ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE,
commonly known as AI, has
the potential to impact everything
that humans do, from completing everyday
tasks to implementing business strategy.
The rapid rise in the development and
use of AI means that the next generation
of business leaders must understand its
function, its benefits, and its ethical implications.
In fact, a survey by the Graduate
Management Admission Council finds that
slightly more than 70 percent of employers
plan to hire business school graduates who
have a knowledge of AI so they can fill data
analytics roles. Therefore, it’s no surprise
that interest in master’s programs in data
analytics has doubled in the past five years,
according to GMAC.
But business leaders aren’t the
only ones who have to be on top of AI.
Business schools, too, should be incorporating
it into their own systems and
processes. However, even schools that
are teaching the theory and application
of AI might not be practicing what they
preach. Based on my experience in designing
and delivering learning journeys
on digital strategy for businesses, I see
three primary areas where AI could be
implemented to profoundly improve
business school operations.
1. STUDENT RECRUITMENT
Social media companies already
use algorithms to target users
with advertising. Similarly, business
schools could use AI to identify the
best potential applicants for their programs.
Schools could use AI algorithms
to analyze publicly available data and
information posted on social media; in
this way, they could scan, evaluate, and
identify people who could be good candidates
for their programs, before students
even begin the application process. For
example, they could target people who
require a specific skill to progress in
their careers—a skill that the business
school specializes in teaching.
But AI can be helpful to admissions
officers well beyond the initial recruitment
process. For instance, during
the interview stage, AI can be used to
analyze the enthusiasm of potential
students. AI can record phone calls and
interviews to evaluate the applicants’
speaking patterns and facial expressions
to gauge how positively they are
responding to the recruitment officers.
This fascinating and innovative use of
AI will help administrators identify the
candidates who are most interested in
their schools’ programs, which will save
recruitment officers a lot of time.
This technology, which already
exists, also can help schools shape their
future admissions processes. As they
monitor applicant interviews, AI programs
can determine which phrases and
conversational points spark the most interest and enthusiasm in applicants,
showing recruitment officers what to focus
on in future recruitment interviews.
After students are admitted, administrators
can use AI to help students customize
their courses by inputting data
about each individual’s career path, ideal
way of learning, and desired skill sets.
With this information, AI algorithms
could quickly identify which course of
study would benefit each student the
most, whether it’s an MBA, a master’s
degree, a credential program, or even
specific electives and modules.
2. CLASSROOM TEACHING
While some critics fear that AI
could ultimately end the role
of the professor altogether, it
is more likely that AI will help professors
make their teaching more efficient and
more accessible to a larger audience. In
business schools, AI is most likely to take
the form of robo-assistants, which are
programmed with professors’ knowledge
and expertise and then made available
to answer students’ questions in specific
courses. Unlike their human counterparts,
robo-assistants don’t need to take
time off—they are available 24/7. This
availability is especially convenient for
students who are working professionals,
as they are likely to be studying during
evenings and weekends.
A case in point is Ashok Goel’s
Knowledge Based Artificial Intelligence
course offered in Georgia Tech’s online
master of science in computer science
program. In 2016, to help him answer
questions from the approximately 300
students in the class, Goel and a team of
Georgia Tech graduate students began
building a virtual teaching assistant. The
assistant, whom they created by tapping
into IBM’s open developer platform,
was named Jill Watson. (Read more.) Jill has
since evolved into two AI instructors
that complement about a dozen human
assistants who help Goel run the course. Learn more about the course.
As Goel found, robo-assistants can
be beneficial in large classes, where it
is often difficult for students to have
regular one-on-one meetings with their
professors. Because the AI assistant
knows everything the professor knows, I
predict that students soon will find that
speaking to the AI assistant is similar
to speaking to the professor. Robo-assistants
can deliver quicker and more
efficient responses than a lone professor,
which will allow schools to serve a larger
number of students while offering them
even more personalized attention.
I expect to see even more AI innovations
in the classroom of the future. It’s
likely that AI algorithms will be used
to aid professors in time-consuming
tasks such as teaching the basics of any
discipline or grading routine tests. For
example, about five years ago, Arizona
State in Tempe teamed up with adaptive
learning company Knewton to create
computer-based courses that would see
students through their general education
requirements such as college math.
(Read more.) The school now works with several
vendors to use AI in a number of classes,
including classes for business students,
according to Arthur Blakemore, professor
of economics and vice provost for
student success.
