Chapter 6

Achieving the Goals of Multi-disciplinary Thinking

. . . Humanities have been delineated by Ronald S. Crane (1886–1967) as the cultivation of four essential “arts: language, analysis of ideas, literary and artistic criticism, and historiography.” . . . Humanities scholarship and education are dedicated to understanding human experience through the disciplined development of insight, perspective, critical understanding, discernment, and creativity.

—Cole, et al.¹

Keywords

Business education, higher education, multi-frame thinking, theory in the business curriculum, research, critical thinking, interdisciplinary collaboration

Introduction

Imagine a first-year student who is sure she wants to major in business. She does not yet see the connections between her passion for economics and business finance and the general education courses that she is required to take. One of these requirements is that a cohort of first-year students enrolls in a writing seminar linked to another course. Looking at the options, she selects the “Literature of the Great Depression.” To her surprise, she finds that the literature course focuses on the impacts of the Depression on families much like hers. She becomes more interested in the connections between economic decisions and people’s lives. During her second year, she takes a business elective that examines the importance of ethical decision-making for managers. After this course, she chooses to take a philosophy course on ethics. She is learning a lot about different perspectives. Even though she does not want to be a manager, she is required to take “Management and Organizational Behavior,” a course that helps her understand that being able to understand different perspectives is at the core of good management. She also has been involved in co-curricular activities, and decides she wants to be a Residential Assistant—which leads her to take “Foundations of Leadership.” In this course, she again is exposed to how so many perspectives—including literature, art, philosophy, history—can contribute to understanding and practicing leadership. This combination of multidisciplinary coursework and activities parallels some of the recommendations made in Rethinking Undergraduate Business Education: Liberal Learning for the Profession:

Students need the insights of psychology, sociology, anthropology, and humanities fields as history, politics, literature, and ethics in order to develop the disciplined perspective they will need as future business persons who can grasp their shifting responsibilities and be prepared to respond quickly to new contexts.² (p. 48)

The Need for Multi-disciplinary Thinking

Taking the range of courses suggested by Colby et al. (and others) is important for students. But many are never asked to reflect on how humanities courses or concepts connect to business. In the example above, our student’s commitment to economics and finance as “king” was challenged as she learned about their impacts on families. Our student was taught to master the use of multiple perspectives in both her general education and business courses. She studied ethics from both philosophical and business perspectives. But how do we help students to integrate multiple perspectives and use them in decision-making?

Nancy Adler’s examination of the role of the arts in teaching management and leadership offers some of the most compelling answers to this question. In her article “Finding Beauty in a Fractured World: Art Inspires Leaders—Leaders Change the World,” she asks: “Given the power of analytic understanding—driven as it is to claim life as knowable—how do we re-recognize the unknowable?”³ (p. 480) She urges us to see and use science and art as partners that provide different lenses. In her artistic work, as well as in research, teaching, and consulting, her use of both lenses provides specific examples of the ways that art:

• “gives us back the capacity to perceive uniqueness”
• supports the “ability to see what is unique within the context of that which is comfortably familiar”
• can change perspectives, as one paints or views from different angles
• can see reality more clearly (Pp. 484–87)

In this same article, Adler describes a study done at Yale Medical School that compared medical students who took art history with those who did not.⁴ She reports that:

. . . Researchers discovered that the art-trained students’ diagnostic skills improved significantly more than did the skills of their non-art trained colleagues. . . . [They] learned how to see but also gained a deeper appreciation of the relative nature of interpretation. . . . [They] saw more of what they were looking for, and more important, more of what they were not looking for. . . . They were more aware . . . that their diagnoses were best guesses . . . .⁵ (p. 487)

The groundbreaking book Can Ethics Be Taught? Perspectives, Challenges, and Approaches at Harvard Business School offers more evidence of the value of multiple perspectives. In this, Parks cites the work of Rest to argue that: “there is now ample evidence that ethical consciousness and commitment can continue to undergo transformation at least throughout formal education.”⁶ She urges that business curricula can be designed to both engage students in multiple perspectives and ethical decision-making. In so doing, students can hone their abilities to tolerate complexity, cultivate diverse points of view, and combine rigorous analysis and informed imagination. Parks argues that:

