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Theory-practice gap: MBA curricula as preparation for business practice in marketing

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Theory-practice gap: MBA curricula as preparation for business practice in marketing

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Content Running head: PREPARATION FOR BUSINESS PRACTICE IN MARKETING 1

THEORY-PRACTICE GAP: MBA CURRICULA AS PREPARATION FOR BUSINESS
PRACTICE IN MARKETING

by
Chequeta D. Allen

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

May 2019

Copyright 2019 Chequeta D. Allen
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 2
Dedication
To the spirit and loving memory of my father, who passed away en route to my home the
summer before I began my doctoral work, for giving joy to life through teachings and humor, for
inspiring me to stand tall, aim high, and persevere in spite of adversity.
To my parents for setting the example of hard work and giving back in service and
charity to the community and to the most vulnerable.
To my children - you mean everything to me. To my son Matthew, with love.
To my astute, stylish daughter, Cena, for sharing my journey with your discerning
opinions, late-night calls and meticulous transcriptions.
To my enlightened, perceptive son Brandon, for introducing humor to displace stress and
fatigue with light and laughter, for house-sitting, preparing nutritious shakes and encouraging
gym workouts, and for offering sage and timely illumination, especially during the final days of
this journey.
To the brilliant, awe-inspiring educators and leaders throughout my life who chose to
work with me, pushed me beyond conventional boundaries, opened doors and empowered me,
and gave me unimaginable social capital from their influence.
To my east coast-west coast trusted confidants, treasured friends and loved ones, for your
enduring belief in me, your patience with my physical and emotional absence from celebrations,
vacations and gatherings, and for your unrelenting support.
I am overwhelmed with love and gratitude for you all.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 3
Table of Contents
Dedication 2
List of Tables 5
List of Figures 6
Abstract 7
Introduction of the Problem of Practice 8
Context of the Field of Practice 10
Importance of Addressing the Problem 13
Global Goal and Current Performance 15
Stakeholder Group for the Study 18
Purpose of the Project and Questions 21
A Gap Analysis Problem-Solving Approach 23
Methodological Approach 23
Review of the Literature 26
A Review of the Literature: Relevancy of the MBA Curricula 27
Graduate Management Education Not Keeping Pace with Industry Trends 27
History and Evolution of MBA Curricula 28
Preparation for Business Practice in Marketing 29
Instructional Design for MBA Teaching in the Classroom 31
The Development of Faculty Teaching Strategies 33
Faculty Knowledge, Motivation, and Organizational Influences 34
Knowledge Influences 34
Motivation Influences 42
Organization Influences 50
Summary of Influences 55
Conceptual Framework: The Interaction of Faculty Knowledge, Motivation and the
Organizational Influences 57
Participating Stakeholders: Research Sampling and Recruitment Narrative 59
Survey Criteria Sampling and Rationale 60
Interview Criteria Sampling and Rationale 61
Documents and Artifact Analysis 63
Data Analysis 64
Study Findings 64
Findings for Research Question 1 65
Findings for Research Question 2 66
Findings for Research Question 3 77
Organizational Findings 78
Document and Artifact Analysis 97
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences 100
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan 111
Implementation and Evaluation Framework 111
Organizational Purpose, Need and Expectations 112
Level 4: Results and Leading Indicators 113
Level 3: Behavior 115
Level 2: Learning 119
Level 1: Reaction 121
Evaluation Tools 122
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 4
Conclusion 125
References 127
Appendix A: Protocols 142
Appendix B: Credibility and Trustworthiness 154
Appendix C: Validity and Reliability 156
Appendix D: Ethics 158
Appendix E: Level 2 Evaluation Tool 160
Appendix F: Level 1 Evaluation Tool 161
Appendix G: Blended Evaluation Tools 162
Appendix H: Study Participant Summary Statistics 163

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 5
List of Tables
Table 1: Field Mission, Field Global Goal and Stakeholder Performance Goals 18
Table 2: Profile of 8 Full-time MBA Faculty Interview Participants 22
Table 3: Knowledge Influences 41
Table 4: Motivation Influences 49
Table 5: Organization Influences 54
Table 6: General Literature Summary of Assumed Influences for Faculty 56
Table 7: List of Marketing Course Textbooks and Readings Reported by Faculty Interviewed 70
Table 8: Faculty Views on Institutional Support for teaching 79
Table 9: Instructor Suggestions for Ways Institutions Might Better Reward Teaching
Excellence 88
Table 10: How Faculty Build and Utilize Their Communities of Practice 90
Table 11: Faculty Comments on Data-Related Teaching Strategies for Skill Competencies 96
Table 12: Summary of Artifact Observations for Knowledge, Skills and Data-Driven
Innovation 98
Table 13: Summary of Artifact Observations for Instructional Design, Tools, Topics and
Textbooks 99
Table 14: Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations 101
Table 15: Summary of Motivation Influences and Recommendations 103
Table 16: Summary of Organization Influences and Recommendations 107
Table 17: Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes 113
Table 18: Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation 115
Table 19: Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors 117
Table 20: Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program 121
Table 21: Components to Measure Reactions to the Program 122

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 6
List of Figures
Figure 1: Diagram of MBA theory-practice gap conceptual framework. 58
Figure 2: Percent of faculty who reported specific institutional resources to develop new course
content. 80
Figure 3: Percent of faculty who reported benefits from receipt of data or technology-related 84
Figure 4: Percent and type of faculty who expressed that teaching rewards should be better
clarified. 86
Figure 5: Percent of faculty who rely on self-initiated communities of practice to deliver data-
driven instruction. 91
Figure 6: Percent of marketing faculty who reported reliance on supplemental data-related 97
Figure 7: Plan Do Check Act improvement model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). 124
Figure 8: Return on investment measures (Brinkerhoff & Mooney, 2016). 125
Figure 9: Faculty participants by appointment rank. 163
Figure 10: Faculty participants by tenure status. 164
Figure 11: Faculty participants by gender. 164
Figure 12: Faculty participants by institution type 165
Figure 13: Faculty participants by age. 165

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 7
Abstract
This study examined the theory-practice gap between MBA graduate school curricula and
business practice in marketing. The findings show that both the practice of marketing and the
MBA marketing curricula have been disrupted by pervasiveness of data and information
technology requiring changes in how the work is accomplished and how marketing is taught. As
specialized technical skills in marketing have become a key component for success and growth
in business, marketing practitioners in corporate settings must be aware of emerging industry
trends and accomplish their work differently. The study findings demonstrated the speed of
technological innovation may be moving faster than higher education’s ability to adapt (King,
2015). Furthermore, the study confirmed that the field of faculty stakeholders has adapted on
their own (Schlee, 2010), largely due to strong self-schemas and informal communities of
practice enabling them to teach data-related marketing skill competencies. Because curricular
adaptation to emerging trends is necessary, tougher AACSB Assurance of Learning policy
changes and institutional alignments are needed to ensure course content remains relevant.
