Leveraging Collaborative, Thematic Problem-Based Learning to Integrate Curricula

Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative EducationVolume 13 Number 2April 2015Printed in the U.S.A.

C© 2015 Decision Sciences Institute

CONCEPTUAL RESEARCH

Leveraging Collaborative, ThematicProblem-Based Learning to IntegrateCurricula

Robert Sroufe†Duquesne University, 600 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15282, e-mail: [email protected]

Diane P. RamosDuquesne University, MBA Sustainability, Pittsburgh, PA, e-mail: [email protected]

ABSTRACT

This study chronicles learning from faculty who designed and delivered collaborative,problem-based learning courses that anchor a one-year MBA emphasizing sustainabil-ity. While cultivating the application of learning across the curriculum, the authorsengaged MBA students in solving complex, real-world sustainability challenges usinga pedagogical emphasis on nurturing creativity via double-looped learning, meaningfulself-directed assessment, and professional development coaching. While such collab-orative problem solving offers tangible benefits for all stakeholders, implementing thenecessary pedagogy can be challenging. However, the value for students (and faculty)includes improved skills in framing complex problems, first-hand insight into emerg-ing business challenges, increased cross-discipline integration. Moreover, it offers aproving ground for applying emerging theories and analytical tools and models in thedecision sciences. In addition, instructors gain new perspectives on their disciplineswhile exploring innovative avenues for cross-functional research, publication, and thedocumentation of assurance of learning. For corporate partners, benefits include creativesolutions and feasible recommendations for cutting costs, enhancing competitiveness,and applying best practices. We propose directions for integrating curriculum and forgaining institutional support and investment to overcome resistance to changing coursecontent and delivery.

Subject Areas: Curriculum Development, Multidisciplinary, Pedagogy,Problem-Based Learning, and Sustainability.

INTRODUCTION

Today’s organizations demand versatile managers with a broad array of criticalthinking skills to manage diverse stakeholders, establishing processes, analyzingbig data, solving complex problems, and leading transformative change (GMAC,

†Corresponding author.

151

152 Leveraging Collaborative, Thematic Problem-Based Learning to Integrate Curricula

2014). Although business schools are well equipped to produce functional special-ists, corporate recruiters want problem solvers with interdisciplinary competencieswho can manage financial, human, environmental, and informational resources anddecision processes. Preparing management generalists for an uncertain future isno easy task in an institutional setting characterized by silo-based teaching andresearch.

Sustainability has also emerged as a global imperative, creating challengesfor educators worldwide as they redesign curricula and rethink pedagogy to re-flect their schools’ commitments as signatories to the United Nations’ Principlesfor Responsible Management (PRME). The role of higher education in creatinga sustainable future involves management educators taking a leading role in inte-grating sustainability into all parts of society (Cortese, 2003). The Association toAdvance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) has, for example, respondedby stressing the inclusion of content on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR),ethics, and sustainability in business curricula. It has also encouraged memberschools to partner with initiatives such as the Globally Responsible LeadershipInitiative (GRLI, 2014) and the United Nations Global Compact (AACSB, 2014).Problem-based learning (PBL) pedagogy is uniquely suited to connecting learningwithin and across courses in a way that aligns with these accreditation standardsand global initiatives.

PBL offers a collaborative, dynamic pedagogy for bringing together busi-ness professionals, faculty, and students to tie theory to practice. This study buildson prior appeals for project-based learning (Bell, 2010; Heriot, Cook, Jones, &Simpson, 2008; Sroufe & Ramos, 2011; Waddock & Lozano, 2013; Weik, Xiong,Brundiers, & van der Leeuw, 2014) and a call for a generalizable problem- basedapproach (Kanet & Barut, 2003). It examines opportunities for students to de-velop intellectual, career, and personal competencies as project managers whilepromoting responsible practices in organizations. It chronicles learning from sevenyears of cross-disciplinary, problem-based teaching in required MBA consultingcourses. Highlighted educational innovations include: (1) positioning PBL as anarchetype for modernizing curricula around the theme of sustainable managementpractice; (2) using PBL pedagogy to anchor multidisciplinary delivery models andeducational experiences; and (3) providing a primer on our strategy, implementa-tion, and assessment, and suggestions for integrating PBL. The next section of thestudy examines the sustainability imperative at the intersection of traditional busi-ness disciplines, and conceptually positions PBL pedagogy and multidisciplinaryeducation. Subsequent segments outline an approach for operationalizing PBL tointegrate cross-functional teaching and learning, and address outcomes, designand delivery, assessment, and continuous improvement. The study concludes withsuggestions for overcoming resistance to change, implementation challenges, andfuture directions.

SUSTAINABILITY AS A MULTIDISCIPLINARY OPPORTUNITY

Change has not come quickly to business curricula. Bennis and O’Toole (2005)questioned whether business schools had lost their way. Despite decades of societalcriticism, some schools have only recently begun to address social, environmental,

Sroufe and Ramos 153

and ethical issues in their coursework, and often do so outside the core curricu-lum (Doh & Tashman, 2012). As Sharma and Hart (2014) observed, ethics andsustainability are often relegated to the “saddle bag” in business schools,

“Functional core courses in finance, accounting, marketing, operations, or-ganization behavior, and strategy still dominate without any ethical or sus-tainability content, with the “saddle bag” issues addressed through additional(often elective) courses or “immersions” after students have completed the“real” content.”

The decision sciences are dominated by stand-alone functional disciplines,and sustainability topics are rarely integrated with essential management content inthese disciplines. However, combining sustainability with PBL to address emerg-ing business challenges offers exceptional opportunities to cut across disciplines.Moreover, it can become the catalyst for a new era in multidisciplinary collab-oration that offers promise for addressing complex, ambiguous challenges in adynamic global market.

Sustainability is frequently defined as “meeting the needs of the presentgeneration without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirown needs” (United Nations, 1987).

