March 29, 2024

Richardson Column in The Free Lance-Star

College of Business Dean Lynne Richardson

College of Business Dean Lynne Richardson

College of Business Dean Lynne Richardson’s weekly column in The Free Lance-Star discusses whether to make big announcements when changes still need to be made. Read THE BOLD STATEMENT.

 

I HAVE spent a lifetime in higher education, first as a student, then as a professor and administrator. We are not known in higher education for our ability to make changes quickly. Most of the time, it doesn’t have negative consequences, but sometimes it can.

A business school (we’ll call it Big City U) in a very competitive market was facing a downturn in its MBA enrollments about 20 years ago. Recognizing that the curriculum was a big reason why students were not choosing their school, the faculty began talking about what they could do to solve the problem. And they talked some more. A year or so went by, and no changes had been made. Read more.