IABE-2016 Orlando: Winter Conference, March 20-22, 2016

IABE-2016 Orlando: Winter Conference, March 20-22, 2016:

·         Submission Deadline: January 11, 2016

·         Please visit our website www.iabe.org for more information on our refereed journals and the conference.

·         Submit your paper online at www.iabe.org or email it to: Review@iabe.org                                                          

IABE-2016 Florence & Pisa (Italy): Summer Conference, June 16-18, 2016:

• Submission Deadline: April 18, 2016
• Please visit our website www.iabe.eu for more information on our refereed journals and the conference.
• Submit your paper online at www.iabe.eu or email it to: Review@iabe.org                                                                   

Our Refereed Publications:

California Business Review (CBR)
European Journal of Business Research (EJBR)
European Journal of Management (EJM)
International Journal of Business Research (IJBR)
International Journal of Business Strategy (IJBS)
International Journal of Strategic Management (IJSM)
Journal of Academy of Business and Economics (JABE)
Journal of International Business and Economics (JIBE)
International journal of Finance and Economics (JIFE)
Journal of International Finance Studies (JIFS)
Journal of International Management Studies (JIMS)
Review of Business Research (RBR)

We invite you to visit our website www.iabe.org for more information.

Pushing San Diego's Innovative Ability

How do we push San Diego's ability to be a sustainable innovative city? I had the pleasure of reading Rob Litchmen's Opinion piece in the San Diego Tribute entitled, "Innovation group could build a sustainable San Diego" I like the idea of advocating for innovation in San Diego and pushing for sustainable practices.

I have often felt that sustainable practices are investments in our future. The initial costs of some practices can sometimes be prohibitive but can save money over the long term. Other initiatives could turn out to be cheaper and only need to be analyzed and applied.

All societies must push upward in their development. A committee could help in discovering new ideas, research best practices, and then solicit government stakeholders to incorporate new developments. They could work on forming a long-term strategic plan and marrying that plan with city governments.

The group could be part of government as in a formal committee or it could be industry led through volunteerism and corporate sponsorship. Businesses, professors, and specialists would be interested in joining. It would be a way of contributing to the city's development in a significant way.

The biggest advantage such a committee could have is changing people's mind from short-term thinking to long-term thinking. A group could push for sustainable practices that encourages San Diego to take a sustainable leadership position that is increasingly important in an era of climate change.

It could also review the master plans and ideas to further develop neighborhoods for local use. The automobile removed local grocery stores and a sense of community while bikes and public transportation are making them feasible again. Working through this change is important to ensure policies are sound.

I can't say whether such a group would or would not work. I can only say that it depends on its form, interest, political clout, and the public perception. Its power would be more in the way we think and its ability to research and recommend improvements. Rob Litchmen's idea of an innovation committee is important as one perspective on how to improve the local economy and standard of living.

Litchmen (October 7th, 2015). Innovation group could build a sustainable San Diego. The San Diego Union-Tribune. http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/oct/07/innovation-sustainable/

Tapping Your Student's Knowledge in Business Curriculum

 Online education was the latest adaptation but new models will eventually emerge that rest on the new virtual platform. If universities value is based on its knowledge that it provides to students and society is it also possible that collective intelligence will be the next step in university development. Universities are collectors of knowledge and disseminate societal wisdom making furthering that agenda a mater of improving the knowledge collection and dissemination process.

Each student comes with experiences and knowledge that has the potential to improve curriculum. In the case of MBA programs, much of that knowledge is industry relevant and relates directly to theoretical concepts taught in class. The student is an untapped source of information that has real life experience that can further curriculum development.

Virtual classrooms collect masses amount of information but are not effectively using student knowledge to update and adjust models, curriculum and examples. The technology to allow for mass open innovation in solving large problems and updating information is available.

Technology affords the opportunity to leave comments, propose changes in examples, and provide links to other resources by large amounts of people. Collecting, analyzing, and incorporating this information is the same methodology that allows for customer feedback and the customer as co-creator in advanced businesses.

Ultimately all information in college is only beneficial if it is relevant and solves practical problems. It must be applicable to the student and who need or use this knowledge. When seasoned students can update course information and contribute to others knowledge they are able to develop more relevant examples and and more effective resolutions to problems.

The process of collective intelligence also encourages greater motivation among a student body that sometimes views education as something fluid they can jump in and out of.  With co-creation students are not passive learners but actively engage in developing, owning, and advocating for universities where their knowledge made a lasting mark giving them more purpose to stay engaged. Those students are not only graduates but also contributors to the next generation which gives the idea of Alumni a whole new depth.

How Multiple Education Models Help Protect America's College Standing

Just like we wouldn't put all of our money into a single investment it is not wise to force higher education into a single model. Sixteen of the top 20 schools in the world according to the U.S. News and World Report on the "Best Global Universities". That ranking is important for high profile schools but most people don't attend such institutions. Ensuring multiple models are accepted will help keep America competitive in the future as these models institutionalize.

It wasn't but a decade or so ago that online education hit the market. Even though people viewed its quality as low it spread quickly to other schools and into the international market. It has become common in the higher education world and slow innovators are losing out on potential students and international reach.

Having multiple models and incorporating new ideas is important for helping the country keep its leading position. When we try and legislate higher education to the point where only traditional models are acceptable we loose our ability to adapt and change. Our innovation declines and the cost of education continues to rise while the nation looses its educational competitiveness.

Traditional models are hear to stay but will continue to adapt emerging technologies or they will fail to have the same clout in the future. Elite land based universities will still attract rich students. New generations of elite schools that have more virtual reach are starting to sow seeds that will bear fruit in the future and lead new markets.

Multiple tracks is great for the development of national intellectual capital. Wealthy 18-25 year olds can attend one type of school, while working CEO's and professionals can attend another. Their knowledge will contribute to the university that attracts the most professional attention and market reputation. New models mean new opportunities in the U.S. and overseas.

Innovation in education requires enough freedom to do something new without being subject to excess restrictions. The arguments of quality are beneficial but the arguments for particular models are not. Education may someday be cheap and accessible to billions of people on the planet through something as simple as their cell phone or watch. Where the U.S. wants to be in that equation is an open ended question.

Using Formal and Informal Team Communication

Communication is so fundamental to collective action and human interaction that one has to wonder if it isn't THE fundamental principle of all societies. Teams rely heavily on communication to ensure that all parties understand their parts and coordinate their activities to achieve their goals. If communication isn't clear or forthcoming the team begins to break down and become ineffective.

Meetings may not be the most exciting time spent in the work place but do help to formalize the team's identity and goals through physical and social presence. Team communication creates the official doctrine of the team and what it hopes to achieve.

What might be more important is the unofficial team communication that occurs behind the scenes. As people negotiate their responsibilities and work toward fulfilling their work they will have lots of conversation and sharing of information.

Effective communication requires the formal and informal methods of sharing information. The formal creates the framework while the informal keeps the work moving forward. Having regular team meetings and communicating formally can help foster grater informal discussions that lead to better projects. You can steer the later by the former.

Formal Communication: Meetings, Memo, Documents, Emails and Publications.

Informal Communication: Text, Phone, Emails, and Face-to-Face conversation.