A Perspective on the Potential of Chinese Business Schools: A Call for Greater Attention to Context, Differentiation, and Developing an Indigenous Model

ABSTRACT Chinese business schools have made impressive progress in improving their quality, but there is still room for improvement. However, they have improved largely by copying the traditional American model of business education at a time when this model is coming under increasing critique for good reasons, including placing great effort on producing much rigorously conducted research, which makes little practical impact. Thus, having learned much from foreign business schools, the time has come for Chinese business schools to be bold and pursue their own model. Such a model should focus more on research that pays increased attention to context, including indigenous research, and is of greater practical relevance. Furthermore, given ongoing change inside Chinese business schools and in their external environment, it may be easier to make needed changes in China. Regarding teaching, business schools are encouraged to move beyond a focus on teaching content well to teaching content in ways that it can be readily applied; do more to develop understanding of how to leverage modern technologies like AI, big data, internet of things, and digitalization; focus more on adjusting teaching to the local context; and focus more on developing innovation/creativity and analytical ability, rather than memorization of facts. 摘要 在过去的三十年中，中国商学院取得了令人咂舌的长足进展。但是从其成长过程来看，他们基本上拷贝了美国的商学教育模式。近年来，美国商学院的模式正在遭到越来越多的抨击，因为这种模式过度强调发表质量高、但与实践脱节的研究论文。作者认为，在认识到国外商学院的弊病之后，中国商学院大胆创造自己独特新模式的时机已经成熟。而且，中国社会大环境和商学院内部小环境的变化，也有利于新模式的建立。这个新的商学院模式应该聚焦于与本土环境接地气、具有重要实践价值的学术研究。从教学的角度，商学院应该鼓励把教学的内容倾斜到可以直接应用于实践的知识；更深地理解用现代科技如人工智能、大数据、万物互联、数字化进行组织管理；更关注把教学内容与本土情境相结合；更注重培养学生的分析能力和创造力，而不是死记硬背的功夫。