Phl's emerging economic power raises demand for good business education

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines’ newfound status as one of the so-called “Breakout Nations” – or what Ruchir Sharma, the head of Morgan Stanley’s Emerging Markets, described in his new bestselling book as countries seen by investors as “the next big bets” – is raising the demand for good managers who can navigate in the treacherous waters of the global economy.

To meet the seemingly insatiable need for good managers, local business schools have been churning out about 1,000 MBA degree holders a year, said Alberto L. Buenviaje, dean of the Ateneo Graduate School of Business (AGSB).

The Philippines also ranks as one of the countries with the most number of MBA schools, with the United States topping the list, he added.

While this shows there is no dearth of MBA schools or programs to choose from, it is quality – not quantity – that still matters to students and employers, he stressed.

“There are so many management schools in the Philippines, but the academic standards in some of the business schools are not up to the mark. It is very important to choose the right business school as they vary widely in terms of the quality of faculty, curriculum, infrastructure, and placement record, among other essential elements,” he explained.

Beyond classroom walls

In an increasingly globalized world, business schools must be able to go beyond Business 101. “MBA schools must also be able to heighten their students’ cultural awareness to have a more refined global outlook, and also prepare them for leadership and having sufficient awareness of their impact on others,” Buenviaje said.

At the Ateneo Graduate School of Business (AGSB), the business school of the 153-year-old Ateneo de Manila University, students are encouraged to pursue a mission and vision beyond the field of business management. “Our thrust is to make our students primus inter pares – ‘first among equals’ – recognizing them as workplace-based professionals who are leaders in their respective organizations,” the dean stressed.

Learning at AGSB comes from a combination of both classroom and business experiences, and theories are not confined in books and within academic walls, but are validated and made relevant in the workplace, he added.

AGSB is also among the few business schools that use the entire adult learning principles as teaching methodology. Most of its students are workplace-based and are already working for at least two years. Foreigners comprise 10 percent of the student population while 30 percent work for global companies. “Thus, we have a learning environment where 40 percent of our students can be considered international in experience. Adding to this global experience is the fact that 50 percent of our professors have global work experiences,” said the dean.

International bid

AGSB has already produced over 7,500 MBA graduates in its past 46 years as an academic institution. Most of its alumni occupy senior management positions in the public and private sectors, both here and abroad, and are known captains of industries.

Bolstering its bid to gain international accreditation is the string of awards and recognition it has reaped in recent years. To date, AGSB is the only graduate school of business in the country with two programs in partnership with foreign universities: the Ateneo-Regis Program with Regis University in the US; and the AGSB-ESSCA with Ecole Superiore des Sciences Commerciales d’ Angers which enables its students to spend semesters in Manila, in Shanghai, in Angers, France, and another one in the country of their choice, as part of AGSB’s thrust towards globalization of management education.

AGSB is also a recipient of the Thomas Kennedy award given by New Ventures of Regis University for delivering an excellent accelerated MBA program; and the Asia B-School Innovation Leadership Award from CMO Asia of Singapore.

The business school also ranked in the Outstanding category with an average rating of 4.6 out of five in a comprehensive study done in 2004 by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Fund for Assistance to Private Education (FAPE) to classify 195 MBA schools in the country.

“Thus gaining international accreditation is a very important quality seal for what we do at AGSB,” said Buenviaje. “As globalization brings global competitiveness and the exchange of international quality among leading institutions around the world, the global accreditation will help us get into an international club of institutions and bring in new knowledge of best practices from different regions of the world.”