Page 767 - The Case Lab Book

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How Interactive Cases Can Help the Besieged Business

School’s Business Model

James G. Gallagher, E. Fordyce and D.P. Stevenson

ABSTRACT
The landscape of MBA courses is changing as the application of technology
impacts on course delivery. The result may be that fifty percent of business
schools could be out of business within ten years this at a time when the number
of MBA candidates is falling. Innovation in online technology is opening the door
to new forms of learning. How then will these views impact upon the case method
and its position in teaching? The case study and the case method hold a
tremendous potential for bringing life, reality, credibility and utility to the
pedagogic process. On-line, interactive, multimedia case studies are still in their
infancy but their potential for melding into the changing landscape of the MBA is
extremely high. They provide both a vehicle and platform for developing active
self-learning. However, this is not without a cost which both lecturer and
institutions may not be willing to meet.

Field of Research: Business Education

INTRODUCTION

When Francois Ortalo-Magné wrote, “The business model of business schools is under
assault. At a time when the number of MBA candidates is falling, innovation in online
technology is opening the door to new forms of learning experiences, offered at a price
much lower—and a scale much greater—than in standard brick-and-mortar classrooms.
Much of the disruption is focused on exploiting the multitude of new ways that overcome
distance to enable people to deliver knowledge, collaborate, and learn—from anywhere,
at any time.” He was reinforcing Rich Lyons view that "Half of the business schools in this
country (UK) could be out of business in 10 years—or five......... many business schools
derive a large share of their revenue from part-time and executive MBA programs.
Students in these types of programs keep their jobs (and associated earnings) during
their education, and therefore face a lower opportunity cost than full-time MBA students.
They are also often constrained by their jobs to a limited set of schools located within an
easy commute.” He argued that “online technology changes the geography of competition
by allowing the very best business schools to expand their reach, drawing upon top