October 15, 2007 4:50 PM

Not your father's MBA
Posted by Douglas Eisenhartat 4:50 PM

We all know Boston is a hotbed of higher education. Many also know that a number of institutions in the area also have a presence in and a commitment to management education.

But the times they are a changin' in the b-school world:

Autumn in the Boston area means leaves turning, students returning and, this year, the leaders at business schools churning.

A new crop of educators, including a high-profile power broker and pair of Bay State natives coming home from Philadelphia and Silicon Valley, are working to re-brand their schools and reshape business education in an increasingly competitive market.
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Their approaches vary, from bringing students into the workplace to customizing MBA programs to training global teams in corporate responsibility, but all struggle to remain relevant at a time of rapid economic change. "Schools are trying to redefine what business leaders need to know," said Rakesh Khurana, associate professor in organizational behavior at Harvard Business School.