First, these students need to be given opportunities for active, critical reflection upon the circumstances and opportunities before them. Second, they must be encouraged to become more active agents, most immediately in the present context of their own educational process.⁷ (p. 58)

In Chapter 3 of the same text, Gentile examines how faculties are central to this process, not only in terms of the courses they teach and the overall business curriculum, but also:

In order . . . to have the hoped-for broad and long-term impact on the school and its curriculum, ethical analysis and values-based decision making [has] to be the subject of new empirical research, decision-model building, and case study and course development across the whole curriculum. (p. 73).

Combining the conclusions of Parks and Gentile, one important way to connect both faculty and students to these endeavors is through undergraduate research. In particular, community-based undergraduate research is an important tool to help strengthen business students’ comm­itments to ethical decision-making (see Chapter 8). As noted by ­Elizabeth L. Paul, such engagement can involve:

. . . Engagement in real contexts; engagement in real-world complexities and ambiguities; work directed toward the accomplishment of real and meaningful goals; side-by-side collaboration between ‘novices’ and ‘experts’; and ongoing opportunity for feedback, discussion, and reflection.⁸ (p. 198)

So what changes does this imply for business curricula? The challenge is highlighted in Rethinking Undergraduate Business Education.⁹ Colby and her colleagues stress the importance of critical questioning, but suggest that business faculty see the syllabus as already too full. As one stated: “presenting business as an object of inquiry and critical questioning cannot be the central goal of the course, given how full the syllabus is already.” (p. 37) However, the authors go on to suggest that “an additional, linked experience” could provide an opportunity for critical questioning. Building on their advice, we have chosen to use texts, films, and case studies that help students learn not only business concepts and practices but also the theories and research that inform decision-making. Our commitment is that students are immersed in:

• Interdisciplinary learning/teaching multiple frames
• Development of critical thinking skills
• Understanding the importance of theory development and research
• Collaboration with others across disciplines

The vignette at the beginning of this chapter illustrates many of the suggestions that follow but also makes clear the importance of consistent reinforcement of learning, understanding, and practicing our goals. The remainder of the chapter describes approaches that can facilitate these goals. They range from what can be done by a single faculty member, to extensive collaboration in team-taught or linked courses.

Teaching Multi-disciplinary Thinking

We begin with one of the staples of an undergraduate business major, namely, a course on the management of business organizations. Faculty who teach these courses select from a range of options; our choice has been texts and case studies that introduce students to multiple perspectives. Ideally, the core of the course teaches students to use multiple perspectives, engage in critical thinking, understand the theories of and research about management and leadership, and explore the concept and practice of collaboration. These understandings and skills will help them as they explore case studies about, conflict among, and decisions to be made by managers of organizations.

The case studies that we use are often designed for students at the graduate level (such as those from Harvard Business School Publishing). The goal is NOT to overwhelm the students with the details of the case. Rather, we ask students to find illustrations of the concepts that they are studying and to make recommendations based on course readings. Many of the cases we use are more historic in nature for two reasons: first, they provide students with a glance at the recent past; and second, they encourage students to examine what happened after the case study. The following are examples of texts and case studies used in teaching a course that deals with management and organizational behavior. Each of the three books used provides support for several of our learning goals, although the following discussions focus on the primary contribution(s) of each publication.

Multi-frame Thinking

A text such as Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal’s Reframing Organizations: Artistry, Choice and Leadership provides the background that students need to understand different perspectives and engage in dialog with others who have different points of view.¹⁰ The authors use the concept of four frames—structural, human resources, political, and symbolic—to describe organizations. Since the research they examine draws from the disciplinary perspectives of sociology, social psychology, political science, anthropology, theatre, and more, students may recognize ideas that they learned in other courses. In addition, the authors discuss many examples to help students understand that the best managers are facile with multiple—and sometimes contradictory—perspectives. Bolman and Deal’s approach grounds the study of management in many fields, and provides students with the language and concepts of frames that can be used in exploring and analyzing case studies. Those case studies provide “real world” examples that students can use to “practice” their analytical skills from multiple or interdisciplinary perspectives.

