Introduction: The Perfect Storm and Broadened Portals:Benefits of Diversity and Inclusion in Business Schools

摘要

Both articles in this issue's Essays, Dialogues, & Interviews section call for more diversity and inclusion in business schools. Susan McTiernan and Patricia Flynn's essay asks if a "Perfect Storm" is on the horizon for women business school deans. McTiernan, associate dean at Quinnipiac University, and Flynn, of Bentley University, point out the scarcity of women business school deans. The authors first report on data collected from AACSB International on sex, tenure, and other descriptors of business school deans. Overall, at about 15% of deans of AACSBmember schools, women are significantly less likely to be deans than undergraduates (43%), master's students (37%), and doctoral students (38%). Despite women currently comprising only 15% of all deans, their numbers are increasing-up from less than 7% in 1997. McTiernan and Flynn propose that changes in the nature and demands of the dean's job, a growing pipeline of qualified women, and a critical mass of women deans could pave the way for further increases in women deans. Calls for more participatory, collaborative, nonhierarchical, and community-building leadership are contributors to this perfect storm. Although they do not support the existence of stereotypical "feminine" and "masculine" leadership styles, McTiernan and Flynn do argue that a changing business school climate that makes both "traditional" and "alternative" leadership characteristics increasingly desirable might lead to further increases in women deans. They also point out how the presence of women deans may have a positive spillover effect on other aspects of diversity. Some women deans, they argue, will be more likely to attend to unsupportive organizational cultures and subtle and not-so-subtle forms of discrimination that women and minorities often face in business schools (e.g., Kelan & Jones, 2010). The presence of women deans may also positively affect attraction and retention of women business students. The authors also provide recommendations for fostering important changes in business schools.