Modeled after a process outlined by Blackburn (2007), the authors taskincoming MBA students with developing their own definition that guides theirgraduate experience and future careers as creators of sustainable value. A recentcohort developed the following policy during their orientation

“The cohort’s vision of sustainable performance includes researching anddeveloping business opportunities for an integrated bottom line that is eco-nomically, environmentally, and socially beneficial. The program’s economicsuccess will depend on brand strength, community prosperity, and return oninvestment. Environmental responsibilities include resource conservation, re-cycling, reduction of supply chain impacts, collaboration with communities,the pursuit of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources. Our socialresponsibility includes action learning, working with corporate sponsors onthe business case for sustainability, respect for stakeholders, systems thinkingacross disciplines, and an ethical approach to decision making.”

The policy provided a foundation and rationale for the collaboration of facultyand industry partners for PBL components of an MBA program, and in particularthe sustainable consulting field project and practicum courses. These serve ascornerstones and capstone of an integrated, action learning MBA curriculum thatemphasizes sustainability.

A CALL FOR PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING ANDCOLLABORATION

Although PBL is not a new instructional approach, the pedagogy has gainedmomentum in multiple disciplines (Bell, 2010; Lehman, Christensen, Du, &Thrane, 2008). “It is an instructional (and curricular) learner-centered approachthat empowers learners to conduct research, integrate theory and practice, andapply knowledge and skills to develop a viable solution to a defined problem”


(Savery, 2006). With origins in medical education (Barrows & Tamblyn, 1980),the PBL approach evolved from the recognition that teaching discipline-specificcontent separately using a “traditional” lecture approach does little to providestudents with a context for its clinical application. Advances in the scienceknowledge base and the pace of technology have also rapidly changed theoryand practice in medicine and business, compounding the challenge for highereducation.

Torp and Sage (2002) described PBL as focused, experiential learning or-ganized around the investigation and resolution of messy, real-world problems.In this context, students are engaged problem solvers who seek to identify theroot problem and the conditions needed for a good solution; in the process, theybecome self-directed learners. Hmelo-Silver (2004) described PBL as an instruc-tional method in which students learn through facilitated problem solving thatcenters on a complex problem that does not have a single correct answer. Theauthor goes on to suggest that students work in collaborative groups to identifywhat they need to learn to be able to solve a problem, engage in self-directed learn-ing, apply their new knowledge to the problem, and reflect on what they learntand the effectiveness of the strategies employed. The characteristics of PBL, assummarized by Savery (2006) in a review of prior work that included Barrow’sessential characteristics of PBL, include but are not limited to

� The problem used must be ill-structured and allow for free inquiry.� Students must have responsibility for their own learning.� Learning should be integrated from a wide range of disciplines or subjects.� Collaboration is essential.� Students’ self-directed learning must be reapplied to the problem’s reanal-

ysis/resolution.� Essential components of the process are a closing analysis of what has been

learned from work with the problem and a discussion of what conceptsand principles have been learned.

� Self and peer assessment should be carried out at the completion of eachproblem and at the end of every curricular unit.

� The activities carried out in PBL must be those valued in the real world.� Student examinations must measure student progress towards the goals of

PBL.� PBL must be the pedagogical base in the curriculum and not part of a

didactic curriculum.

The authors’ approach to MBA pedagogy closely parallels Savery’s essentialcharacteristics of PBL and is also supported by DeFillippi and Milter’s work (2009).Figure 1 presents a generalizable, conceptual PBL approach to MBA courses. AsSenge, Lichtenstein, Kaeufer, and Bradbufy (2007) observed when investigatingcollaborative opportunities among corporations, “meeting the sustainability chal-lenge will require the kind of cross sector collaboration for which there is stillno real precedent.” The model in Figure 1 is supported by a curricular model


Figure 1: PBL conceptual model.

that has a multidisciplinary approach to pedagogy and assessment that focuses ondeveloping skills for recognizing and applying analytical tools and problems in acollaborative setting. This is contrast to the silo approach to problem solving thatis common in management science/operations research (MS/OR).

Success in any collaboration rests on the quality of the relationships thatshape cooperation, trust, and joint learning (Abrams, Cross, Lesser, & Levin 2003;Doz & Hamel 1998). Purposefully cultivating collaborative opportunities to solvereal business problems positions students and faculty to frame complex issues,promote relational collaborative inquiry, and design actionable change initiatives.The sustainability lens keeps the focus on forward looking challenges rather thanon historical concerns.

“In the reality of contemporary work organizations, managerial capabilitieshave typically been acquired through work experiences. For example, studiesshow that 70–90% of workplace learning occurs through on-the-job experiences,informal training, and mentoring.” (Pfeffer & Sutton 2000, Tannenbaum 1997;within Rubin & Dierdorff 2009, p. 208). Where can business students go to getexperience in an emerging field such as sustainable development? Pfeffer andFong (2002) point to a substantial misalignment between the mastery of skillsacquired in an MBA program and the real world impact of those skills. Furthermore,Mintzburg (2004) argued that “management is a professional trade, a craft to behoned through practice and experience, not in the traditional classroom.” Morerecently, Ashridge and EABIS (2010) found that 62% of senior executives surveyedconsidered it important for business schools to develop knowledge and skillsthrough the mainstream education and training they deliver, but only 8% of thesame executives believed business schools were doing this effectively.

Despite the above concerns, significant progress has been made in the inte-gration of both sustainability and PBL within business schools. Many academic


and for-profit organizations are also attempting to define sustainable business prac-tices, and are expending considerable training resources to encourage ethical andsustainable behavior. This presents business schools with an opportunity to aligncoursework and teaching practices to develop managerial competencies that sup-port sustainable business performance at the intersection of PBL and integratedcurricula.

RATIONALE FOR CURRICULAR EXPERIENCES THATINTEGRATE PBL

Business schools help shape the attitudes and behaviors of business leaders througheducation, research, management development programs, training, and other per-vasive but less tangible activities, such as the spread and advocacy of new valuesand ideas. Through these means, academic institutions have the potential to gener-ate a wave of change, thereby helping to ensure a world in which both enterprisesand societies can flourish (Ashridge & EABIS, 2010; PRME, 2014; Starik &Kanashiro, 2014). This may be seen as a heavy burden for academic institutions.However, these institutions have already been incrementally reflecting new realitiesin the global business environment in response to the needs of corporate recruitersand encouragement from NGOs such as the United Nations, which developed aglobal compact for the PRME.