Recommendations are provided that can benefit faculty stakeholders through changes in
institutional structures, cultures, models and rewards to enhance instructional design and
promote innovation in order to achieve teaching excellence reflective of emerging industry
trends in marketing.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 8
Introduction of the Problem of Practice
Misalignment of the Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree curriculum with
business practice has been a topic of debate among stakeholders stemming back nearly 2
decades. Hernandez (2015) found one key problem of practice was a lack of incorporating
management theory with business applications. Rosenberg, Heimler, and Morote (2012) found
evidence “the gap among employers, educators, and students about employability skills has
continued and possibly widened” (p. 69). The resulting MBA theory-practice gap is a well-
documented problem of practice with evidence pointing to the need for business schools to
rethink the existing MBA value proposition (Datar, Garvin, & Cullen, 2011; Hernandez, 2015;
“Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013). As members of Harvard Business School’s MBA
program review committee, Datar et al. (2011) rendered their 2011 curriculum review as a
critique of MBA education more generally (Beenen, 2011). The 2011 review found evidence the
MBA theory-practice gap has caused a “two cultures” problem, not only raising questions about
the relevance of research to practice but also giving rise to “the coexistence of two largely
separate, independent communities – academics and practitioners” (p. 7).
This is an evaluative study following an executive dissertation format and will serve to
aid general business MBA programs by documenting their progress in meeting the Association
to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International (AACSB) goal of implementing data
analytics in the marketing field. There is an abundance of research which confirms business
school curricula need reform in order to deliver state-of-the-art subject matter and become more
relevant to business needs (Bennis & O’Toole, 2005; Datar et al., 2011; Hernandez, 2015;
Mintzberg, 2005; Naramore, 2012; “Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013). Further evidence
from Datar et al.’s 2011 review points to specific unmet skill needs and an erosion of student
academic engagment.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 9
Among unmet knowledge and skill needs, the presence of digital innovation in the
general marketing field has caused some programs to lag in adapting curricula with changing
business environments (Finch & O’Reilly, 2012; Pfeffer & Sutton, 2011, 2013). The speed of
technological innovation and business demands is moving faster than higher education’s ability
to adapt (King, 2015). In an independent peer review of Datar et al.’s 2011 general education
review, published in (“Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013) the authors’ initial findings were
reaffirmed, specifically calling for rebalancing MBA curricula to emphasize theory limitations
and focus more on skill-building so that managers have both the ability to think and do. Both,
along with adaptation to industry trends, are necessary program requirements to prepare
graduates for 21st century management practice roles in marketing (Rosenberg et al., 2012;
Sulphey, 2015).
According to the National Academy of Sciences (2017) Information Technology
Workforce Report, “recent years have yielded significant advances in computing and
communication technologies, with profound impacts on society…transforming the way we work,
play, and interact with others… (resulting in emergence of) …new industries, organizational
forms, and business models” (p. 1). In the field of marketing, marketing and communications
practitioners consume electronic data from information technology techniques. Specifically,
marketing practitioners now rely on data analytics to conduct data-driven marketing. The focus
of this evaluative study is on the function of marketing because of its ubiquitous nature, and the
fact that industries have been disrupted by the prevalence of massive data such that the way
marketers do their work has changed significantly, including competitive intelligence, marketing
analysis, and how customers are engaged (National Research Council, National Academies
Press, 2013). Furthermore, the marketing function is now viewed as an intangible asset because
data prevalence has given the marketing function much greater intrinsic value to business
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 10
strategy. Quinn, Dibb, Simkin, Canhoto, and Analogbei (2016), Berger (2010) and Slettemeås
(2009) reported “marketing as a domain is inescapably driven by advances in technology, where
every electronically enabled consumer becomes a research participant, driving the realization of
a digitally encoded Orwellian society” (p. 8). According to Arthur (2013), data-driven marketing
is “the engine behind improved marketing results and it creates measurable internal
accountability as marketers become more effective in planning, executing, and proving the value
of their work” (p. 11).