For the structural frame, students read two case studies: GlaxoSmithKline: Reorganizing Drug Discovery (A)¹¹ and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals: Spurring Scientific Creativity with Metrics.¹² Each case deals with how that pharmaceutical company restructured the work of their scientists relative to the development of new drugs (see below regarding module that introduces students to the process of drug approval). Using concepts and examples from Bolman and Deal, we ask students to analyze each organizational structure prior to and after reorganization. We then ask students to think about what was left out or not considered—this usually leads to a discussion of human resources, which is the next frame studied in the course.

To illustrate the human resources frame, the classic example used is Human Resources at Hewlett Packard (A).¹³ First, we ask students to describe the structure of groups at HP and then compare them with the pharmaceutical case studies. This leads into a discussion of what was different at HP, the “HP Way,” with its focus on small, decentralized work groups and policies that encouraged both teamwork and individual innovation. Because this case illustrates human resources policies, the reward system, management practices, and the importance of symbols and culture, it helps students understand the importance of using all four frames.

For the political frame, students examine a case that is about both power and gender. Ann Hopkins (A) takes place during a time when few women were partners in firms such as Price Waterhouse.¹⁴ Students often focus on the personal strengths and weaknesses of Hopkins, who was described as someone who yelled, used profanity, was “tough” and arrogant, showed disrespect for subordinates, and had a hard-driving style. Many see these characteristics as reasons why she was not selected to be a partner. We encourage students to examine the selection process closely and the comments made by those evaluating Hopkins. While the focus of the discussion is on both formal and informal power, we also explore gender issues. Because this case includes issues that are also symbolic in nature, it helps to introduce students to Bolman and Deal’s fourth frame and provides a transition to the final “case study” Shakespeare’s Henry V.

We use Henry V to examine the symbolic frame. Because it deals with war, we challenge students to set aside the political frame and concentrate on the importance of rituals, myths, speeches, celebrations, . . . and other types of symbols and their meanings. In teaching this case, faculty in the humanities developed some assignments. One approach uses ­Shakespeare’s text, another uses Kenneth Branagh’s film Henry V, and the third involves a theatre workshop (see below for description) focused on Henry V’s “St. Crispin’s Day Speech.” Bolman and Deal’s concepts (myths, vision, values, stories, rituals, ceremony, and/or metaphor (found in Chapter 12 of their book) guide the discussions for all three modules.

Infusing Theory into the Curriculum

While case studies provide students with real-life examples, we believe that it is essential that business students wrestle with the theories and research that informs actual business practices. While it is clear that they are taught these in the field of economics, other social sciences often are not included within business courses. Thus, a second important element of Bolman and Deal’s Reframing Organizations is that it examines theory and research from a range of the social sciences disciplines. Each of the four frames is examined using highly respected researchers, theorists, leaders, and authors, both classical and contemporary (e.g., ranging from ­Aristotle to Argyris, Buddha to Bass, and so on through the alphabet).

Because Bolman and Deal weave together theories, research results, and examples for each frame, students begin to see the consequences of using different frames in different situations. Students begin to understand that management is steeped in the social sciences and the humanities. Finally, woven through their text are examples of a range of ethical choices (developed more fully in their text The Wizard and the Warrior).¹⁵ The chapter “Reframing Ethics and Spirit” provides examples, framing, and ideas, giving opportunities for faculty to engage students in such discussions.