Recruiters indicate that internships, part-time jobs, and leadership positionsin university organizations are better indicators of employability than functionalclassroom experience (Barr & McNeilly, 2002, p. 169). Recruiters suggest thatwhen students are encouraged to elaborate on their experiences outside of theclassroom, this provides evidence of students’ ability to communicate and lead.Of Barr’s multiple recommendations for better classroom engagement, three standout as being particularly relevant to PBL pedagogy: (1) develop class experi-ences/activities that require business contact with specific business-relevant ob-jectives and skills; (2) design/enhance assignments based on real world input andfeedback; and (3) write letters of recommendation that reference the experience,skills, and knowledge that students have acquired in a course. Barr goes on tosurvey recruiters, asking “What skills do recruiters want to see on a resume?”Respondents want to see evidence of leadership, communication skills, taking atask to completion, and interpersonal and team building skills. Ironically, these arethe very skills that many recruiters believe cannot be developed in a classroom,and are substantially different from what is taught and tested in a typical MS/ORcourse.

How well do MBA programs meet the expectations of corporate stake-holders? Rubin and Dierdorff (2009, p. 217) found that “incumbent managersrate managing human capital and managing decision making processes to bethe most important behavior competencies of all their managerial work, yet re-sults show that these competencies are not given proportional ‘space’ withinmost MBA programs’ required coursework.” Although faculty in organizationalbehavior and human resource management might debate Rubin and Dierdoff’sfindings, they are likely to agree that providing transferable experiences for


Figure 2: Curriculum model.

managing human capital and decision-making processes in a classroom is dif-ficult. Rubin et al. considered the opportunity to develop competency in “man-aging decision-making processes” to be second in importance only to manag-ing human capital. They described this competency as reflecting an interdisci-plinary approach to applied research, statistics, and analytical modeling (they alsowarned that these thinking skills should not be confused with “activities” suchas learning “accounting rules”). They also noted that “MBA curricula on averagetend to ignore this competency.” Over 25% of the 373 schools that they exam-ined (85% of all AACSB accredited business schools) required no correspondingcourses, and half required only one. An integrated approach to developing manage-rial decision-making skills thus represents a significant opportunity for businessschools.

Collaborative, cross-disciplinary PBL ties theory to practice when conductedin real-world settings with real-world consequences. To facilitate such learning,the authors developed and continuously improved a cross-discipline pedagogythat features weekly project updates to faculty teaching in the MBA program,and cross-discipline faculty evaluation of student performance before deliverablesare presented to clients. Faculty from all disciplines were also encouraged tomentor student teams. The formal, 360-degree evaluation process collects ratingsfrom course instructors, other business school faculty, student peers, and corporateclients. It uses instruments that explicitly ask about the extent to which studentsappropriately applied tools and concepts from specific courses in core businessdisciplines.

Three PBL-based experiences are embedded in a one-year MBA curriculumas shown in Figure 2. The PBL-based consulting courses and practicum are de-signed to provide tangible opportunities for MBA students to apply concepts fromeach semester’s core businesses courses.


The first field project focuses on understanding the value chain. Student teamsanalyze an actual issue for a large corporate client by researching and benchmark-ing best practices from multiple perspectives, analyzing a range of alternatives,and proposing solutions that apply broad-based learning. All teams involved inthe first and subsequent engagements have multiple opportunities for reflection,reanalysis, and the resolution of competing outcomes before providing written andoral deliverables to clients. Complementing core courses in the second semesterof the program, the second project course emphasizes process improvement andproject management, and offers teams more autonomy to conduct collaborativedeliberations in the classroom and in the field. The third and final engagement,a practicum, puts students on-site with their client to address opportunities forstrategic change.

The intersections of the projects with PBL come from student ownership ofthe learning process. They leverage a “double loop learning” feedback cycle (Ar-gyris, 1997) through 360° evaluations and regular coaching from course instructorsand faculty mentors. Students complete three different projects in different teamsand with different clients. They gain first-hand experience with several industries,different kinds of operations, and a range of management styles. It is important torecognize that faculty who serve as team mentors, instructors who play a coachingrole, and clients who collaborate with students to frame and solve problems alsobenefit from action learning (Raelin, 2007). The outcomes assessment processalso aligns with AACSB expectations, and includes longitudinal analysis of mul-tiyear evaluation data from clients, faculty (who teach in all disciplines), courseinstructors, and peers.

Analysis of multiyear, multisource assessment information from each en-gagement drives continuous improvement in curriculum design, pedagogy, andclient selection. During the program’s first seven years, students completed over100 engagements, creating internal value for program administrators, faculty, andstudents, as well as measurable value for external clients. In the first year, theconsulting engagements were offered as a noncredit professional developmentcomponent of the program. However, based on demonstrated contributions tolearning and retention as measured by the MBA Major Field test and the valueof the consulting experiences to career placement, students now earn six graduatecredits for the PBL coursework. The consulting methodologies, research expec-tations, and analysis activities are coordinated across all other coursework eachsemester.

A timeline of curricular improvements based on the 360° assessment ofstudent performance in the PBL consulting courses is summarized in Figure 3.Key improvements included the re-sequencing of courses, requiring specific typesof quantitative analyses as graded elements each semester, and rebalancing indi-vidual versus team graded assignments to motivate all members of the team tomeet standards (and safeguard against giving students grades that their teammatesearned without them). Historically, course ratings on a seven-point Likert scaletended to be less useful than the comments that accompanied the ratings. Thebest insights for instructors and program administrators come from listening toclients’ reactions to students’ presentations, faculty comments at rehearsals, andinstructor observations during class, group sessions, rehearsals, conference calls,


Figure 3: Curriculum evolution.

and client meetings. Periodic meetings with faculty who teach in the program,informal discussions with students, faculty, and clients, and regularly scheduledmeetings with each student team are invaluable for identifying concerns, andminimizing the risk that students make a poor impression on corporate clients.Other components of the continuous improvement process include exit interviewswith graduates and a faculty planning meeting each summer. The appendix offersanecdotal evidence of the value of PBL learning obtained from client and alumnicomments.