Context of the Field of Practice
In conducting this evaluative field study to address the problem of practice, it was
important to consider the context of the field of full-time two-year residential MBA faculty in
marketing. The context of the field can be described as the conceptual framework, or the system
of concepts, assumptions, expectations, beliefs, and theories that support and inform the research
conducted (Maxwell, 2013). The conceptual framework for the study was based on Merriam and
Tisdell (2016) and relies on concepts, models and theories from three different disciplines and
domains: business practice, graduate education and faculty training and development. Using the
Clark and Estes (2008) framework, and drawing from the three domains, a discussion is
presented about the assumed influences of faculty in achievement of the stakeholder and field
goal of including data-driven marketing skill competencies in marketing to close MBA skill gaps
by September 2020. The influences described impacting faculty performance were examined
using the methodology outlined below.
Tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure track full-time faculty in marketing departments of
residential two-year MBA programs are affected by the Association to Advance Collegiate
Schools of Business International’s (AACSB) urging that MBA curricula keep pace with
disruptive technology and include digital innovation content that is prevalent in the marketing
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 11
field (Finch & O’Reilly, 2012). There are very few studies that have effectively measured job
readiness of MBA graduates across both top-tier and lower ranked business schools. In a recent
attempt, a 2016 study led by Infosys consultant and UT Dallas adjunct professor Jeff Kavanaugh
was published in the January 2017 issue of Poets & Quant (Schmitt, 2017). Kavanaugh’s study
sustained the ongoing debate about the presence of the knowing-doing gap in MBA curricula.
However, because the study also included undergraduate business students in addition to MBAs,
the findings lost credibility and were not fully embraced by stakeholders. Kavanaugh surveyed
10,000 corporate recruiters, 3,000 business students, and 500 business school career center
leaders and found the three stakeholder groups held very different perceptions of what is
important to be considered job-ready. While MBA students prioritized leadership, creative
thinking and career management, employers valued information technology, specialized skills
like critical and systems thinking, collaboration, professionalism, new and emerging industries,
and work ethic (AACSB, 2016; Saban, 2000; Schmitt, 2017; Sulphey, 2015).
The AACSB was founded in 1916. Its overall mission is to advance quality management
education worldwide through accreditation and thought leadership (AACSB, 2017). AACSB
collected data from its 785-member schools of business in 62 countries and territories,
representing six continents (AACSB, 2017), and found the traditional two-year residential MBA
program now accounts for only 40% of MBA degrees conferred by AACSB-accredited business
schools (Datar et al., 2011) and is typically focused around certain disciplines. According to
Pfeffer (2012), “Business schools are legitimate because there are so many of them and they
become more legitimate the more they are discussed, described and written about” (p. 22).
One key issue concerning business school curricula is that MBA practicing managers,
comparatively with other professionals, have no common body of knowledge and sit for no
formal educational examination and licensing for members (Armstrong & Fukami, 2009). The
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 12
disciplines of focus for accredited business schools are self-selected. The general make-up of
AACSB-accredited business schools includes 36.9% of programs focused on general business,
14.5% highlighting management, 7.7% targeting finance, and 5.6% emphasizing marketing. The
remaining percentage of programs includes focus on a mix of disciplines (Van Auken, Chrysler,
& Wells, 2016; eNewsline, 2015; Van Auken, 2005). Because accreditation is reflective of the
highest standard in graduate business education, gaining accreditation from AACSB is critical to
attracting top faculty and top graduate business student applicants from around the globe.
Although the majority of existing accredited schools are in the United States, today’s fastest
growing market of newly organized business schools seeking accreditation is outside the country
(AACSB, 2017). For the problem of practice, the intent of AACSB’s global goal for the field is
to help MBA curricula keep pace with disruptive technology, particularly in marketing, to meet
business needs and for educational content of faculty to address the presence of digital
innovation in the marketing field (Finch& O’Reilly, 2012). The rate and type of curricula reform
necessary may vary across programs. A primary purpose of the study was to help clarify what
percentage of AACSB-accredited full-time two-year MBA programs have fully implemented
data analytics to teach data-driven marketing concepts in their marketing curricula.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 13
Importance of Addressing the Problem
The MBA theory-practice gap was important to address for many reasons. Datar et al.
(2011) found a cumulative impact of trends and forces driving MBA programs to a crossroads,
concluding that programs “needed to: reassess the facts, frameworks, and theories that they teach
(the “knowing” component), and pay more attention to developing (the “doing” component) or
skills, capabilities, and techniques that lie at the heart of the practice of management” (p. 456).
From an academic program credibility perspective, MBA programs have sought to ensure
adequate knowledge, skill and competency levels of management graduates prior to their
entrance into corporate roles (Almog-Bareket, 2011; Schmitt, 2017). The recommendation to
rebalance MBA education away from a primary focus of knowing and more toward doing and
being (Datar et al., 2011; “Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013) sought to reduce the theory-
practice or knowing-doing gap that results from deficiencies in specialized skills, attitudes and
beliefs. This finding echoed that of Schlee and Harich’s (2010) earlier study results which
advocated MBA programs needed to find a balance between knowledge and skills needed by
graduates for early career readiness as well as later career advancement.
From a commercial perspective, MBA programs might want to consider that gaps in
theory and practice are costly to organizations. Without doing skills, graduates are unable to
effectively implement their knowledge, and without being skills, graduates are unable to
recognize, circumvent or navigate through certain professional and ethical hurdles presented
throughout their career (“Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013). As a consequence of the gap in
theory and practice, businesses experienced an impact on their effectiveness because
organizational performance depends chiefly on how skilled managers are at knowledge transfer
(Pfeffer & Sutton, 2011, 2013). “The collective evidence unambiguously shows managers as a
central factor in organizational effectiveness” (Rubin & Dierdorff, 2011, p. 149). Furthermore,
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 14
when MBA curricula and businesses are not in lock-step, MBA graduates enter the workforce
lacking necessary specialized skills. Such skills are now considered a strategic component of
intangible assets (Naramore, 2012) that contribute to an organization’s success.