Understanding the Importance of Research and Theory Development

The next text is Rosabeth Moss Kanter’s Supercorp: How Vanguard Companies Create Innovation, Profits, Growth, and Social Good.¹⁶ She illustrates how many companies have successfully resolved the seeming contradiction of economics and ethical decision-making. Grounded in more than 3 years of research, the work examines large multinational corporations that have found a way to contribute to communities and do well financially. As she states in the Introduction: “IBM . . . Proctor and Gamble, Banco Real, and Publicis Groupe . . . have achieved the seemingly impossible: high levels of business performance—innovation, growth, and profit—and social good.”(p. 1)

Kanter’s work also provides a global perspective, arguing that companies that are more global in nature need to make deep connections at both local and national levels. This means connections not only with business partners but also with officials in certain parts of the government, public individuals who can serve as intermediaries, and community organizations. At the core of her book is the idea that corporations have both the know-how and the responsibility to “address some of the world’s most challenging social and environmental problems.” (p. 206) In her chapter “The Triumph of Transformational Enterprise: Leadership for the Future” she gives practical advice. Based on her research, she argues that:

. . . The best characteristics of leaders at all levels in vanguard companies can be distilled into the ultimate job description for the future . . .

• Intellect: Systems thinking
• Action: Initiative taker
• Relationships: Persuasion and diplomacy
• Emotion: Self-awareness and empathy
• Spirituality: Values driven¹⁷ (p. 261)

Not only are these important elements of leadership, they provide students with concepts that often are learned in the study of the ­humanities—especially self-awareness, empathy, spirituality, and motivation rooted in values. As we have noted, self-concept, ethical behavior, and concern for the wider community/social agency are at the core of professionalism. Many of Kanter’s chapters offer examples of corporations that illustrate these professional characteristics. When we focus on the ethical decision-making of those in the organizations, we use them as mini-case studies for analysis and discussion, especially the five characteristics listed above. In addition, we require students to write a ­four-page paper that looks in depth at one of the corporate examples. They do further research about the organization and discuss their findings through the lens of Kanter’s text. In doing so, they must consider the professional elements of both expertise and social-trusteeship.

Critical Thinking and Collaboration

A final text that is often used in management courses is Peter Senge’s The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of a Learning Organization.¹⁸ Like Bolman and Deal’s work, Senge focuses on the multiple, and often conflicting, points of view which need to be brought into decision-making. At the core of Senge’s work is the importance of mastering five concepts: “systems thinking, personal mastery, mental models, building shared vision, and team learning.” Senge’s ideas are rooted in his study of those who used those five concepts successfully.

“Systems thinking” is essential to understanding how organizations work, especially how decisions and actions are interrelated. That approach requires analysis of the various elements of an organization—structure, policies, culture, power—as well as an understanding of the sum and connections of its parts, the external environment, and how they all interact. Although these are fairly complex ideas for undergraduates, Senge provides negative examples (Chapter 4 “The Laws of the Fifth Discipline”) that introduce students to some of the concepts that are part of the core disciplines discussed in “The Core Disciplines: Building the Learning Organization.”

“Personal mastery” focuses on the individual. It refers to the imperative that individuals in an organization need to engage in learning new competences and skills in ways that Senge describes as “approaching one’s life as creative work.” We need to be clear about what we value on the one hand and learn to face reality on the other. As Senge notes:

The juxtaposition of vision (what we want) and a picture of current reality (where we are relative to what we want) generates . . . ‘creative tension’ . . . The essence on personal mastery is learning how to generate and sustain creative tension in our lives.¹⁹ (p. 132)

“Mental models” are the generalizations, ideas, assumptions, hopes, images, and theories that shape how each of us interprets our lives and experiences with others. Like stereotypes, they are deeply ingrained and usually what influences our actions. Senge and others encourage managers and their teams to share their mental models. By bringing these models to the surface and scrutinizing them, teams engage in institutional learning (Pp. 163–64). We reinforce this concept by asking students to identify their own mental models by exploring personal assumptions, hopes, and theories.

This process of discovery is essential to building a “shared vision” . . . “not an idea . . . [but in Senge’s words] rather, a force in people’s hearts.” (p. 193) By sharing the deepest thoughts, different groups who hold very different ideas may uncover obscured commonalities.