With more development, AI programs
could become student advisors that
analyze students’ work to determine
the areas where they have insufficient
knowledge, then supply links to educational
resources that the school provides.
3. CAREER CONNECTIONS
Finally, once students
have graduated, AI can be
a resource for both schools
and alumni—particularly in the area of
lifelong learning. By gathering data from
alumni on their career paths, aspirations,
and current employers, AI can identify the skills that alumni will need
to succeed in their careers. AI also can
direct alums to tailored, personalized
programs or even short courses and
relevant learning content offered by the
business school.
At the same time, AI can be used to
pair current students or recent graduates
with alumni who have experience in
certain fields and can act as mentors. AI
also can help alumni network with each
other to find jobs, launch joint ventures,
or secure freelance work.
Additionally, administrators can use
AI to keep current with the skill sets that
are required by various employers. This
will enable schools to offer companies
more relevant executive programs.
GETTING STARTED
At this moment in time, many of these
functions already are being handled by
AI algorithms. For instance, a number of
business schools that have online programs
use AI to monitor conversations
with applicants to track their success. In
addition to Georgia Tech, a few schools
have experimented with AI to provide robo-
assistants and sophisticated chatbots
that interact with participants to support
professors in specialized courses.
However, few schools can implement
AI processes on their own. Those
that want to integrate AI into their
education practices can turn to outside
companies—whether these are edtech
startups or tech giants such as Amazon,
Google, and IBM. Schools that want to
find the best possible edtech for their
needs might seek the support of an
online education partner to bring in the
necessary AI expertise and connections.
It makes sense for schools to outsource their AI requirements, because these
outside partners tend to have the most
up-to-date and innovative AI available.
At my own institution, Vlerick Business
School in Belgium, we selected an online
education partner that can bring in AI
capabilities based on its experience in
the U.S. market.
Schools that decide to implement
AI into their administrative functions
must be careful to meet legal standards.
In the European Union, for instance,
institutions must comply with the
General Data Protection Regulation
(GDPR), which outlines data protection
and privacy standards for everyone
within the EU. Under GDPR, as institutions
gather data, they must gain
permission of students or applicants
at each separate step. They must ask
candidates to opt in, not expect them
to speak up if they want to opt out. For
instance, before recording and monitoring
a phone or video interview,
administrators must explain why they
want to make the recording and give the
candidate an opportunity to decline.
But it’s important for all schools—
not just those governed by GDPR—to
use information ethically. AI can be a
fantastic tool for business schools, but
only when it is used in an ethical manner.
At Vlerick Business School, I run
a digital strategy program in which
I discuss all aspects of AI, from the
tools that are available to the ethical
practices that should be followed. One
tool I use is the ethically aligned design
treatise proposed by the Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Explore their website.
The Ethically Aligned Design
Treatise was created by more than 250 cross-disciplinary
thought leaders and
includes more than 100
pragmatic recommendations for
users, policymakers, and academics who
are involved with AI. As the treatise explains,
“As the use and impact of autonomous
and intelligent systems (A/IS)
become pervasive, we need to establish
societal and policy guidelines in order
for such systems to remain human-centric,
serving humanity’s values and
ethical principles. These systems have
to behave in a way that is beneficial to
people beyond reaching functional goals
and addressing technical problems. This
will allow for an elevated level of trust
between people and technology that is
needed for its fruitful, pervasive use in
our daily lives.”
At Vlerick, we agree. We want graduates
not only to understand the impacts
AI can have, but also to learn that it must
be used for good.
WHAT’S AHEAD
It’s clear that AI can be implemented
successfully in all areas of a business
school’s administration, from recruiting
to teaching to maintaining connections
with graduates. For the time being, AI
will not replace staff or professors; it
will simply make their jobs easier and
less time-consuming, so they can focus
on more important tasks.
But if business school administrators
are going to successfully deploy AI, they
must experiment with it. They must input
more data and update common processes
so AI algorithms become more
specific and efficient. If they do that,
business schools will find themselves
not only teaching AI at a world-leading
level, but implementing it in ways
that ensure a tailored, responsive, and
high-quality educational experience.
Steve Muylle is a professor and partner
at Vlerick Business School, which has
campuses in Brussels, Ghent, and Leuven,
Belgium. He also is the academic director
of the school’s online MBA.
This article originally appeared in BizEd's January/February 2019 issue. Please send questions, comments, or letters to the editor to [email protected].
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