Although companies demand specialized business knowledge and skills, some business
schools had been slow to adapt to this demand and continued to deliver generalists to the
workforce (“Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013). According to the Content Marketing
Institute, the number of marketing professionals who were struggling to find talent grew by
320% from 2014 to 2015 (Gimbel, 2015). The marketing skills gap was continuing to grow, and
companies were not keeping pace with training. The high technology industry and practice of
B2B (business-to-business) marketing were two professional examples where specialized skills
and subject-matter knowledge deficiencies were found to be detrimental to businesses. In their
absence, organizational performance was potentially impacted (Pfeffer & Sutton, 2011, 2013).
Just as in the instance of high reliance on knowledge transfer for business success,
organizational effectiveness also depends highly on the ability of skilled managers to apply
theory to practice (Datar et al., 2011; “Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013). According to
Bersin by Deloitte’s Corporate Learning Factbook (Deloitte LLP, 2013) high technology firms
have made large investments in management training to keep pace with market trends related to
data impact. The Strategic Direction (“Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013) peer review of
Datar et al.’s 2011 research discovered MBA programs were still falling short in delivering the
necessary scope of business training for effective management practice. The 2013 peer review
and other earlier evidence showed when MBA graduates enter management positions skillfully
prepared for their respective roles, businesses were more likely to stand up to public scrutiny
(“Rebalancing MBA Education,” 2013), achieve their performance goals on time, waste fewer
resources, and return more to the economy in GDP (Pfeffer & Sutton, 2013).
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 15
Global Goal and Current Performance
Because the prevalence of data analytics in the practice of marketing had become so
pervasive in corporate and industry settings, in 2000, the AACSB began urging MBA programs
to update curricula to keep pace with disruptive technology. The National Academies of
Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (2013) released a special committee report referencing a
1995 notification, and emphasized a second 2012 notification, stating the practice of medicine
and the field of marketing were scientific areas being significantly impacted by massive data.
Technology is still disrupting business strategy and has been one of the greatest influencers of
change, forcing MBA programs to plan for adaptation (Daniel, 1998). Comparable to the field
and practice of medicine, in marketing, when curricula are not in lock-step with industry and
practice trends, instructional content becomes out-of-date, causing graduate students to be less
prepared for management practice roles.
In fields where technology is utilized as a strategic and integral business requirement,
response and adaptation to industry trends is a necessary instructional component for optimum
graduate preparation. In many of today’s 21st century corporate settings, data analytics
knowledge and skills are essential qualifications for business graduates’ skillful entrance into
marketing roles. The 2000 AACSB communication to MBA programs stated, “To remain
relevant to our students and to the ultimate consumers of our output, businesses, the marketing
curriculum must evolve with both the changing technological environment and the way
marketing is perceived by its own academic architects” (Schlee & Harich, 2010, p. 342).
Although companies now rely heavily on technology-driven marketing capabilities, MBA
programs may have been still struggling to fully integrate interactive technology into the
marketing curriculum (Schlee & Harich, 2010). By 2005, less than 20% of MBA programs had
begun including technology in marketing curricula (Schlee & Harich, 2010). Both effective
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 16
skill-building and adaptation to industry trends are essential academic components for preparing
MBA students to enter corporate roles in marketing and the high-tech industry in today’s
business settings. Following release of the initial AACSB report, Pfeffer and Fong (2004) wrote
“without a larger clinical or practice component, it is not clear that business schools ever will
impart much lasting knowledge that affects graduates’ performance” (p. 1501).
AACSB set the expectation that MBA curricula keep pace with disruptive technology and
include digital innovation content that is prevalent in the marketing field (Finch, 2012).
AACSB’s Assurance of Learning Standards around information technology have focused
primarily on content with less emphasis on how a subject is taught (AACSB, 2013; Crittenden,
2013). Business school deans and marketing department heads have assumed great
interpretation latitude when considering AACSB’s guidance in tying their individual program
missions and outcomes to the standards (Crittenden, 2013). Today, the “‘digital’ qualifier has
fallen away--digital marketing is now marketing in a digital world” (PR Newswire, 2016, p.1).
Previously, digital marketing was regarded as a tool to “create targeted and measurable
communication…to acquire and retain customers while building deeper relationships with them”
(Wymbs, 2011, p. 94). According to PR Newswire (2016) the use of digital marketing is now
pervasive that corporate consulting firm Gartner defines digital marketing as a “set of techniques,
enabled by technology, which allows a dynamic conversation…with influencers and buyers” (PR
Newswire, 2016, p. 1). This conversation includes the ability for an extended and detailed two-
way exchange via “electronic channels, including smart devices” (Zahay, 2015, p. 6).
Accenture defined use of technology for “social media marketing as a ‘game changer’ for
how businesses function because of the fundamental modification of communications between
companies and their customers” (Schlee & Harich, 2010, p. 133). Businesses now communicate
directly with their customers through social media. Skills or techniques, enabled by technology,
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 17
are referred to in all of the definitions. As a part of strategy, businesses use technology to drive
customer engagement, then measure impact of engagement on their business models to improve
performance.
The AACSB global goal for the field was that, by 2020, 100% of AACSB-accredited
full-time two-year residential MBA programs will develop and implement data analytics topics
into marketing curricula. Curricular modifications by 2020 will focus on emphasizing effective
MBA skill-building competencies and transfer of business knowledge in alignment with
emerging industry trends. These adaptations will not only support marketing faculty to teach
relevant content but also improve MBA graduate career readiness for corporate marketing roles
through professional development. Faculty in accredited full-time two-year MBA programs will
deliver professional development through course content in the form of specialized business
knowledge and information technology skills in marketing that satisfy learning under the
AACSB Standard 9 subcategory. The standard requires delivery of information technology and
statistics or quantitative methods that impact business practices. Relevant quantitative methods
topics might include data creation, data sharing, data analytics, data analysis, data mining, data
reporting, data science, and storage between and across organizations, including related ethical
issues. For the purpose of this study, the researcher used the term “data analytics” to explore
these topics.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 18
Table 1
Field Mission, Field Global Goal and Stakeholder Performance Goals
Field Mission
AACSB’s mission for the field is to advance quality management education worldwide through
accreditation and thought leadership.