Sharing goals, values, and mission supports the final core discipline of “team learning.” Senge makes the point that unlike discussion, team learning requires genuine dialogue during which “[participants] suspend their assumptions but they may communicate their assumptions freely.” (p. 224) To do so requires careful listening and speaking to avoid patterns of interaction such as defensiveness.

It is important to have students study these ideas and examples, and perhaps more importantly, practice them in class, in their roles on campus, and as they work in teams on the final class assignment. In the process, they also reinforce the importance of several elements of professionalism. Examining personal goals and realities, assessing personal mastery, and exploring personal mental models, certainly impacts self-concept. Senge’s emphasis on team learning supports a sense of expertise; shapes autonomy of judgment, and helps clarifies what it means to be professional. The case study described below provides good and bad examples of Senge’s disciplines.

The single case study used with the Senge text is “San Diego ­Padres: PETCO Park as a Catalyst for Urban Redevelopment.”²⁰ As the title ­suggests, PETCO Park was a massive undertaking that involved many different groups with wildly different goals. These included everything from the city of San Diego, the Major League Baseball Padres, the ­National Trust for Historic Places and local services for the homeless and families who might use the park. We ask students to return to the case study multiple times. After reading Senge’s chapter on a core discipline, students search the case study for examples. After finishing the Senge text, students write a five-page analysis of the Padres’ case, applying what they have learned about Senge’s disciplines.

In looking back at the texts and cases discussed, it bears repeating that while the authors use different examples, theories, approaches, and terms, they all require that students understand and practice multiple perspectives. To further expand students’ thinking beyond the management of organizations, we have taken the important step of collaborating with colleagues in the arts and humanities and integrating their points of view into the business administration curriculum.

Interdisciplinary Collaborative Approaches

A second way to bring the liberal arts into a business course is through collaboration with a faculty member with expertise in such fields as literature, philosophy, and history, all disciplines that explore the ethics of decision-making. These collaborations range from developing modules to team teaching.

Modules

We ask colleagues to build a module, namely, a class discussion or lecture that shares their expertise about the topic under study. These modules create a tangible “product,” a concrete strategy with support materials that business faculty members can use in their future teaching. A typical class session(s) builds on a course reading, novel, or film, and engages students in discussion or debate. The “product” might include slides, clips from a film or news story, lecture notes, discussion questions, debates, and the like. While a module is designed for a particular course, it may be suitable for other courses as well. While a module is only a small part of a course, it can have a powerful impact, especially if it illustrates multiple perspectives and encourages discussions of ethical decision-making. The following describes some of the modules that were developed, organized for specific kinds of business courses.

Courses That Focus on Management and Organizations

• Abraham Lincoln’s leadership: Assign the film Lincoln (2012) with instructions to look for such elements as the “frames” Lincoln used, and the ways in which ethical decision-making, actions, and the like were evident or not. ²¹ Class discussion also includes two modules developed in collaboration with a historian. These focus on the many decisions that Lincoln made earlier in his Presidency. One module focuses on Lincoln’s choices for members of his first Cabinet, namely that he selected members he felt were the most qualified to accomplish the tasks of their position, regardless of personal grievances with him or other Cabinet members. Another focuses on the way Lincoln handled the Union Army, with special attention on General George B. McClellan.²² Both of these modules also could be used in courses focused on leadership.
• Shakespeare’s Henry V: Several modules use Henry V. In one module developed by Jonathan Burton (English), students read Shakespeare’s text. Another module uses the film Henry V (1989) starring Kenneth Branagh.²³ Both explore the complexity of leading/managing, as well as the ethical nature of the king’s decisions. The following describes a module developed by Gil Gonzalez (Theatre) in which students participate in a theatre workshop using Henry V’s “St. Crispin’s Day” speech. Workshop activities—using various voices, “walking the speech,” and reciting it in contorted physical positions—focus student attention on the words, rhythms, and implications of the speech that lead him to leadership. One of the unexpected benefits is that, by the end of the workshop, there is an increased sense of community and a deeper understanding that using multiple perspectives is important for managers and leaders. This module ends with an assignment to view the whole film and write an analysis of Shakespeare’s interpretation of Henry V as a leader.

