For many, ChatGPT seemed to come out of nowhere. This is a startling wake-up call to the potential opportunities and threats of artificial intelligence (AI). However, Zolto Katona, a marketing professor at the Berkeley Haas School of Business in California, said in 2019 that GPT-2, its predecessor, was already being taught to executives in a technology leadership program on emerging technologies. and writing the script for the accompanying video. his course.
“Writing the script and having it read out from the prompter was very tedious,” Katona recalls. “I wasn’t very good at writing well-sounding sentences, either in English or my native Hungarian. But even at the time, the scripts that were generated were very good.”
Katana has little time for ChatGPT naysayers. “I love it. It’s a great educational tool,” he says. “I remember what it was like in high school without the internet. Much like his Google search in previous generations, ChatGPT will be a way for people to access knowledge in this generation. It means that education can be done more efficiently, including
ChatGPT has made waves because it uses a generative AI language model and can create new content based on information provided in the form of text, images, or audio. The quality of your output is determined by the quality of the input you receive. Professor Christian Terwish of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton found that the chatbot passed his MBA final exams at the school, and he scored between a B- and a B on the operations management course. .
In his research paper, Terwiesch wrote that ChatGPT has shown “an astounding ability to automate some of the skills of highly paid knowledge workers in general, and in particular the types of knowledge workers employed by MBA graduates, such as analysts, managers, and consultants.” I predicted.
Business school faculty are divided. Some worry that generative AI will accelerate academic misconduct in assessments. Other companies, such as Katana, allow students to use her ChatGPT to solve problems by asking questions or to create class activities in which they work in groups to analyze the accuracy of information provided. are already planning. At the very least, interaction with generative AI might be expected to pique participants’ curiosity and encourage them to ask more questions.
Especially in executive education, generative AI can be used to create simulations that mimic real-world business interactions, such as negotiations and sales pitches. Managers can use her AI as a “study buddy” to train critical thinking and problem-solving skills. The conversational nature of ChatGPT responses means that participants can get immediate, personalized feedback, much more than a time-pressed faculty can provide.
At Insead in France, AI-powered activities include business simulation, idea generation, and sparring. Adjunct professor Adrian Johnson integrates ChatGPT into simulated negotiations, where his executives haggle with AI.
Insead Strategy Professor Phanish Puranam conducts an organizational design exercise that helps students generate different possible solutions using ChatGPT. He said he also envisions using the algorithm as a sparring partner to criticize executives’ thinking and demand further clarification.
“In your business, managers will need to look at AI through a double filter,” says Professor Pranam. “Will it actually improve how organizations work? And will it become more or less human-centric?”
© Eric Carter
Polimi School of Management in Milan offers career coaching using an AI-powered tool called Flexa, developed with Microsoft. Participants use the platform to decide where and how to access personalized learning paths, starting with an assessment phase that assesses which skills they need to improve. Flexa then uses her AI to create a program tailored to each user, giving them access to nearly 800,000 learning materials including self-paced digital courses, webinars, podcasts, articles and case studies. can.
“Technology still needs to evolve,” says Associate Dean Tommaso Agasisti. “We don’t have many tools yet to help executives use artificial intelligence to address real-world problems, but we believe that will happen soon.”
Alain Goudy, Vice Dean for Digital at Neoma Business School in France, agrees. “AI can analyze individual student learning preferences, strengths and weaknesses, so business schools can adjust exercises, content, and curriculum accordingly.” identify people and help both reach their potential. “AI can act like a student’s sidekick, helping teachers focus on specific tasks and a better in-class learning experience,” he says.
Russell Miller, director of executive education innovation at Imperial College Business School in London, also wants schools to use AI to create non-linear, adaptive learning tailored to student needs. He believes in assessing knowledge gaps and where additional support is needed. “It means that learners spend less time learning what they already know,” he points out.
René Eber, Lecturer at HEC Paris Executive Education, suggests that generative AI could also help business schools deliver a more holistic experience. “English presentation skills remain a major barrier for some participants,” he says. “We have him use ChatGPT for telling more compelling stories when pitching his ideas in front of a jury, not just for written reports. means a level playing field for participants with
