MBA Candidates Give High Marks to Training in Creative Thinking
Preliminary findings of the 2005 Benchmark Study on Creativity and Innovation Curricula Among…
Georgia (Nov 7, 2005) — MBA Candidates Give High Marks to Training in Creative Thinking
Terri Thornton
Abstract
Media contact: Terri Thornton‚ 404−932−4347‚ territhornton@mindspring.com
Preliminary findings of the 2005 Benchmark Study on Creativity and Innovation Curricula
Among American Business Schools reveal that many MBA programs are not keeping up with
the increasing need for creativity training.
“There is a preponderance of popular and scholarly literature supporting the notion
that creative thinking and innovation are becoming the new core competency for corporate
growth‚ and that a company's greatest asset may be its creative capital‚” said Gary
Selden‚ Ph.D.‚ co−director of the Creativity & Innovation Project at the Coles College
of Business at Kennesaw State University‚ which performed the study. “Our survey shows
that business schools have not kept up with this trend‚” Selden added.
Selden and center co−director Harry Vardis recently completed the first−ever survey
of creativity and innovation training among MBA and Executive MBA programs. They received
responses from 117 accredited business schools’ MBA and EMBA program directors nationwide.
Preliminary results show that only about half of the MBA programs teach some type
of elementary creativity and innovation module or course‚ and only one−third of these
business schools have freestanding courses. Those not offering training in creative
thinking cite the lack of trained faculty and limited curriculum time. Many say they
do not see the value of the offering. Yet the program directors report that more than
two−thirds of the students in schools where creativity training is offered rank it
among their top ten most valuable courses.
Ironically‚ the courses are most often offered through the management‚ rather than
marketing departments.
“This is surprising‚ considering the challenge of developing new products and ever
more creative marketing strategies‚” Selden said.
Almost all the business schools offer the courses or modules at the end of the program‚
rather than at the beginning‚ despite anecdotal evidence that the training delivers
the most promising results when offered early in the program.
“Creativity and innovation programs help foster risk−taking‚ collaborative thinking‚
team development and ‘thinking out of the box‚’” Vardis said.
While some business schools are beginning to see the value of such courses‚ many do
not. Among the schools lacking a course or module in creative thinking‚ 59% are likely
to offer a course or module within the next five years‚ but 41% have no such plans.
This is despite findings of a 2003 Harris Interactive survey of recruiters who rated
business schools and student attributes. The results showed that corporate recruiters
felt the top−most criteria recruiters used forselecting schools and graduates were
“communications and interpersonal skills‚” “ability to work within a team” and “problem
solving skills”. These specific attributes are among the goals of creativity and innovation
training.
“While many business schools see the value that creative thinking training offers
in problem−solving‚ teamwork and innovative thinking‚ others still have a long way
to go‚” concluded Vardis.
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Kennesaw State University is a comprehensive‚ residential institution with a growing
student population of 18‚500 from 132 countries. The third largest state university
out of 35 institutions in the University System of Georgia‚ KSU offers more than 55
undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
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Fact sheet
2005 Benchmark Study on Creativity and Innovation Curricula Among American Business
Schools − Preliminary results
53% of traditional MBA programs and 48% of Executive MBA programs have a freestanding
course or module in creativity and innovation.
Of these‚ only one−third have freestanding courses.
Only 2.5% of the responding programs teach creativity and innovation at the beginning
of their programs; 92% offer creativity instruction at the middle or end of their
programs.
~60% of the creativity training is taught through management departments. Only ~3%
of the training is offered through marketing departments.
~67% of students rank creativity instruction among their top 10 courses compared to
all courses taken
~59% of the schools without a creativity course or module are likely‚ to very highly
likely‚ to offer one within five years.
~41% of the schools without a creativity course or module have no plans to offer creativity
training.
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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers more than 150 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its approximately 38,000 students. With 13 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the third-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 92 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status, and one of the 50 largest public institutions in the country. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.