Recognizing that business schools have not met the expectations of recruitersand corporate stakeholders (Barr, 2002; Rubin & Dierdorff, 2009), we proposethat practical management applications be integrated into MBA curricula as oneway of preparing graduates for leadership challenges. The next section elaborateson the need for collaborative action, and shares insights into the evolution ofmultidisciplinary and collaborative PBL practices at one institution.

COLLABORATIVE ACTION: A PRIMER ON OUR APPROACH

In the proposed approach, MBA students apply what they learn in coursework tomeet the evolving needs of real world clients. For each project, student teams,under the guidance of course instructors and faculty mentors, deliver innovative


recommendations to clients via professional presentations and analytic reports.The courses have become a catalyst for the integration and collaboration of facultyacross disciplines. The problem-based learning model enables students, faculty,and participating senior and middle managers from local corporations to betteridentify and understand the hidden challenges of capitalizing on emerging oppor-tunities for competitive advantage through the responsible management of social,financial, and environmental resources. An unexpected advantage of the focus onintegrated bottom line thinking is that the students have cutting-edge theories andtools that were not available when the clients earned their MBAs; students oftenbecome the teachers, whereas clients offer context for the real-world theory andtools. This nurtures productive dialogue, collaboration, and knowledge sharingacross generations and disciplines that is impossible to foster during internshipsor classroom case studies and simulations.

Senge et al. (2007) posed a central question: How can we get beyond bench-marking to build learning communities? Our answer for academic institutions isthe use of courses that require cross-functional content integration and nontra-ditional human collaboration; graduate students work with high-level practicingprofessionals to solve real problems, and offer analysis and recommendations thathave financial, social, and environmental consequences; faculty (beyond course in-structors) serve as advisors for student teams, engage in first-hand learning aboutpractitioners’ emerging challenges in their disciplines, and pursue publication op-portunities related to the consulting projects that can be rewarded by promotionand tenure systems.

During the first seven years of the program, MBA students have workedwith over 100 clients, including small and large corporate, government, and not-for-profit organizations. They applied contemporary business management tools toachieve measurable results in a broad range of sustainability initiatives. All projectsexplored and defined emerging sustainable business practices while delivering newvalue to the client. Early in the development of a project scope of work, instructorsworked with project partners to ensure a focus on an integrated bottom line offinancial, social, and environmental performance. While most projects were withcorporate partners, projects with government and not-for-profit organizations werealso considered, usually for the capstone practicum, to demonstrate the value ofstakeholder engagement and the impact of sustainable financial gain in publicservice careers.

Students and faculty have helped project clients with decisions that had$15,000 to $40 million impact, and offered insight on a range of challengesassociated with the management of human, environmental, and financial re-sources. Students have initiated new revenue streams, developed business plans,designed process improvements, and conducted research with clients’ employ-ees, suppliers, and customers. In addition, they have coauthored and pub-lished papers, presented at conferences and workshops, and written pedagog-ical case studies. These accomplishments are the results of working withclients on emerging sustainability opportunities to improve decision-making pro-cesses, products, services, the management of human capital, and organizationalculture.


Positioned as purposeful experiential learning, the PBL courses provide acollaborative approach to pedagogy that is meant to enhance student intellectualdevelopment and personal development while simultaneously benefiting thosereceiving services (Schneider, Piotrowsky, & Kass, 2007). They recognize theimportance of a well-designed course structure (Dallimore & Souza, 2002) byrequiring students to set realistic objectives with clients, follow professional com-munication protocols, apply sound analytical and theoretical frameworks, involve arealistic scope of work, and seek peer-reviewed research perspectives. Askill-basedapproach was used to assemble teams and rotate project management responsibil-ities. The teams were also mixed in terms of gender, age, experience, and func-tional expertise. To include expertise beyond that of course instructors, faculty andcommunity experts were recruited to help students frame problems and developwork plans in areas in which neither instructor had the educational or practitionerbackground. Figure 4 offers an example of course objectives that are linked toprogram and school outcomes. Objectives include (1) offering a curriculum thatgives students managerial experience leading organizations towards economic,ecological, and social sustainability; (2) project work that gives students exposureto organizations as holistic systems and in which students communicate acrossorganizational levels, functional disciplines, and cultures in practical workplacesituations; and (3) the development of courses that go beyond academic case studiesand simulations; courses offer a professional proving ground to demonstrate thatMBA students can apply their graduate education, manage people and processes,and provide innovative, feasible solutions to improve an organization’s bottomline.

CHALLENGES OF A CROSS-DISCIPLINE PROJECT LEARNINGMODEL

Managing PBL engagements presents significant challenges and risks, and re-quires investment from instructors, institutions, and organizational partners. Thechallenges come in many forms including, but not limited to, institutional sup-port, instructor workload, managing engagements, performance evaluation, andknowledge integration.

Institutional Support

A PBL-based curriculum requires broad support and participation. Development ofa new full-time MBA program emphasizing sustainability and action learning wassupported by two business school deans, and championed by the university’s ViceProvost. A chaired professor was recruited to bolster expertise in sustainability.Two instructors (the chaired professor and an adjunct professor with executivemarketing experience) initially co-taught all three courses. Additional faculty havesince become co-instructors and broadened the students’ learning opportunities.Further curriculum development will take place be under the leadership of a newDean. Support at the university level comes from a promotion and tenure processthat favorably considers co-instruction and multidisciplinary courses as indicatorsof teaching excellence.


Figure 4: Course goals, learning objectives, and measurements used acrossproject field courses and practicum.