(Section 2, Standard 9 subcategory, to include learning experiences that address general business and
management skills at mastery level in information technology topics impacting business practices.)
Field Global Goal
By 2020, 100% of AACSB-accredited full-time two-year residential MBA programs will develop and
implement marketing content with data analytics competencies to improve MBA graduate professional
development.
Stakeholder Goal
By September 2020, 100% of MBA faculty in AACSB-accredited programs will implement data-
driven marketing competencies via effective instructional strategies.

Stakeholder Group for the Study
Although a complete analysis would involve all stakeholder groups, including marketing
textbook authors, and would provide for complete anonymity of faculty whose syllabi have been
collected, for practical purposes, the stakeholder group of focus for this study was full-time
tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure track MBA faculty instructors of marketing appointed in
accredited full-time two-year residential general business MBA programs. Syllabi, faculty vitae,
faculty websites and marketing program home pages posted online were observed for
approximately 75 instances. Sites were selected randomly from general business MBA
accredited programs. Because syllabus collection was not completely anonymous, the aim of the
researcher was random selection. However, the possibility of sample bias was present due to
identification with names of faculty included in syllabi, names on faculty vitae and names on
faculty websites observed. The faculty group was selected because they are presumed to be the
primary curriculum content owners at full-time accredited MBA programs. As curriculum
content owners, faculty select textbooks or reading material for inclusion to translate their
knowledge and expertise into syllabi from which they disseminate business knowledge and skills
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 19
to MBA students. Because of faculty autonomy, course levels, and differences in course
direction, the same course can differ substantively across a marketing department within a
program (Beenen, 2011).
In graduate schools of business, the successful outcomes of students are viewed as a
significant measure of current program success, and regarded as a key metric of an institution’s
future program success. Student employment outcomes are regarded as one clear and reliable
metric that is tied to how well an academic program has delivered training preparation. The
successful performance of the faculty stakeholder group is central to positive student
employment outcomes and a critical element to a program’s achievement of both the AACSB
and institutional goal of developing knowledge and skill competencies. The process for selecting
the full-time faculty stakeholder group was based on the determination that all textbooks utilized,
and data contained in the marketing course syllabi are owned and generated by faculty. Unless
faculty initiate implementation of data-driven marketing content in courses and lead the
development of related knowledge and skill competencies in marketing through 2020, the goal of
closing the MBA skill gap in marketing, based on AACSB and MBA program priorities, would
remain at risk of not being achieved.
Until more recent years, tenured faculty in higher education had been a relatively stable
group with low turnover (Ehrenberg, 1991; Kezar, 2013). Nonetheless, over the past 11 years,
some shifts have appeared. At research-extensive universities, business schools’ reliance on full-
time tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty for classroom instruction has fallen by
about 6% (Graduate Management Admissions Council [GMAC], 2016). This decline is
enhanced by an increased reliance on part-time adjunct faculty (GMAC, 2013). By and large,
doctoral-trained business school faculty have little or no interest or experience as real-world
business practitioners (Bennis & O’Toole, 2005; Clinebell & Clinebell, 2008; Sulphey, 2015).
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 20
They are prepared to focus on instructional curricula from an academic perspective in a single
discipline, and their courses are subject to annual student surveys designed in part to evaluate
their teaching effectiveness. Their ownership of syllabus content and oversight of classroom
experience puts them in a position of accountability for student skill-building and business
knowledge. Because they hold a sustained instructional interaction with MBA students in
learning settings, faculty ultimately assume the primary role for authenticating student business
knowledge, specialized skills, and career role readiness. To some extent, based on their
adequacy of institutional preparation, faculty assume a role in MBA students’ post-graduate
employment success and longer-term potential for future career advancement.
In some instances, MBA faculty embrace their real-world experience limitations, and
seek to identify industry experts or external practitioners as sources of content or guest lecturers
to supplement their instruction. With this approach, they intentionally include subject matter
from non-doctoral guest lecturer experts in syllabi to help close the theory-practice gap. With
this small step, by recognizing their own influence and authority, faculty have been able to teach
what they know but more directly address emergence of current market trends and required skills
of new graduates in the field of marketing. While their teaching knowledge may be
supplemented by others, tenured, tenure-track and non-tenured faculty remain the definitive
owners of marketing course syllabi. Their influence weighs heavily on whether or not data-
driven marketing is included in courses as well as whether or not any information technology-
related or analytical skills, are taught based on market trends.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 21
Purpose of the Project and Questions
The purpose of this study, presented in the executive dissertation format, was to
document the progress of marketing faculty in implementing data analytics competencies in
marketing courses in full-time two-year residential general business MBA programs and to
examine and contribute to the discussion and debate on the theory-practice gap between business
school curricula and business practice in marketing. Undeniably, business schools have been
“walking a tightrope between the academic side of business and the practitioner side” (Pfeffer,
2013, p. 99). Since the 1960s, a discussion has ensued concerning the capability of MBA
graduates to use management knowledge and apply management skills into the practice of the
executive business world (Rubin & Dierdorff, 2009). Because recommendations were made
some time ago by AACSB, by now, large numbers of marketing faculty should have transitioned
toward compliance, aligning institutional program and AACSB goals. The study examined
general business MBA school faculty knowledge, skills, motivation, and organizational
influences related to teaching data-driven marketing in courses. The analysis considered how
these influences impacted faculty performance, by examining the capacity for 100% of AACSB
general business MBA programs to develop, implement and effectively deliver data analytics
knowledge and skill competencies in marketing by 2020. As noted previously, the stakeholder
group of focus was tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure track marketing faculty appointed to
teach full-time in full-time two-year residential general business MBA programs.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 22
Table 2
Profile of Eight Full-time MBA Faculty Interview Participants
Descriptor # of faculty
Male 3
Female 5
>50 3
<50 5
Assistant Professor 3
Associate Professor 2
Professor 3
Tenured 1
Tenure-track 5
Non-tenure track 2
Top 20 Program 3
>Top 20 Program 5

Four questions were examined in this evaluative study:
1. To what extent is the field meeting the AACSB goal of developing, implementing and
delivering data-driven marketing competencies via effective instructional strategies by
2020?
