Business & Management Studies

Abstract

Role and significance of Higher Education in business, particularly for the MBA program, have continuously evolved, progressed, and adjusted over the years. Major driving forces for this are the ever changing workforce requirements, available technologies, and expectations of the MBA graduates. In the recent past, interest and demand for fulltime residential MBA programs has declined, compelling us to reevaluate and critically reexamine all aspects of an MBA program objectives, content, focus, use of technology, and the delivery mode. The target student profile is also changing, as more and more mature working professionals are returning to academia to upgrade their academic portfolio, as required for more responsibilities and job opportunities. Institutions are addressing this by creating programs that are more flexible, inclusive, and supportive. Also, there is a growing notion that successful entrepreneurs do not need an MBA program, and to address that, academia is adjusting their programs to be more valuable to innovations. Online and virtual education is growing and in demand, and the recent pandemic has made this more visible. This technology based online mode is being evaluated to enable busy professionals to pursue their education without compromising their current job roles and family responsibilities. Online collaboration is opening opportunities for improving soft skill for long term benefits. Demand for tech savvy graduates is one of the trends that is shaping the business education in academia. Big Data and Artificial Intelligence technologies are in demand, more so in developed economies where highly competitive environments force companies to be more inventive in defining value propositions. Business graduates without an understanding of technology and how this can be leveraged for business objectives will be hopelessly stuck in the 20th century and be at a disadvantage in the 21st century. World population is coming closer, and this wave is altering the MBA student mix. A growing number of MBA programs will become blended combining on campus activities with distance learning or even fully digital. All products have a finite lifespan, and, when necessary, this lifespan can and should be extended. The MBA program also must evaluate new growth paths, which could be in a different direction. Failure to do so will lead to obsolescence. This paper looks at the trends in online asynchronous MBA programs and the direction academia is headed in this space.