Course Goals Student Outcomes Measurement Techniques

To bring lasting value to aclient

• Identify opportunities to

improve competitiveness

or enhance reputation

• Recommend a strategic

change initiative

Frames problems, issues, sub-issuesFormulates hypothesesGathers and analyzes data toprove/disprove hypothesesProvides feasible proposals and implementation plans

Client satisfaction with projectdeliverables Forecast bottom line impact ofstudent recommendations Faculty evaluation of student projectpresentations

To provide a practical, on-the-job managerial experience

Manages socio/emotional challengesof achieving goals in the client’s workculture

Client and faculty observations ofstudent decorum and interfaces withstakeholders

To nurture systems thinkingtools and quantitativemethodologies for decision-making

Applies appropriate businessmodels and frameworksPrepares sound financial forecasts andexhibitsAnalyzes numerical data; providesmeaningful insightApplies technologyeffectively

Client and faculty evaluation of howwell students apply methodology andtools from core MBA courses

To seek innovative solutionswith triple-bottom-linebenefits

Understands stakeholder needs andorganizational risksConsiders short- and long-termconsequences of actionsQuantifies financial, social, andenvironmentalimpact

Client and faculty evaluation of projectdeliverables Usefulness of studentrecommendations to client (When/howimplemented?)

To foster effective smallgroup problem solving andcross-functional teamwork

Manages project effectively,balancing work across teamUses time and expertise of clientand faculty wiselyAnticipates/resolvesproblems

Instructor observationsClient feedback Peer evaluationsCATME feedback

To promote regionaleconomic development bysharing knowledge and bestpractices

Produces businesslike writtendeliverables worthy of publicationRecommends course of action that isadopted by client

Likelihood that client will implementrecommendations Faculty and client evaluation ofdeliverables Publication of case study

To prepare students formanagerial and leadershiproles in a competitive globalmarketplace

Plans and manages project frominception to completionDelivers promise to client − on timeand on specification

Client reported likelihood to sponsoranother project Client interest in hiring students fromourprograms

Instructor Workload

A caveat for instructors contemplating PBL with industry partners is that insti-tutional support and the potential strain on an instructor’s workload should firstbe assessed. This is particularly important for nontenured faculty consideringthe adoption of active learning pedagogies, and is further supported by obser-vations from Sharma and Hart (2014). Including a PBL project in an existingcourse is one way to start before adopting live consulting engagements as a fullcourse. Although live consulting from the outset was a differentiating feature ofthe program in this study, the projects carried no course credit during the firstyear.


Student buy-in and tangible learning improved when the field experiencesbecame required courses, with grades attached, as part of the core curriculumin subsequent years. With off-site client meetings and multiple teams, instructorworkload goes well beyond that of a regular class. Team teaching is one way tobalance the work while also drawing together faculty from different disciplines.If co-teaching or team teaching is an option, each participating faculty membershould be given credit for teaching a full course, as live projects involve morethan a typical course that uses readings and textbook. The co-instructors for thecourses in this study solicit client engagements by becoming visible leaders inindustry, community, and professional association activities—locally, nationally,and globally. They also engage industry partners in academic events. Findingclients and developing a scope of work that complements what students are learningin their coursework requires a significant time commitment from faculty. However,faculty members have a unique opportunity to learn about and discuss emergingbusiness issues when they invite potential corporate clients to consider engaginga student team to solve problems. Finding faculty with a personal dedicationto engaging external stakeholders as well as a passion for OR/MS educationwill make for a more robust outcome for all stakeholders—students, faculty, andclients.

Managing Engagements

Project management requires sophisticated skills for teamwork, time management,research, analysis, and communication. While students hone these skills workingon practical projects, the risk to the university’s reputation is considerable if stu-dents are not well supervised. Some projects (and some teams) require more facultyexpertise and oversight, especially when clients are seeking the application of cut-ting edge research, tools or models. One way to solicit projects is to use a webportal with a template that collects information about the nature of a proposedchallenge. Prior to beginning the course, a clear understanding of success fac-tors and roles for students and clients is important. While there are advantagesto having students prepare the scope document, beginning with a client-supplieddocument that articulates the challenge and expectations enables students to workproductively at the beginning of the term rather than spending half the semesterwriting a scope document.

Evaluating overall performance and individual versus team contributions isanother challenge. A multisource approach to assessment, using a separate rubricfor each audience, marries the strong theoretical expectations of faculty with thepractical perspectives of clients and professional development expectations ofgraduate students who are investing time and money to prepare for a leadershipcareer. Faculty are best equipped to determine whether the appropriate theoriesand tools were applied. Practitioners understand standards for professionalism.Student teammates can help to understand team dynamics. Having students listwhat each individual contributed before assigning a peer rating encourages theevaluation of performance and not personalities. Using class sessions and presen-tation rehearsals as opportunities for peer coaching develops student competencies


Figure 5: Peer evaluations.

in giving constructive feedback focused on improving performance. (Figure 5provides examples of peer evaluations of other teams, and an end of semester peerevaluation within a team).

Faculty mentors evaluate progress throughout engagements, and faculty atlarge attend dress rehearsals and provide suggestions for improvement before


Figure 6: Mid-project and final client evaluations.

deliverables are given to clients. At these rehearsals, faculty assess the extent towhich students have applied concepts from core MBA coursework, and rate per-formance (using a Likert scale), submit recommended grades, and offer advicebased on the following categories: Project Scope and Situation Analysis; Oppor-tunity Identification; Research and Analysis; Recommendations; Professionalism;and Application of MBA Theory and Coursework (how well did the team applyconcepts from their courses—this includes checking off a box for representativeclasses and using a Likert scale evaluation—on systems thinking, data analy-sis, ethics, sustainability theories and models, accounting, finance, value chain andoperations, environmental science, economics, public affairs management, sustain-ability tools and processes, strategic marketing, organizational behavior, projectmanagement).

Clients evaluate team performance during a mid-project review and after thesubmission of final deliverables at the client location (Figure 6 presents examplesof client assessment). Performance metrics mirror those used in the faculty eval-uations, and include the ability to articulate project scope and situation analysisand identify opportunities for integrated bottom line benefits, the presentation ofresearch findings, the analysis, robustness, and feasibility of recommendations,and professionalism. In addition, clients are asked to compare students’ work toexpectations of an employee with an MBA in their organization. Client evaluationsalso capture an overall rating for team grading purposes, and have the ability tocapture other comments.