2. What is the faculty knowledge and motivation related to designing effective teaching
strategies to implement and deliver data analytics skill competencies in marketing
courses?
3. What is the interaction between faculty, organizational culture and context, and faculty
knowledge and motivation?
4. What are the recommendations for the field and MBA program organizational practice in
the areas of knowledge, motivation, and organizational resources?

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 23
A Gap Analysis Problem-Solving Approach
The gap analysis framework is a systematic problem-solving approach to improve
performance and achieve organizational goals (Clark & Estes, 2008). Although the gap analysis
framework is now being used in many different settings, its origin is in business (Clark & Estes,
2008) as an approach to problem-solving in real-world settings to address problems of practice.
Gap analysis is an important evaluative tool that clarifies both organizational and stakeholder
performance goals and, rather than relying solely on assumptions, provides a stepwise approach
that allows researchers to focus on specific causes of performance gaps (Rueda, 2011). Once a
performance gap has been identified, the framework examines stakeholder knowledge, skills, and
organizational influences that may be attributable to performance goals and organizational
success.
Methodological Approach
In conducting the study, Creswell’s (2014) explanatory sequential mixed methods
research design was deployed to engage the right faculty responders who develop and teach from
marketing syllabi to ensure a comprehensive analysis which was impactful, and could generate
new knowledge. The initial inclusion of both data collection methods was deliberate in support
of emergent design to provide social phenomena and context by allowing faculty to shape the
most important topics from their perspective to include for discussion in the study. Use of the
mixed methods approach was intended to offer much greater insight into the varied
circumstances of the business institutions of faculty and their unique experiences as tenured,
tenure track or non-tenure track academicians than any one approach alone.
As the topic of theory-practice gap in MBA curricula has generated a fair amount of
controversy, dialogue, and, to some extent, defensiveness among MBA faculty over the years
(O’Brien, Drnevich, Crook, & Armstrong, 2010), it was important to engage faculty in a manner
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 24
that was interesting, compelling and supportive to generate interest and participation.
Quantitative data collection began with randomly selecting faculty marketing syllabi using a
listing of AACSB accredited general business MBA programs. Online access to program
information provided the researcher immediate and direct data access for this phase of data
collection. By viewing faculty syllabi, inclusion of any type of primary marketing textbook
listed as a reference or required for the course was identified as well as whether or not data-
related assignments were included. After accessing syllabi and searching program faculty
directories and the research gate website, over 100 faculty were contacted via email with an
invitation to complete a 22-question written survey referencing a syllabus featured or a
marketing course they were listed as instructing. The qualitative segment of data analysis was
intended to help to confirm information gathered in the quantitative data collection (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016). The qualitative component provided for (a) inductive and deductive data
analysis, (b) individual faculty meaning expression, (c) support for emergent design to show
progress toward goal achievement (Creswell, 2014); (d) reflexivity based on my own MBA
program experience as a leader, and (e) placement of me as researcher at the center of the study
as an instrument based on MBA program and high technology marketing experience.
Along with invitation to complete the 22-question written survey, faculty were invited to
interview. Of over 100 faculty invited to complete the written survey, less than twenty faculty
members agreed to complete the written survey, causing selection bias for the qualitative phase
of the study. Of those faculty who completed the written survey, only one faculty member also
agreed to be interviewed. A total of eight faculty members agreed to be interviewed after
extending email interview invitations to 30 faculty members based on AACSB program listings,
marketing faculty web pages and faculty profiles available on the research gate website. One
faculty member was identified through use of the snowballing technique. Because of the faculty
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 25
members who refused to complete the survey or be interviewed, there was presence of selection
bias. Faculty with posted course syllabi were assumed to have the most knowledge about the
questions being researched. The textbook and reading material focus were important to engage
faculty to determine whether or not the textbook was seen as a central part of course content
development and to stimulate meaningful course-focused dialogue (O’Brien et al., 2010).