Courses on Management/Leadership That Introduce Students to Multiple Ways of Looking at Leadership

• Using Niall Ferguson’s Civilization: The West and the Rest,²⁴ Natale Zappia (History) developed a module for the course “A Tale of Two Cities: Doing Business in Hong Kong and China.” Students studied Ferguson’s “six powerful new concepts . . . [of] competition, science, property rights, medicine, consumerism, and work ethic” that helped explain the domination of the West. Students then engaged in a contemporary analysis of current cultural and geopolitical realities and discussed whether the days of Western global leadership are numbered.
• Historian Laura McEnaney developed a module that examines the question: “How did social movements in the 1960s (both) experiment with and redefine leadership?” Focusing on the civil rights movement and second-wave feminism, the module illustrated how historians view leadership and asked students to compare this to their current understanding of leadership. Based on the readings²⁵, students were asked questions and engaged in discussions about leadership as a liberal art.

Courses in Finance and Accounting

• For the course “Business Research Methods,” Michelle Chihara (English) developed a module on the use of qualitative research methods. Building a narrative around Malcolm Gladwell’s “The Science of Shopping,” the module described the ideas of Paco Underhill.²⁶ He used observations and videotapes as qualitative research about women’s shopping and developed “a retailing commandment: a women’s product that requires extensive examination should never be placed in a narrow aisle.” His explanation was that, should a woman be brushed against, she would move away from the product she was examining.
• Some of the most challenging modules were for the required course “Business Finance” (taught by Fatos Radoniqi). Irfana Hashmi (Religious Studies) developed two modules that explored the history, religion, and culture that influences Islamic finance and law. The first module used selections from Frank Vogel’s “Islamic Finance as the Application of Islamic Law” and provided students with an introduction to Islamic finance.²⁷ The second module provided an overview of the political economy of the Middle East in the medieval and early modern eras, based on a conference paper given by Sevket Pamuk.²⁸ For students who wanted to learn more, an additional reading was suggested.²⁹ (As an aside, we found “Usury and Just Compensation: Religious and Financial Ethics in Historical Perspective” very interesting. As the authors state: “By re-examining past ethical discussions of the distinction between usury and just compensation, we argue that the world’s religious traditions can make significant contributions to contemporary debate.”)³⁰ (p. 10)
• Lana Nino (Business) revised “Principles of Financial Accounting” to include a film documentary The Corporation³¹ that critically examines the history of the expansion of corporate powers. A second reading by Douglas Beets “Critical Events in the Ethics of U.S. Corporation History” summarizes the evolution of corporations from the mid-1700s to the present.³² After reflecting on this history and the critique from the documentary, students were asked to make their recommendations for the next phase of corporate structure.
• In “Principles of Managerial Accounting,” Nino added a module using the book entitled, Conscious Capitalism, With a New Preface by the Authors: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business³³ and an article “The Long History of Conscious Capitalism: A response to James O’Toole and David Vogel’s ‘Two and a half cheers for conscious capitalism.’” By reading Conscious Capitalism, students learned to look for the “higher purpose” of organizations, and how companies can join their profit goals with their societal ones. While applying managerial accounting concepts to an analysis of a corporation, students also learned to look for the possible “higher purpose” and how they can benefit society.

Courses That Deal with Ethics

• Paul Kjellberg (Philosophy) developed a module about Confucian leadership for a course that explored ethical issues faced by managers and leaders. In addition, he prepared a module on Buddhism, meditation, and innovation for a class that dealt with innovation.
• A module on Richard Nixon’s presidency, developed by historian Laura McEnaney, explored the complexity of human nature, ethical decision-making, and unethical decisions that sometimes have ethical impacts. Students prepared for the class with two readings: James T. Patterson, Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945–1974, Chapter 25, “End of an Era: Expectations amid Watergate and Recession” and Barbara Kellerman, Bad Leadership: What It Is, How It Happens, Why It Matters, Chapters 1 to 3.³⁴ During class, students examined the timeline of events, watched a video, and responded to a list of discussion questions.