Knowledge Integration

By itself, a stand-alone project-based course may be interesting to students andsome faculty, but real opportunities for cross-functional integration come whenstudents and business school faculty have regular, productive, problem-solvinginteractions. It is the opportunities at the intersection of PBL projects and businessschool faculty that integrate course content with the emerging paradigm of sus-tainability. Collaboration comes when faculty teaching core courses have enoughinformation about client expectations to bring project examples into their classes,and show students how to apply course content and functional tools to solve clientproblems. Ways to involve faculty include inviting them to critique student teampresentations, teach mini workshops, mentor teams, and evaluate presentationsand reports before deliverables go to clients. Weekly updates to faculty on projectprogress, issues teams may be facing, topics of interest, case studies, and executivespeakers, keep faculty interested. Our program is shepherded by a subcommit-tee of the graduate curriculum committee, and faculty meet regularly to discussgoals, course content, and opportunities to integrate MS/OR content and ensurethat students apply the best models and practices in their recommendations toclients.

Godfrey (1999) reminds us that faculty who engage in activities similar tothose in our project courses but with a focus on NGOs may not be rewarded bypromotion and tenure systems. To avoid such pitfalls or tradeoffs, we suggest aproactive approach to seeking projects that link to faculty interests, and attemptingto publish case studies and academic research in collaboration with client practi-tioners. Finding faculty advisors for projects becomes easier when the benefits gobeyond the satisfaction of helping student teams actively learn, or a line item for“service” on a vita.

Pursuing engagements that require primary data collection, the analysis ofhistorical data, and the examination of paradigm shifts can be rewarding endeavorsfor faculty looking to strengthen existing research agendas or start new researchstreams.

BENEFITS OF A CROSS-DISCIPLINE PBL MODEL

While there are many challenges to the development and delivery of a project-based course, there are numerous returns on the investment. From our experience,the major benefits include the integration of emerging paradigms, tying theoryto practice, knowledge sharing, integrated learning, and meaningful assessment.These are discussed in more detail.

The return on investment for schools with faculty who rise to the chal-lenge of PBL courses includes: improving a program’s image and differentiation,integrating analytics and decision making processes, having an engaged facultyworking on emerging challenges and opportunities, developing broad and rich stu-dent learning experiences, the job placement of students who worked on projects,and the recruitment of new applicants to a program that are looking for an appliedexperiential learning pedagogy.


We mostly seek corporate project sponsors for the live consulting componentof the program, while considering unique opportunities with NGOs and localgovernment. We also strive for an applied experience that demonstrates socialand environmental responsibility as drivers of financial success. The payoffs haveincluded external recognition by the Aspen Institute, which has on three biennialsurveys ranked the program among the top 25 globally for social and environmentalstewardship (2007–2008, 2009–2010, 2011–2012), the Moore School of Business,University of South Carolina, which awarded its Page Prize, and Treasury &Risk Magazine, which listed our Business School leadership as among the top100 most influential people in finance for introducing social and environmentalstewardship concepts to the business community. In addition, the authors havereceived the Aspen Institute Faculty Pioneer recognition, the Decision SciencesInstitute Instructional Innovation award, and our university’s Creative TeachingAward.

The benefits of PBL for the development of individual skills and the ca-pabilities needed for multidisciplinary teams should not be understated. Theyinclude multidisciplinary learning teams with students responsible for their learn-ing and project outcomes; meaningful work with multiple stakeholders facil-itating collaboration and analysis of alternatives; learning through outcomes,complemented by 360° feedback that results in learning ownership; and an in-novative pedagogy that is complemented by double and triple loop learning(Argyris, 1997). When students have background relevant to some aspect of aproject, they can collaborate with instructors to conduct classroom modules andshare their knowledge. Involving students (and other colleagues) reduces instruc-tor workload and creates opportunities for enrichment. Through live problem-solving experiences, students gain an understanding of their career options andsuitability for different kinds of work (Butin, 2003). The practical experience,knowledge, skills, and capabilities they acquire can also be highlighted on theirresumes.

The PBL component of a curriculum can open avenues for knowledge shar-ing, ownership of learning, and the development of 21st century skills, whilefostering dialogue with thought leaders, both regionally and internationally, inacademia and in the workplace. Outcomes align well with the essential charac-teristics of PBL outlined by Savory (2006) as operationalized in our conceptualmodel. It is through PBL that we see the greatest potential to: (1) apply classroomlearning to unstructured problems—supported by multiple perspectives, and testedby critical thinking that leads to more informed decisions – and put theory intopractice; (2) guide students to produce rich project deliverables (oral and written),and share knowledge with student teams that own learning that is reinforced byreflection; (3) encourage cross discipline integrated learning with OR/MS faculty,and collaborative deliberation with feedback and revision; and (4) craft meaning-ful assessment that demonstrates student acquisition of the 21st century skills thatare valued in the real world through the integrated management of resources anddecision processes. An assessment of these four areas and their contributions tomanaging human, environmental, and financial capital, and the decision makingprocess follows.


Tie Theory to Practice

Drawing on expertise throughout the university community, students apply learningfrom all business disciplines, and hone communication and project managementskills as they grapple with contemporary challenges facing their client organi-zations. Each student completes two projects and one on-site practicum duringthe year-long program, providing research, analysis, recommendations, and actionplans. Co-taught by a retired marketing and communication executive and threeacademics, the field project and practicum courses require students to engage in realworld problem-solving experiences with major regional businesses, governmentand not-for-profit organizations.

Share Knowledge

The partnerships developed through PBL courses can bring opportunities for re-search, executive education, and student placement. For example, students workedon faculty-supervised research projects with companies including Alcoa (life-cycle analysis, and value pricing models), PPG Industries (environmental productdeclarations and environmental profit and loss statements), Westinghouse (greenprocurement, zero waste, Greenhouse Gas displacement), the Green Building Al-liance (supply chain management, business development), Bayer Material Science(stakeholder communication, supply chain optimization), and FedEx (energy con-servation and forecasting). Some students have found career placements with theirclients after graduation. Faculty mentors have cultivated opportunities to writecases and articles. Because the projects are solicited independently of existingfaculty research, they have become a catalyst for faculty to serve as mentors andbuild on students’ work to start new research streams in an emerging area.