Faculty were given the opportunity to express their unique experiences and describe how they
have effectively engaged students, deployed innovation, remained relevant with marketing trends
and developed their marketing course content as a result of data prevalence in marketing. This
was particularly true for the qualitative phase of the study to ensure the opinions of a
representative sample of the broader population of general business program marketing faculty
were carefully reflected in the findings. Maxwell (2013) recommended selecting participants
best able to contribute to addressing the research questions for qualitative studies. The
interviews allowed faculty to say more about their experiences related to teaching IT in
marketing courses and their organizational circumstances such as what teaching strategies they
deployed, whether they believed teaching was valued in their institutions through rewards, and
what resources currently exist or could be added to support teaching. The snowball sampling
technique suggested by Maxwell was intended to help to identify additional faculty participants
to provide their viewpoints, adding to rich information. Also, as surveys and interviews were
conducted, faculty were asked to identify other colleagues to participate in order to create a
purposeful sample of individuals from the field. By allowing purposeful, non-random sampling,
the researcher sought to determine the subgroup of participants to include in the sample based on
knowledge and experience of participants in contributing to the questions for the study
(Creswell, 2014; Johnson & Christensen, 2015; Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 26
Review of the Literature
This review focused on knowledge, motivational and organizational performance
influences of the stakeholder group of faculty and their progress toward achieving the AACSB
field goal of including data analytics in MBA marketing courses by 2020. Although there are
four types of knowledge, factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive (Krathwohl, 2002),
for the purpose of this study, the focus was on faculty members’ conceptual and declarative
knowledge. Specifically, the data-driven marketing knowledge and skill-building practices of
faculty were examined. Motivational influences examined centered on self-efficacy and utility
value. Related to self-efficacy, faculty beliefs about their ability to facilitate data-related
learning transfer between marketing courses and the field were studied. Concerning utility
value, faculty perspectives on usefulness of teaching data-driven marketing content in courses to
close the skills gap were assessed. Concerning organizational impact, teaching resources and
cultural support for teaching excellence were evaluated.
For examining knowledge, motivation and organization (KMO) influences on teaching
performance and field goal progress, the literature review began with the latest documented
contextual information about the problem and provided historical information about the
accrediting body, AACSB, before moving into AACSB information on demand and
requirements for marketing education based on market trends. The research review extensively
covered assumed teaching performance influences on knowledge, motivation and organizational
circumstances.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 27
A Review of the Literature: Relevancy of the MBA Curricula
Graduate Management Education Not Keeping Pace with Industry Trends
A review of literature for the study focused on the history of the MBA degree and its
changes in relevance to market demand and business practice to date. Although the degree
remains popular (GMAC, 2016a, 2016c), the demand for keeping content current with business
needs is ever present. Questions concerning the relevancy of the MBA curricula have persisted.
The gap between management education and managerial work has been a topic of interest and
continued exploration. To some extent, MBA program curricula focus on institutional capital
and student interest (Rubin & Dierdorff, 2009) and are designated, in whole or part, to train
graduates for future corporate roles (GMAC, 2016b), and since the 1960s, a discussion has
ensued concerning the capability of MBA graduates to use management knowledge and apply
management skills into practice where executive business is performed. Given the sustained
debate about the MBA and its coursework, there is cause to both look forward and look back on
how higher education in business arrived at this point.
The ASTD 2011 National Academies Press state of the industry report (Green & McGill,
2011) noted a 13% increase in cost per employee on learning and development activities, with
greatest training directed to managerial and supervisory skill development. According to Hix
(2013), one of the most common criticisms of business leadership training has been the tendency
to focus on theory without fully considering the application of theory to practice. More studies
are needed that focus on knowledge transfer with respect to business performance. Typical
MBA curricula include lectures, case studies, videos and role-play, and some programs have
added simulation to remain relevant. These programs are obligated to remain relevant with
business environment needs. In recent years, MBA programs have been experiencing intense
scrutiny due to skill gaps. Business leaders, in particular, have been debating whether the core
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 28
mission of business institutions is both scholarship and practice. The MBA degree has a long
history that has evolved over time based on market conditions, and the once active debate about
reinvention appears to be somewhat stalled.
History and Evolution of MBA Curricula
The MBA began in the United States in the early 20th century, with a focus on
accounting and book-keeping, and has continuously evolved up until today, where new models
are emerging. Unlike other graduate programs, the MBA has never had a standard common
body of knowledge (Armstrong & Fukami, 2009), nor a required externship before graduation.
Managers, comparatively with other professionals, do not sit for a formal educational
examination or require licensing for members. Each program determines the required course of
instruction and necessary skills and competencies in order for students to meet business market
needs. Some suggest the future of business schools is in doubt because the research and teaching
missions may be compromised. Early program curricula were questioned for academic rigor
(Daniel, 1998). The 1916 founding of the AACSB impacted all programs. The addition of soft
skills and globalization aspects were seen as major enhancements. Harvard introduced case
method, and this greatly impacted most program curricula. Technology disrupted business
strategy and has been one of the greatest influencers of change, forcing programs to plan for
adaptation.
In 1988, Bloomberg Business Week rankings began and created a competitive element
for business school programs. By 2000, with such disruption from technology to business,
AACSB notified programs to prepare for technology disruption in educational curricula.
Technology disruption continued as Wharton released its curriculum on Coursera in 2013. With
disruption from technology escalating in business settings, the gap continued to widen between
theory and practice, causing some corporations to begin developing corporate MBAs (CMBAs;
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 29
Legge, Sullivan-Taylor & Wilson, 2007). Instruction for CMBAs was delivered by experienced
managers from single companies or groups of companies with customized learning based on
corporate needs. Later, CMBA programs began developing inter-organizational relationships
(IORs) to close skill gaps; programs like Ross, Booth, and others have adopted IORs.
Commoditization and stagnating enrollments began to signal the MBA, as the researcher
knew it, as a mature product in a saturated market (Welsh & Dehler, 2007). Additionally, in the
United States, changing traditions of promotion and tenure began to discourage all but highly
active researchers from teaching in business schools, and, according to Welsh and Dehler (2007),
there was a consequence to programs that isolated researchers and practitioners when, in most
environments, researchers and practitioners would be regarded as engaged collaborative experts.