Courses Dealing with International Business and Marketing

• Luz Maria Galbraith (director of the Cultural Center) developed modules that dealt with the histories and cultures of Latin America. The intent was to help students taking International Marketing understand histories and challenges of the region. Beginning with an overview that provided both an introduction to Mexico and a short discussion of NAFTA, one module then focused on a brief history of Mexico and its social institutions, especially political and economic. It examined culture in terms of family, social class, nationalism, aesthetic expressions, rituals, and traditions. The second module focused on the middle class in Latin America by discussing income, poverty levels, economic mobility, education, migration, social class, and status.
• Environmental scientist Cinzia Fissore developed several class sessions for a business course on sustainable development. One module examined the declining food production in Africa, which is due to the decline in the quality of the land resource base. Students studied the role that soil plays in globalization and sustainable development. Because soil quality means the ability of the soil to perform its functions in a sustainable manner, the potential for growing depends on land management and correct use of very different types of soils that range from prime to low potential. As Natasha Gilbert states: “The key to tackling hunger in Africa is enriching its soil. The big debate is about how to do it.”³⁵ (p. 1) A second module used two readings, “Feeding the World: Disappearing Land” from the World Resources Institute and “African agriculture: Dirt poor,” which focus on land and land degradation around the world.³⁶

Collaborations Across the Disciplines

For colleges/universities with a curriculum that supports collaboration across disciplines, there are more extensive possibilities to focus on multi-disciplinary teaching and encourage learning via multiple perspectives and critical questioning and thinking. As Colby, et al. suggest: “Perhaps then, business programs need to provide an additional, linked experience that could enable students, as citizens of the world, to focus squarely on the purposes, relationships, or responsibilities of business or of their business lives.”³⁷ (p. 37) One of the basic ways to do this is to have students co-enroll in two or more courses that present different perspectives, as described in the beginning of this chapter. While this model provides a kind of learning community, students are usually left to make the connections between ideas studied in each of the courses. There is another option that provides students with greater multi-disciplinary connections. Like co-enrollment, students take two paired courses, but the two faculty members are more involved in each other’s courses. They attend and participate in the linked course, serving as master learners. In addition, there is at least one common major assignment that requires students to integrate the perspectives of both courses. While these so-called “pairs” can be taught as lower- or upper-level courses, the following examples were designed for more advanced students.

The first course “Humanistic Values in Management” (Lana Nino, Business Administration) was paired with “Documentary Film Movements and Genres” (John Bak, Film Studies) to explore film documentaries and the study of business ethics. The course in business emphasizes the importance of values in making organizations and commerce work. It encourages students to move beyond a singular utilitarian focus to adopt a broader perspective on human needs. It also encourages students to analyze ethical issues using theoretical frameworks and express their views based on informed theory and common practices. The film course examines the history of documentary filmmaking viewed through subject matter dealing with multiple examples of leadership both ethical and unethical. Films included Harlan County USA (Kopple), Triumph of the Will (Riefenstahl), Fog of War (Morris), and docudramas such as Frost/Nixon (Howard) and Margin Call (Chandor).³⁸ The films’ subjects complement the topics covered in the business course for each week and help lead students to a deeper understanding of the material in both courses.

A second example pairs “Sustainable Development and the Triple Bottom Line” (Daniel Duran, Business) with “Soils and Environmental Geomorphology” (Cinzia Fissore, Environmental Science). It focuses on the role and impact of renewable portfolio management, energy conservation, water policy, and waste treatment that support socially responsible economic development and their geomorphological impacts on the earth’s crust. The course included field trips aimed at helping students see the connections at the core of the pair. Responses to a Learning Impact Questionnaire reveal very positive feedback on the pair’s contribution to: examining environmental values and issues in the students’ own culture and other cultures; examining personal values and impact on the environment; enriching students’ understanding of their major through exposure to other fields; and analyzing topics from multiple fields and perspectives.