Integrated Learning

Godfrey et al. (2005), Boyle (2004), and Butin (2003) posited that student projectsimprove and broaden students’ understanding of management, skills, and applica-tion of technical knowledge. The integrated learning described in this study wassupported by working collaboratively with other stakeholders. Many membersof the university community actively support student efforts by volunteering asproject mentors. This includes faculty who teach courses in supply chain manage-ment, operations management, strategy, marketing, entrepreneurship, leadership,marketing, marketing research, systems thinking, information technology, envi-ronmental science, ethics, and business law. Through a purposeful approach toleveraging multiple perspectives, over 20 different mentors have participated, in-cluding an associate provost, deans, department chairs, chaired professors, tenuretrack faculty from other schools within the university, and adjunct faculty. Involv-ing new faculty has also offered a unique opportunity for tying the latest theoryto practice. Students are encouraged to seek advice from faculty in the sciences,mathematics, and law school, as well as members of university management in ex-ecutive education, the investment center, library, facilities management, and smallbusiness development centers. This outreach has created new inroads for PBL,sustainability, and the MBA program across campus.


Meaningful Assessment

Client evaluations are collected twice during each engagement, at the midpoint andcompletion, to determine the extent to which students’ work meets client expecta-tions of an MBA graduate. In addition to client feedback, Business School facultyattend student presentations to evaluate how well students are able to apply learn-ing from coursework. In the spirit of continuous improvement, presentations arerecorded and video files posted on the school Intranet to facilitate student and teamself-assessment and ownership of learning. The videos provide documentationof improvements in research, analysis, and presentation skills from orientationthrough the Fall, Spring, and Summer semesters. Since delivering the courses,client ratings have ranged from “good” to “exemplary for MBA students,” the twohighest evaluation criteria, on all projects. This is a testimony to the quality controlprocesses instilled in the course structure, and the success of the faculty mentoring.Additional validation of student skill development has evolved and is now part ofa semester by semester peer review process that is facilitated by CATME.org, andprovides tools and information to students and faculty related to the progress ofteams, peer evaluation, and development of individual skills. Although studentstake accelerated, condensed courses in core business disciplines in order to com-plete their MBA in 12 months, they have consistently demonstrated the abilityto apply concepts from core courses in their consulting work as called for byBell (2010). As a more objective measure of outcomes, students were also giventhe Educational Testing Services Major Field Test for MBAs before graduation,and outperformed an overwhelming majority of candidates who had completedtwo-year degree programs.

CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS

PBL is an instructional strategy that promotes active learning that can be usedto engage MBA learners in higher order thinking such as analysis and syn-thesis. While analytical classes in the decision sciences also foster higher or-der thinking, they tend to diminish the learner’s role in setting goals and out-comes for the “problem.” When expected outcomes are clearly defined (suchas when solving problems in the back of a textbook, or setting specificationsfor a desired product), there is little need or incentive for a student or teamto set his/her own parameters. In the real world, defining the problem, askinggood questions, analyzing data, and developing a solution (or range of possi-ble solutions) are valuable lifetime skills and recognized competencies of thewell-educated.

Developing and delivering a PBL-based curriculum takes considerable co-ordination and hard work. The proposed approach offers numerous challenges forfaculty, yet greater returns than investments in the form of enhanced reputations,knowledge growth for students and instructors, research and publishing opportu-nities, increased enrollments, and the ability to place students with employers ofchoice after graduation. While business schools are expected to prepare a newgeneration of managers and functional specialists for an ever-changing economy,organizations want graduates with different knowledge and skills. PBL courses


with a focus on sustainability fill a significant gap that many organizations cannotfill via training (Ashridge & EABIS, 2010; Sharma & Hart, 2014).

Organizational partners are interested in sponsoring live consulting projectsthat promote the intellectual and personal development of their future leaders, whilebenefiting the bottom line. MBA students find this approach to learning personallymeaningful, and develop marketable skills for framing and solving problems, andapplying advanced decision making tools.

The generalizability or viability of adopting PBL pedagogy has limitations.Schools in large cities may be fortunate to have corporate partners at their doorstep,and a network of organizations who are eager to identify, understand, and mea-sure the impact of sustainable business practices. For faculty in more rural areas,an experiential learning approach to partnering with large multinational firmsmay not fit given their school’s location. If administrators and faculty in anylocation look to organizations that hire their graduates, they are likely to findwilling partners for tying theory to practice, especially at manufacturing and ser-vice organizations. While research and data collection done on-site by studentsis often focused on operational or tactical issues, the findings provide opportu-nities for strategic planning with project partners, and for the use of best prac-tices in sustainability to reduce costs and enhance competiveness and profits.The proposed approach purposefully enables students to manage human capitaland develop effective decision-making competencies, while gaining competencein cross-functional, collaborative problem-solving and the application of analytictools.

Godfrey, Illes, and Berry (2005) suggested that there were significant prob-lems of narrowness in business education. They called for balanced academicrigor, and opportunities for analysis that have practical relevance and are set inthe context of civic engagement. This furnishes students with a broader, and,they argue, richer, educational experience. In this vain, project courses are a gamechanger for business education. They also offered four specific critiques of businesseducation: “(1) the business curriculum focuses on functional and discrete ratherthan cross-functional and holistic knowledge; (2) coursework emphasizes practicalproblem-solving “tool kits” rather than deep theoretical knowledge; (3) the under-lying paradigm of business education views humanity and human interactions inpurely transactional terms; (4) the grounding morality of business education as-serts the supremacy of shareholder wealth.” Based on our experience with PBL,the pedagogy presents a needed counterpoint to the four critiques regarding thenarrow focus of business education.

Future MBA pedagogy will not be the chalk and talk lectures of the past,with students confined to the classroom. Instead, an integrated, collaborative ap-proach to thematic PBL will find faculty and students working side by side on realproblems. The classrooms of the future will be on-site with partners at manufac-turing sites and within supply chains, and will allow students to touch, see, andexperience the risks and rewards of applied learning. Today’s organizations de-mand versatile managers with a broad array of critical thinking skills for managingdiverse stakeholders, establishing processes, analyzing big data, solving complexproblems, and leading transformative change. Tomorrow’s organizations will con-tinue to demand these attributes of MBAs. However, they will also be collaborative


partners in tying theory to practice, sharing knowledge, integrating learning withacademic institutions and within their own organizations, and contributing to themeaningful assessment of 21st century business pedagogy.

