Timeless Tradition, Timely Innovation

Story by Hector Chacon and Grace Conard
Illustration by Taylor Callery

Earlier this year, the Tepper School’s 75th Anniversary Academic Symposium brought deans from four of the top business schools together. Isabelle Bajeux-Besnainou (Dean of the Tepper School), Srikant Datar (Dean of Harvard Business School), Madhav Rajan (Dean of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business), and Francisco Veloso (Dean of INSEAD, in Fontainebleau, France) shared their visions for the future during a panel discussion, “Disrupt or Be Disrupted: Business Education in the Age of AI.” After the symposium, we talked with each dean to learn what else they had to say about navigating a new era of business education in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).

The Speed Of Change Demands A Balance

Dean Datar and Dean Veloso compared the current pace of technological innovation to that of the Industrial Revolution. “We are in an Intelligence Revolution,” Veloso says, “Where technology is developing faster than it is being implemented, and it is a constant struggle to adapt quickly to the change.”

Although the deans recognized that education is unlikely to keep up with industry, there is pressure to maintain the traditions that have historically brought them success and to incorporate the latest, greatest offerings into their education to stay relevant leaders in their field. There must be a balance of both tradition and innovation. As Datar, a former Tepper School faculty member, noted, “There are timeless things you need to do, and timely things you need to do.”

The shift is already underway. INSEAD, for example, is leveraging its longtime tradition of business simulations. “They are now layering generative AI atop these simulations,” said Veloso, “To make them feel more realistic, like you are really at a board meeting.” Similarly, at Harvard Business School, Datar said, “Students still prepare cases each day, but they are encouraged to use AI and to leverage tutor and feedback bots to deepen learning.”

Tech Is A Prism, Not A Silo

“Tech is no longer an industry separated from all others,” Dean Rajan said, “It has been hardwired and injected into every single aspect of our lives. Every industry is now a tech industry — especially finance.”

The deans agreed: As new technologies emerge, it is not just about adding new special topics courses. Schools must reconsider not only what they teach, but how they teach.

The Tepper School’s pre-pandemic start in online learning, for instance, enabled the school to quickly scale its online MBA and MSBA programs while others were still adapting. Similarly, schools must now consider how they want to teach and utilize the evolving technology within their programs amid the rapidly changing AI landscape. As Rajan suggested, “AI is a prism through which to pass education and from which solutions to currently unsolvable tasks may emerge.”

With a longstanding commitment to interdisciplinary learning, the Tepper School is no stranger to leveraging different perspectives on problem-solving. It was the first school to apply a scientific approach to analyzing problems and making decisions, leading to the field of management science. Veloso, a former professor at Carnegie Mellon’s College of Engineering, spoke on the collaborative spirit at the university, “The focus is on addressing problems … it doesn’t matter where you sit.” Rajan, a former student of the Tepper School (then the Graduate School of Industrial Administration), described his experience: “The place I learned how to think.”

“We have made AI a central pillar across all dimensions of our work: research, education, and operations,” said Dean Bajeux, “That includes new courses and curriculum focused on AI and its applications, as well as a growing body of faculty research. We are also using AI internally to improve our operations, our students’ support, and how we think about the future of business education.” Harvard Business School recently launched Data Science and AI for Leaders, a required course that not only teaches students the theory of AI but also provides them with a tutor bot and an AI data scientist they can use to conduct complex analyses without needing to program in R or Python. Datar noted, “If leveraged correctly, AI enhances understanding—enabling students to apply a broad range of analytical techniques in approaching complex problems.”

Leadership To Drive A Sustainable Future

As the analytical function of leadership shifts to AI, the uniquely human traits such as curiosity, imagination, and empathy become paramount. “As technology accelerates, it is our uniquely human traits that will set leaders apart.” Bajeux said, “We aim to foster curiosity, imagination, and the ability to connect seemingly unrelated ideas. Our priority remains preparing adaptive, ethical leaders through hands-on, immersive learning.” There is a growing demand for human skills, particularly leadership skills, which will drive a sustainable future.

At the symposium, Rajan argued that “the primary customer of a business school is society.” Veloso agreed. “The student is the product — the ‘agent of change’ in society,” Bajeux emphasized the importance of ethics: “[Students] will need to bring a strong moral compass to an increasingly data- and AI-driven world, ensuring that the human element is never lost in the pursuit of innovation.” Business education must prepare leaders who will navigate uncertainty with empathy and design systems with long-term social and environmental responsibility in mind. Only then can future leadership understand the greater impact of decisions.

Datar noted that new skills would be needed to address the accelerating impact of technology on business and the challenges facing society today, and stressed the importance for students of developing not just their knowledge, but also their judgment, in making wise decisions as leaders. Rajan encouraged students to take courses outside the business school “to gain exposure to different ethical and philosophical perspectives,” and as Bajeux reiterated, “Interdisciplinary collaboration is key, where purposefully leveraging different perspectives enables leaders to create a more nuanced understanding and thoughtful strategy.”

As industry, academia, and society at large navigate this intense period of rapid technological change, the deans stress the importance of lifelong learning and adaptability. Business schools must instill in students a combination of durable leadership skills, the curiosity to seek out new perspectives, and the ability to think critically about applying new technologies. “At the Tepper School,” Dean Bajeux stated, “We believe the future of business comes from asking the right questions, seeing new possibilities, and imagining bold solutions.”