ESCP Europe

"It all began when the world’s first business school, the European School of Commerce Paris (ESCP), was established in 1819. Criticism notwithstanding, business schools have since continued their path in higher education without facing existential metamorphoses. Covid-19, however, has accelerated business schools’ digital transformation, calling into question the concept of business school itself. Business schools are in a new competitive landscape and profound structural changes seem inevitable. This concise text offers insights into how business schools should rethink their approach to management education, differentiate themselves from new players in the higher education market, and find innovative ways of doing things. The book is a survival toolkit for leadership teams across the world. It examines the rationale of business school and how it has evolved. The purpose of research is explained, and the teaching of management is explored. Kaplan analyzes the current business model in the digital environment. He looks at the business of accreditations and rankings and branding and community-building as strategies to address competition. The book concludes by looking at change leadership at business schools."

List of abbreviations

List of figures and tables

Author biography

Foreword: Business Schools’ Survival Blueprint

1. The Business School’s Rationale and Raison d’Être

1. History Repeating
2. Different, but Same-Same
3. Stakeholder (a)Symmetry

2. Seemingly at Stake: The Business of Business Schools

1. Competition: Alarmingly Augmenting
2. Cursor: Business vs. School
3. Cost: Choice and Complexity

3. Business Schools’ Deep Dive into Digital Disruption

1. Moving Many Mindsets
2. Simplicity of Sense-Making
3. Research < > Teaching Paradigm Shift

4. Management Research: Overrated? Or Underexploited?

1. Initial Idea and Original Purpose
2. Regrettable Reality and Current Predicament
3. Vital Vision and Future Potential

5. Teaching Management: Tough Mission?

1. Time and Experience
2. Science and Practice
3. Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary

6. For What it’s Worth: B-School Accreditations and Rankings

1. Accreditations Analyzed
2. Rankings’ Intention and Impact
3. To Improve, Not to Impress

7. Business Schools: Spot Your Niche and Point of Difference

1. Brand Differentiation and Positioning
2. Brand Coherence and Consistency
3. Brand Advocates and Ambassadors

8. Business Schools’ Survival Based on Bonding and Building

1. Community Building Offsets Competition
2. Lifelong Learning Liaisons, not Study > Work > Retire
3. Buildings: Beyond Mere Brick-and-Mortar

9. Top Leadership’s Trouble in Taking the Lead

1. Vision and Venture
2. Academia and Management
3. (Em)Power and Motivate

Afterword: It’s [about] the Student, Stupid!