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APPENDIX: TESTIMONIALS

Clients:� “I wish I could hire all 26.” – Global Head of Sustainability, H.J. Heinz� “(The four of us) have 123 years of combined experience in business,

and we were all impressed with the quality and delivery of the project.The students have a very impressive business foundation, and it isapparent that the program is doing a great job. – Director NorthAmerica HR, MSA, 2010

� “Overall, this was a thought provoking presentation. The subject is atough one due to the evolving nature of the concepts and the debate and


subjectivity around value drivers. The team did a good job wrestlingwith this given the level of data they had access to.” – Director ofTechnology, PPG, 2012

� “They did an extraordinary job with a very difficult subject. Thenatural gas market is very volatile and the group had to make somechanges in the middle of the project. The market is also very difficultto understand and predict. Katie mentioned a conference call shewas on that talked about research conducted by several PhD’s and ahuge budget. The group was able to mirror their results without thebackground or resources. The group was also very easy to work with.I received updates when scheduled and was always kept up to speedwith their progress. They were also very professional and impressive.”– Communications Manager, EverPower Wind Holdings, Inc., 2012

� “Excellent Job, I was looking for two things out of the work and wereceived them both. 1st a ‘primer’ out current landscape on whatsocial media, then a plan. It was good to see how the group reallyadjusted the study from the midpoint review to the final deliverable.”– Commercial Manager for North America, Braskem, 2013

� “Very well done. This was a well-reasoned and researched approach.Good assessment of risks as well as Free Due Diligence! Overall greatjob. – Principal Data Protection & Privacy Services, PWC, 2013

� “Very strong presentation and great flexibility in adjusting the scopeand key deliverables as the project progressed. Very professional andresponsive, and thorough analysis of opportunities.” – SustainabilityManager, Wesco, 2012

� “Excellent work. The students were fully engaged and energized in theproject. They asked appropriate questions to dig deeper and to refinetheir work product. The presentations were concise and extremelyprofessional. Overall, their work product gave me another reason tobe a proud graduate of Duquesne’s MBA program.” – Global Environ-mental Health and Safety Compliance, Alcoa, 2014

Alumni:� “The MBA program gave me the confidence to make the business case

for sustainability to a diverse group of stakeholders.” – Senior Managerof Corporate Social and Environmental Responsibility at JC Penney (Classof 2010)

� “From interacting with clients to decipher their needs, to working withthe cohort to develop and hone your expertise in sustainability, pub-lic speaking, and leadership, the MBA program continually seeks tochallenge you. However, if you are willing to learn and engage in theexperiences, I guarantee you will come out a stronger, more effectiveand efficient business savvy individual.” – Marketing Analyst, GreenMountain Coffee Growers (Class of 2010)


� “I can speak in both the language of business and sustainability, so thateveryone understands the importance of our efforts.” – SustainabilityDirector, Chapman University, Los Angeles (Class of 2010)

� “We worked on high level, strategic projects that were great preparationfor the working world. The skills the projects give you are necessary andrelevant today.” – Strategy Manager, Direct Energy, Pittsburgh (Class of2010)

� “When we did our MBA consulting projects, we dealt with people whowere high up in the organization; for example, we presented to a dozentop executives in the board room at UPMC.” – Project Manager, Google(Class of 2013)

� “The coursework and consulting projects developed essential skills, no-tably the ability to make the whole of a team greater than the sum of itsparts and pull value and creativity out of ambiguous business situations.”– Sarah Ash Evens, Huron Consulting (Class of 2010)

� “The me of 18 months ago would barely recognize my life right now!” –Director, CCS Consulting, San Francisco (Class of 2014)

� “I lead cross-functional teams to develop and implement sustainabil-ity initiatives. The MBA program gave me the confidence to make thebusiness case for sustainability to a diverse group of stakeholders.” –Director of Facilities & Sustainability, Phipps (Class of 2010)

� “The consulting projects immediately apply what you are learning.”– Design Engineer, Hermann Miller Furniture, Grand Rapids (Class of2010)

� “I’m helping to lead the change toward a more sustainable economy.” –Project office, Carbon Disclosure Project, London (Class of 2011)

Robert Sroufe is the Murrin Chair of Global Competitiveness, and a Profes-sor of Sustainability, Operations, and Supply Chain Management in the John F.Donahue Graduate School of Business at Duquesne University. Within the MBASustainability program he develops and delivers courses on Sustainable Theoriesand Models; Business Applications of Sustainability; and oversees Problem BasedLearning consulting projects every semester with corporate sponsors. The MBASustainability program is a top ranked MBA program in the U.S. by CorporateKnights, and a top ranked MBA program internationally by the Aspen Institute.His research with global corporations involve Sustainable Business Practices, Sus-tainable Operating Systems, and Sustainable Supply Chain Management. He haspublished in the numerous academic and environmental business journals includ-ing the Production and Operations Management Society, Journal of OperationsManagement, European Journal of Operational Research, International Journalof Operations and Production Management, International Journal of ProductionResearch, the International Journal of Production Economics, and books on De-veloping Sustainable Supply Chains to Drive Value: Management Issues, Insights,and Tools; and Strategic Corporate Environmental Management Systems.


Diane P. Ramos co-teaches the live consulting project and practicum coursesthat anchor the full-time MBA Sustainability program at Duquesne Universityand serves as associate director of the Donahue School of Business. She hasbroad practical experience in marketing management and consulting with multi-national corporations and has been teaching marketing, communication and publicrelations courses, primarily at the graduate level, for over 25 years. Her work hasbeen published by the Journal of Applied Marketing Theory, International Journalof Sport Communication, Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, andAmerican Management Association. She holds a BA and an MBA from theUniversity of Pittsburgh.

Leveraging Collaborative, Thematic Problem-Based Learning to Integrate Curricula

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