Re-thinking the MBA

A piece in the NY Times today about Roger Martin at Rotman in Canada and other schools trying to re-think the MBA. Some of it’s interesting, but some of it reminds me of Steve Jobs’ remark about Dell trying to be innovative – it’s like watching Michael Dell trying to dance. The fundamental issue here may not be can the MBA be redesigned to be more effective – but rather is it even necessary at all? The business world has spent so long looking down its nose at other forms of education and modes of thinking and now in the rubble of the past couple of years, MBA programs decide it’s time to give these other ways of thinking their due…It seems that MBA programs are suddenly trying to save their hides as people question the value of two years and all that money for a degree going through an identity crisis.