasising doing the right thing over short-term financial gain as a core leadership value and emphasising that leaders are intuitive and have the courage to follow their intuition.

It is necessary for our schools, businesses and organizations to treat all employees, students and participants as leaders and in turn require them to think, speak and act as leaders. Requiring people to act as they think a leader should act raises the productivity level of all.

Are you thinking, speaking and acting as a leader all the time?

Cheers, Mike

(In the interest of full disclosure, I serve on Dean Danko's Advisory Board.)