[advertorial filter]Need interview questions for management school dean
September 15, 2015 6:48 AM Subscribe
Hey hive mind,
I'm in desperate need for some last minute help.
I'm slated to conduct an 90 minute interview with the dean of a top-tier U.S. west coast based management school (public uni, though the school appears to be independently supported) tomorrow morning, and I'm drawing blanks as to what to ask her.
She is visiting the Asia-Pacific region to connect with alumni networks. I know nothing on the subject of business/management and only have the background info provided by her PR staff.
My country has a glut of management programs, a growing service sector but also faces stagnant wages and growing income inequality. I honestly see such programs as being part of the problem of the social problems, but this is hardly a question I can pose...
Any tips on getting my mind attuned to generating a conversation with my interview subject, possible questions, etc would be heartily appreciated.
Many thanks
She is visiting the Asia-Pacific region to connect with alumni networks. I know nothing on the subject of business/management and only have the background info provided by her PR staff.
My country has a glut of management programs, a growing service sector but also faces stagnant wages and growing income inequality. I honestly see such programs as being part of the problem of the social problems, but this is hardly a question I can pose...
Any tips on getting my mind attuned to generating a conversation with my interview subject, possible questions, etc would be heartily appreciated.
Many thanks
Response by poster: Sorry for the vagueness,
I was given very little info on the nature of the interview- I believe our paper carries the interview with the school due to alumni links with the board of our paper--once a year. The past interviews have had the dean reflecting on a range of issues such as increased enrollment from our country to the school, women as entrepreneurs and joint programs run with other business schools in the region (Singapore)
Hope this helps!
posted by wallawallasweet at 7:05 AM on September 15, 2015
I was given very little info on the nature of the interview- I believe our paper carries the interview with the school due to alumni links with the board of our paper--once a year. The past interviews have had the dean reflecting on a range of issues such as increased enrollment from our country to the school, women as entrepreneurs and joint programs run with other business schools in the region (Singapore)
Hope this helps!
posted by wallawallasweet at 7:05 AM on September 15, 2015
Best answer: If this is to appease alumni on your board, I would, in the beginning, ask her open ended questions so she can get her message or taling points out. Why are you coming to the country? How does your university fit into our country and our economic growth? What is some of the exciting research going on at her university? Then I would start squeezing a little. How is your university uniquely qualified to help address our country's stagnant wages? Etc.
posted by AugustWest at 7:31 AM on September 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by AugustWest at 7:31 AM on September 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Without directly copying, I thought this interview with the Dean of Harvard Business School raises some interesting questions (and I suggest you could google for more interviews to get some more ideas):
- are alumni from your country also donors to the school? If not, why does she think that is the case? Is that cultural and how can that be changed?
- are specialized management programs rising in popularity compared with the general business education of MBAs? If so, what trends in the market are causing that? For your country/region, is that also true?
Other things I thought of that are just things I'm interested in:
- what changes do you see happening in the business/management world and how is your school working to prepare students for those?
- in what way does the school support and encourage students to use their skills in social innovation/(whatever it is you think they could do that would be more positive)? Are students themselves pushing for that / do trends show that more of them are doing it?
- education institutions are increasing being told that they need to prepare students to be work-ready - has the role of employers in educating their workforce changed?
posted by AnnaRat at 7:53 AM on September 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
- are alumni from your country also donors to the school? If not, why does she think that is the case? Is that cultural and how can that be changed?
- are specialized management programs rising in popularity compared with the general business education of MBAs? If so, what trends in the market are causing that? For your country/region, is that also true?
Other things I thought of that are just things I'm interested in:
- what changes do you see happening in the business/management world and how is your school working to prepare students for those?
- in what way does the school support and encourage students to use their skills in social innovation/(whatever it is you think they could do that would be more positive)? Are students themselves pushing for that / do trends show that more of them are doing it?
- education institutions are increasing being told that they need to prepare students to be work-ready - has the role of employers in educating their workforce changed?
posted by AnnaRat at 7:53 AM on September 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I honestly see such programs as being part of the problem of the social problems, but this is hardly a question I can pose...
I think that's absolutely a question you can ask, particularly if you phrase it as a question about higher education rather than her institution specifically. My country's greatest problems are X, Y and Z - how can further education help us solve these problems?
posted by dvrmmr at 10:47 AM on September 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I think that's absolutely a question you can ask, particularly if you phrase it as a question about higher education rather than her institution specifically. My country's greatest problems are X, Y and Z - how can further education help us solve these problems?
posted by dvrmmr at 10:47 AM on September 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks for your help and suggestions guys. If you're interested, the advertorial interview can be found here
posted by wallawallasweet at 2:43 AM on October 30, 2015
posted by wallawallasweet at 2:43 AM on October 30, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by three_red_balloons at 6:53 AM on September 15, 2015