{"id":3784,"date":"2025-11-16T15:31:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T20:31:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/?page_id=3784"},"modified":"2025-11-19T11:22:42","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T16:22:42","slug":"timeless-tradition-timely-innovation","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/timeless-tradition-timely-innovation\/","title":{"rendered":"Timeless Tradition, Timely Innovation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Timeless Tradition, Timely Innovation<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Story by Hector Chacon and Grace Conard
Illustration by Taylor Callery<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Isabelle Bajeux-Besnainou, Dean of <\/strong>
the Tepper School of Business<\/strong><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this year, the Tepper School\u2019s 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, \u201cDisrupt or Be Disrupted: Business Education in the Age of AI.\u201d 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).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Click Here To View Excerpts From The 1976 Novus Magazine<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Speed Of Change Demands A Balance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Francisco Veloso, Dean of INSEAD,
in Fontainebleau, France<\/strong><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Dean Datar and Dean Veloso compared the current pace of technological innovation to that of the Industrial Revolution. \u201cWe are in an Intelligence Revolution,\u201d Veloso says, \u201cWhere technology is developing faster than it is being implemented, and it is a constant struggle to adapt quickly to the change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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, \u201cThere are timeless things you need to do, and timely things you need to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"\"\n\n\n\n

Tech Is A Prism, Not A Silo<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Madhav Rajan, Dean of the University<\/strong>
of Chicago Booth School of Business<\/strong><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTech is no longer an industry separated from all others,\u201d Dean Rajan said, \u201cIt has been hardwired and injected into every single aspect of our lives. Every industry is now a tech industry \u2014 especially finance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Tepper School\u2019s 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, \u201cAI is a prism through which to pass education and from which solutions to currently unsolvable tasks may emerge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2019s College of Engineering, spoke on the collaborative spirit at the university, \u201cThe focus is on addressing problems \u2026 it doesn\u2019t matter where you sit.\u201d Rajan, a former student of the Tepper School (then the Graduate School of Industrial Administration), described his experience: \u201cThe place I learned how to think.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Srikant Datar, Dean of <\/strong>
Harvard Business School<\/strong><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have made AI a central pillar across all dimensions of our work: research, education, and operations,\u201d said Dean Bajeux, \u201cThat 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.\u201d 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\u2014enabling students to apply a broad range of analytical techniques in approaching complex problems.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leadership To Drive A Sustainable Future<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As the analytical function of leadership shifts to AI, the uniquely human traits such as curiosity, imagination, and empathy become paramount. \u201cAs technology accelerates, it is our uniquely human traits that will set leaders apart.\u201d Bajeux said, \u201cWe 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.\u201d There is a growing demand for human skills, particularly leadership skills, which will drive a sustainable future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\"\"\n\n\n\n

At the symposium, Rajan argued that \u201cthe primary customer of a business school is society.\u201d Veloso agreed. \u201cThe student is the product \u2014 the \u2018agent of change\u2019 in society,” Bajeux emphasized the importance of ethics: \u201c[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.\u201d 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 \u201cto gain exposure to different ethical and philosophical perspectives,\u201d and as Bajeux reiterated, \u201cInterdisciplinary collaboration is key, where purposefully leveraging different perspectives enables leaders to create a more nuanced understanding and thoughtful strategy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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. \u201cAt the Tepper School,\u201d Dean Bajeux stated, \u201cWe believe the future of business comes from asking the right questions, seeing new possibilities, and imagining bold solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Timeless Tradition, Timely Innovation Story by Hector Chacon and Grace Conard Illustration by Taylor CalleryIsabelle Bajeux-Besnainou, Dean of the Tepper School of BusinessEarlier this year, the Tepper School\u2019s 75th Anniversary Academic Symposium brought deans from … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3784","page","type-page","status-publish"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3784"}],"version-history":[{"count":47,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3784\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4297,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3784\/revisions\/4297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.tepper.cmu.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}