How will AI change business schools?

• Business schools are now incorporating AI into their curricula to keep their graduates competitive.
• We also encourage the use of AI in the classroom.
• The Columbia University professor said value can be gained by using only “small 15-minute bursts” of AI.

Business schools are going all-in on AI to keep their graduates competitive in the job market.

Many schools are revising their curriculum to keep up with rapid changes in technology. Some schools are also building their own dedicated AI chatbots to help professors teach soft skills to students.

American University's Kogod School of Business plans to “infuse AI into every part of our curriculum” this fall, Dean David Marchik said in a video on the school's website. As part of this effort, Kogod will offer 20 new classes spanning everything from forensic accounting to marketing, according to the Wall Street Journal..

Meanwhile, Hitendra Wadhwa, a leadership professor at Columbia Business School, recently launched LiFT. It's an AI-powered leadership tool that helps students (and others) “plan, prepare, and practice before high-stakes events,” according to a press release at the time of its launch.

LiFT relies on OpenAI's large-scale language model, but has been fine-tuned based on insights Wadhwa has gleaned from students and alumni during his 15 years of teaching. “There's nothing personally identifiable, but when you look at the data, you start generating a lot of statistics from it,” Wadhwa said.

Wadhwa said users can ask the tool for help on how to navigate a difficult meeting or prepare for an emotionally charged conversation. They also have control over the coach's temperament, allowing them to choose a coach with a more empathetic tone or a more direct tone. “Large language models allow you to really customize what that experience looks like.”

According to Wadhwa, students who use the tool for just 15 minutes three to four times a week are less likely to make snap judgments, are more willing to challenge their assumptions, and are more open to opposing viewpoints. They seem to be good at bridging the gaps. “It's just a little 15-minute explosion, a little explosion going to the leadership gym,” he said. “This provides very good early evidence of value.”

The focus is on AI as employers value the technology skills of business school graduates.

Approximately 75% of U.S. employers say technology skills such as AI, machine learning, data visualization, and programming skills are important for business school graduates, according to a 2023 report from the Grade Management Admissions Council . However, less than half of U.S. employers believe that graduates are well prepared. More than 60% of US employers said technology skills will become more important for graduates in the coming years.

But professors aren't just thinking about AI as it relates to students' job prospects. We also want people to see the bigger picture about how AI will impact the future of work.

Ethan Mollick, professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, calls the use of AI a “new skill” and requires all students to use ChatGPT.

This spring, he asked students to automate parts of their jobs and told them to be prepared to feel insecure about their own abilities once they understand AI's capabilities, the magazine reported. “I've never used AI until I had an existential crisis,” Mollick told his students, according to the magazine. “I need three sleepless nights.”

Wadhwa advocates a gentler approach.

“My own feeling on this is that engaging in any activity in life from a place of fear or deprivation only limits the amount of joy you get.”