International: Final Version of Controversial Report on Business School Research Issued

The report was release on February 21. The final version of the report follows the August 2007 release of the Draft for Comments, which resulted in feedback from nearly 1,000 business deans, directors, and professors.

The AACSB International Board of Directors acceptance of the report indicates that the Task Force has completed its charge. Over time, the Board intends to prioritize and address all of the recommendations with the guidance of an appointed champion and an implementation task force representative of AACSB membership and other stakeholders.

Among the seven recommendations in the report, the one to move AACSB accreditation toward evaluating the impact of intellectual contributions generated the most feedback. Though few respondents questioned the recommendations logic, many believed it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to implement. The final report acknowledges this challenge, and also includes several additional revisions to ensure that the views of the Task Force are clearly and consistently interpreted.

The Board will ask the new implementation task force to develop pilot programs that explore the feasibility of certain recommendations. The task force will also be expected to address the potential role of AACSB as an advocate for different and innovative ways of looking at business school research, a key theme of the report. The implementation task force will convene in mid-2008. Any recommendations from the implementation task force affecting the AACSB accreditation standards must then be vetted through an approval process that culminates with a vote by all AACSB accredited schools.

We know that business school research, in its various forms, has and will continue to advance management theory, practice and education says Task Force chair Joseph A. Alutto, of The Ohio State University. We also know that AACSB, business school faculty, and university administrators have a responsibility to take steps that improve both the value and visibility of business school research; this report is a critical first step toward that important endeavor.

AACSB International, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, estimates that each year accredited business schools spend more than 320 million USD to support faculty research and another half a billion dollars supports research-based doctoral education.

According to AACSB President and CEO John J. Fernandes, the widespread interest in the report is a strong indicator that the recommendations within the report are a challenge worth exploring. Implementing some of the recommendations will be difficult, but the management education community should not be paralyzed by that challenge, he said. Rather, we must continue the constructive dialogue that has already begun as we explore the efficacy and feasibility of the recommendations.