Another catching up?

Business education, mainly in MBA program, always attract attentions from media and business world.

Even language of instruction may be a barrier for businesses programs and schools in non-English countries to be considered in those worldwide rankings, such as those in Financial Times, Business Week, The Economist, or The Wall Street Journal. Most programs in non English speaking countries developed English taught program or cooperate with schools in other English spoken countries. However, it is not to say there is no market for those non-English taught programs

While booming of MBA programs in China has reported by Fortune, Business Week, it is quite reasonable to doubt where is the position of business education in Taiwan? Apparently, both parties have similar cultural and language background, and the history for Taiwan in having capitalism market and business education is longer than China. Why can’t business education in Taiwan take a leader position or take a part for leading the development of business education in China?

One can use following aspects to answer this question:

1. Apparently, political argument makes these two market system can’t dialog as normal as with other markets. Therefore, business schools in Taiwan cannot have more proactive ways to entry into China market.

2. Is business education in Taiwan or leading figures in business education have no intention to play as the leading role for booming up business education in so called great Chinese market, but hand over that leading position to Hong Kong, Singapore or elsewhere?

It is certainly that there are some people work as the individual to participate the development of business education in China, whether through funding support likes Guanghua School of Management, Peking Univ., or taking the visiting or permanent positions.

Another interesting issues is about the development of professional organizations in business and management education, or called as developing the professionalism for business academic in great Chinese context. Again, one may claim Taiwan may also lose its position to take the lead for developing professionalism for business and management education in the region, comparing with the aggressive development of IACMR, for instance.

Even Chinese Management Association has presented for years, what it has done is more like an consulting service provider rather than the community of practices both for academic and practitioners.

So, one may argue does Taiwan have any academic professional organization in the field of business and management, run like IACMR or EIASM

Or we should hold back our critics , because CMA also published some academic journals and workshops occasionally?

Of course one can not ignore efforts of individual scholars for promoting professional development in the region. However, could management and business education in Taiwan can find back its leading position or play a more proactive role in academic community in the regional and/or worldwide scale?

Reference

Bennis, W. G., & O’ Toole, J. 2005. How business schools lost their way. Harvard Business Review, May, 96-104