Warwick Business School: Ambitious Plans For The Future

Mark Taylor, dean of Warwick Business School

Why would a business school debut a course in human psychology rather than accounting, finance, strategy or marketing? Behavioral science is a subject close to Taylor’s heart. During his time at the financial coalface, he observed the markets’ collapse with a critical eye. “It became clear to me that you couldn’t explain what was driving the markets with an economics text book. There were all sorts of psychologies and behaviours afoot. Leadership is about understanding and influencing people’s behaviour – that’s why behavioural science is our unique focus.” And in Europe, Warwick now leads the field in behavioural science – an interdisciplinary subject which incorporates psychology, economics, sociology and finance to understand why people act as they do. Experienced Professor Nick Chater heads Warwick’s research group and he’s also an advisor within the U.K. government’s advisory “Nudge Unit”.

A second MOOC drew on another specific focus introduced by Taylor – creativity. When he took the helm, Taylor was determined to bring creativity into the MBA curriculum, and has successfully forged relations with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust down the road at Stratford upon Avon. This MOOC, “Shakespeare and His World,” draws on original artifacts from the archives and draws parallels between the playwright’s work and leadership today. “Henry V, for example, is really a play about strategic management, how to implement a project, how to deal with setbacks and so on,” insists Taylor.

And when students begin the full-time MBA, they’re thrown into one of Taylor’s innovations during the first week – a creativity “boot camp” in collaboration with theater professionals. They are asked to reflect upon the relevance of creativity to their own business practice. MBAs this year did a course with a professional stand-up comedian to unleash creativity and explore communication. Later in the year, students put on a Shakespeare performance – and routinely give this exercise outstanding feedback.

So what has King Lear or Antigone to do with an MBA?  The creative process – be it creating a piece of literature or a business concept – has universal similarities, says Taylor. Likewise, students benefit from dramatic skills explained by professional actors, understanding how to influence a board room or give a convincing presentation. “Students cope with this pretty well,” says Taylor. “They understand the relevance to business and management.” That is why Warwick has redesigned its full-time MBA to put creativity and behavioral science at the core of the curriculum.

THE DEAN PREDICTS A DECLINE IN THE FULL-TIME RESIDENTIAL MBA

While he’s reluctant to toll the death bell for lesser business schools, the surge in demand for online courses will probably have an impact on numbers of full-time courses worldwide. Warwick’s own full-time numbers have dropped in half from close to 150 at the height of its program before the financial crash. “I think the residential full-time MBA at the very top level will be concentrated in a smaller number of business schools in various geographical locations.”

And Warwick’s new London location in the Shard – roughly an hour away by train from its Coventry campus – will boost the school’s international appeal, with a base in one of the world’s top finance centers. “A U.K. MBA still tends to be more international than a traditional North American degree – it equips students for a global career.” It’s from the Shard that part-time masters courses will be delivered, as well as some executive education. Full-time MBA students will also spend a week here, and the school might gather its distance learners for face-to-face modules.

While this London presence might pit Warwick against the likes of Cass Business School London and the LSE (London School of Economics), Taylor declares himself unruffled – and points to the rankings. And though the school might be competing against the likes of Oxford and Cambridge, it doesn’t have the 800 odd years of tradition – nor the lucrative endowments or brand prestige – to back it up. At the end of the day, Taylor’s focus on Oxford and Cambridge is less about competition than it is about distancing Warwick from Britain’s other business school options, from the University of Bath and City University to Cranfield School of Management and the University of Strathclyde.

“So we need to be resourceful, flexible and dynamic; we are a non-traditional type of school,” says Taylor. When trawling through applications, admissions staff look for “confidence without arrogance – the school is elite not elitist. When the university celebrates its 50^th anniversary next year, it will celebrate from going from a sheep field to one of the most respected schools in the world.”

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