The concept of paradigm shift is often applied to many areas to examine significant change. The course “Paradigm Shifts in the Arts” (Jennifer Holmes, Theatre) was paired with “Theories and Practices of Leadership” (Susan Gotsch, Sociology). Students study such shifts in art, music, theatre, film, management practices, leadership theories, social movements, as well as the historical influences that contributed to change. The courses reinforce the importance of having a strong interdisciplinary mindset and focuses students’ attention on the commonalities that encourage creative thinking and innovation.

Other Pairs Combined

• “Financial Crisis,” with a focus on the institutional history of crises (Fatos Radoniqi, Business Administration), with the literature course: “Bubbles, Plots, and Panics: The Literature and Culture of Financial Crises”(Michelle Chihara, English)
• “Tragedy of the Commons” (David Bourgaize, Biology) with “Social Media Marketing” (Kristin Smirnov, Business Administration)
• “Managing Creativity and Innovation” (developed by Jessica Federman, Business Administration) with “Early Chinese Philosophy” (Paul Kjellberg, Philosophy)

Students can learn important lessons in these paired courses, lessons that go beyond just learning about a nonbusiness subject. A pair might address ethics and social responsibility by watching and discussing documentary films that illustrate a variety of personal and corporate behaviors. In the paradigm shift course described above, students made historical connections between the changes in the arts and the shifts that occurred in business. Pairing a course in financial issues with literature provides the kind of learning described in the opening vignette of this chapter. In all of these courses, students are exposed to different perspectives, alternate ways to look at the same issue. They see solutions emerge from other disciplines. They watch strategies emerge from expertise outside their own experience. The common projects required by the paired courses demonstrate the value of collaboration. Dialogue in the innovative arena of ideas hones interpersonal, communication, and listening skills. If successful, eyes and minds open to context beyond the traditional world of business and business leadership. The next step in solidifying and institutionalizing this approach to business education could be to develop courses in leadership that would appeal to students from multiple majors. Chapter 7 focuses on the importance of business students gaining an understanding of leadership and on the development of several courses that support this.

Notes

  1.  Cole, Carlin, and Carson (2014, p. 3).

  2.  Colby, Ehrlich, Sullivan, and Dolle (2011).

  3.  Adler (2015).

  4.  Dolev, Friedlaender, & Braverman (2001).

  5.  Adler (2015).

  6.  Piper, Gentile, and Parks (1993).

  7.  Piper, Gentile, and Parks (1993).

  8.  Jacoby and Associates (2009), p. 198.

  9.  Colby, Ehrlich, Sullivan, and Dolle (2011).

10.  Bolman and Deal (2013).

11.  Huckman & Strick (2007).

12.  Huckman, Pisano, and Rennella (2007).

13.  Beer and Rogers (1995).

14.  Badaracco and Barkan (2001).

15.  Bolman and Deal (2006).

16.  Kanter (2009).

17.  Kanter (2009).

18.  Senge (2006).

19.  Senge (2006).

20.  Davila, Foster, and Hoyt (2008).

21.  Lincoln (2012).

22.  Maciariello and Linkletter (2011).

23.  Henry V (1989).

24.  Ferguson (2011).

25.  Gordon (2002).

26.  Gladwell (1996).

27.  Vogel (1998).

28.  Pamuk (2010).

29.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/12/AR2008051202740.html

30.  Mews and Abraham (2007).

31.  The Corporation (2003).

32.  Beets (2011).

33.  Mackey and Sisodia (2014).

34.  Patterson (1996); Kellerman (2004).

35.  Gilbert (2012).

36.  World Resources Institute (2012); Gilbert (2012).

37.  Colby, Ehrlich, Sullivan, and Dolle (2011).

38.  Harlan County USA (1976); Triumph of the Will (1935); Fog of War (2003); Frost/Nixon (2008); Margin Call (2011).