Advocating for the Sustainable MBA
For School of Business associate dean, Satinder Dhiman, rethinking the MBA degree to incorporate sustainability isn鈥檛 a theoretical exercise. As he sees it, it鈥檚 a business鈥�-and societal-鈥搃mperative.
鈥淏usinesses are following the typical model in which the entire focus is on maximizing shareholder value,鈥� Prof. Dhiman says. 鈥淲hen we follow that model in an unbridled manner, we do not take into account the total cost of a business to the environment. The mindset that rationalizes the business model without paying attention to the social, economic and emotional lens, the philosophical and spiritual footprint, dooms us to something that is irreversible.鈥� 听Instead, he says, businesses 鈥� and business educators — need to look at 鈥渙ur shared destiny.鈥�
鈥淲hen I say 鈥榳e,鈥� I mean all stakeholders — not just shareholders, but society at large,鈥� he says. 听鈥淲e need to look at public policy. We need to consider future generations. We need to take that holistic view. We need to consider our total footprint. 听Businesses are still very far from that mindset.鈥�
Prof. Dhiman embraces the World Mission on Environmental Development鈥檚 1987 definition of sustainability (鈥渟ustainable economic development means meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their needs鈥�) and suggests that the transformation begins with business schools raising awareness, 鈥渕uch as we did when we began preparing our leaders for ethical challenges after the Enron debacle.鈥�
鈥淲e realized then that profit is not the be-all and end-all of business,鈥� he recalls. 听鈥淭he focus needs to be on the total impact of the business and the need for everyone involved — not just R&D, not just top leadership — to be looking at his or her behavior/contribution. Businesses must be harbingers of evidence-based, not opinion-based, research about sustainability — empirical, replicable research that shows beyond doubt that the way things are can鈥檛 be sustained.
听鈥淚n reflecting on the next generation of business professionals, we鈥檙e talking about a 鈥榬enovated鈥� MBA, one that integrates sustainability, plus a little bit more,鈥� Prof. Dhiman suggests. 听鈥淚t鈥檚 not a class or two here and there. 听Addressing sustainability should become the norm across the MBA curriculum鈥攖he warp and woof of business education, whether marketing, leadership or finance. 听How about sustainable accounting practices? How about sustainable investing? How about sustainable luxury?鈥�
Indeed, in his view, sustainability shouldn鈥檛 be limited to the School of Business. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that should resonate with all schools,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 cannot imagine (the School of) Architecture saying, we don’t want sustainable buildings. I can’t imagine Design people saying, we don’t want sustainable design. Sustainability R us!鈥�
鈥淚 have no doubt that teaching and education can make this transformation happen,鈥� Prof. Dhiman says. 鈥淐hange always occurs in this way, within the halls of academia where we nurture and cultivate leaders. Leaders who are difference-makers; leaders who touch future.鈥�
Consider his 2016 summer sustainability class, which included students from different majors – six from architecture and 10 studying business, and different cultures, seven from the Middle East. Among other things, they explored whether meat-eating was sustainable or whether a plant-based diet was preferable. Students did research, shared videos and presented evidence. Six became vegetarian at the end of seven weeks, two from cultures where meat is a significant part of almost every meal. Change happened.
And that, he offers, goes to the very mission of higher education. 鈥淢y role as a teacher and an administrator is to help create a sense of urgency,鈥� Prof. Dhiman says. 鈥淎 business cannot be a business in the old school sense of 鈥榯he business of business is business.鈥� We need a different kind a vision, one that places sustainability at its heart.鈥� After all, we only have one planet to live; let鈥檚 cultivate it together!
__
Dr. Satinder Dhiman 鈥� associate dean of the School of Business, MBA Chair and director and Professor of Management — teaches MBA-level courses on organizational behavior, ethical leadership, and strategy. He has given 50 Invited Keynotes, Commencement Addresses, Plenary Sessions, Distinguished Key Guest Lectures and Creative Workshops鈥攏ationally and internationally. He is author, co-author, and co-editor of 17 books, the most recent of which include Holistic Leadership: A New Paradigm for Today鈥檚 Leaders (Palgrave, 2017) and Gandhi and Leadership: New Horizons in Exemplary Leadership (Palgrave, 2015). His recent co-edited works, with Dr. Joan Marques, include Spirituality and Sustainability (Springer, 2016) and Leadership Today (Springer, 2016). His forthcoming book, Conscious Consumption (Routledge, 2019), will explore the ethics and sustainability of a vegan and whole food plant-based diet. In August this year, Professor Dhiman and Dean Marques will publish a major reference work on engaged sustainability (Springer, 2018).