Some programs began opening channels for action research, but this is the exception as emerging
new models rather than a norm. Some programs have adopted IORs, and certain technology
companies are actively training MBAs onsite, merging practitioners and MBA faculty. The
intent of MBA IORs is to enable direct student engagement with industry practitioners who can
describe how they are using the latest technology in marketing roles. Programs with support for
IORs have become sought after by MBAs seeking careers in technology firms as marketers in
order to learn firsthand what industry knowledge and skills are needed for high technology
industry successful performance as marketers.
Preparation for Business Practice in Marketing
This section will address marketing education in business schools and how faculty have
developed and delivered course content in AACSB-accredited MBA programs. In 2000, the
AACSB, the major accrediting body of global business schools, notified MBA programs they
should begin implementing technology in marketing courses because of concerns about
technology disruption.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 30
Marketing education in teaching-oriented business schools should produce productive
performers in business settings (Schlee & Harich, 2010). Schlee and Harich (2010) found that
marketing curricula had been slow to adopt technology focused on marketing specific topics and
recommended that marketing curricula needed to expand beyond conceptual knowledge and
include quantitative analysis skills and technical skills. One study of marketing jobs for four job
levels in four major metropolitan locations documented notable changes in the knowledge and
skills required by employers (Schlee & Harich, 2010). According to the study by Schlee and
Harich (2010), marketing educators developing marketing curricula should incorporate more
technical skills into the curricula. One justification was related to the fact that marketers in
business settings require ongoing training, and there is an associated cost to employers. Schlee
and Harich (2010) further found that a majority of faculty competent in teaching marketing
technology learned on their own.
In research by Finch and O’Reilly (2012), a study of top business school faculty teaching
B2B and B2C (business-to-customer) marketing were observed as maintaining a classic
approach to the discipline, without focusing on skills in high demand. A panel of 17 senior
marketers and recruiters helped to identify the 49 characteristics and skills necessary for digital
marketing practitioners that might qualify them to be regarded as future marketing rock stars,
according to Finch and O’Reilly (2012). Among those, soft skills outranked traditional
conceptual marketing knowledge, and two of the highest-ranking soft skills were selling ideas
and business writing. Finch and O’Reilly (2012) found evidence of a gap between the
importance of soft skills and the perceived performance of new marketing graduates.
Furthermore, they concluded that evidence-based marketing skills, including customer analytics,
were central to the successful development of a 21st century marketer. Finch and O’Reilly
(2012) also found a gap between student skills and work performance, and a strong association
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 31
between student work experience and job performance in marketing. Both MBA marketing
faculty and 21st century marketers have been impacted by emergence and disruption of
technology. Therefore, continuous training and different teaching strategies for optimal
knowledge transfer have become necessary to move closer to achieving performance success.
Instructional Design for MBA Teaching in the Classroom
Learning is a change in knowledge attributable to experience (Mayer, 2011).
Experiential learning theory is one of the most influential learning theories. Some time ago,
MBA researchers and practitioners began exploring the value of learning that takes place in
simulations and games as a means of improving learning transfer. Exploration of new strategies
was important because failure to meet classroom learning objectives could be a result of
incorrect experimental design or methodologies (Hix, 2013). According to Hix (2013), learner-
centered instruction challenges the approach of traditional instructional design, and involves
activity within the instructional content or participatory engagement. To close gaps, MBA
faculty should focus on cognitive process driven student learning, including experiential learning
activities (Drake-Bridges, Strelzoff, & Sulbaran, 2011).
According to Armstrong, Fukami and Mintzberg (2009), “students have historically
learned the wrong things in the wrong ways” (p. 9). Furthermore, Armstrong et al. (2009) found
that, although empirical studies show correlations between tacit knowledge and managerial
performance and success, students have historically learned to discuss practice without
practicing. Arguments exist for more innovative teaching, learning and assessment, away from
tutor-driven teaching that is much less structured and more in line with developing practitioners.
Business school curricula have been compartmentalized by discipline, unlike business roles that
cross boundaries of function and industry. Thus, some programs have begun to innovate with
real-world integration. Experiential learning introduced in these programs has been focused on
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 32
practical wisdom leading toward skill-building for decision-making and marketing. Armstrong
et al. found the theory of distributed cognition (which states that cognition is neither owned by
an individual nor located in the skull, but spread across humans, artifacts, the world and the
relationships between them) and creation of new knowledge through transformation of
experience to be reliable methodologies for innovative classroom instruction.
In driving transformation through skill-building, faculty must be aware of the knowledge and
skills necessary to achieve AACSB and MBA program goals as well as the interrelationship of
business functions, industries and roles. Nonetheless, adoption of experiential learning is
challenging because of the amount of effort required by faculty (Li, Greenberg, & Nicholls,
2007).
Introducing innovation in the classroom, including the use of experiential learning and
adoption of new teaching strategies, can add to faculty workloads in a way that presents
challenges to faculty and even become burdensome. However, skill competency over lecture-
centered instruction is a better way to prepare students (Hout, 2012) and favorably impacts
career readiness. Because of technology’s dominance and the need for skill competency in
marketing, faculty are challenged to extend the marketing classroom in ways that produce a more
current, active and interactive learning environment. Experiential learning has long been
accepted in the professional fields as an effective means of teaching and preparing adult students
for practice. In order for marketing faculty to deliver experiential learning in marketing, they
may require additional training, resources and support toward teaching innovation, and benefit
from preparation for development of new teaching strategies to optimally prepare 21st century
marketers. Due to the changing landscape, just as 21st century marketers must learn
continuously, so too must faculty to ensure student knowledge and skill competency.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 33
The Development of Faculty Teaching Strategies
Faculty who perceive technology as useful in marketing are more willing to exert the
initial and sustained extra effort to teach data-related topics in marketing. Veenman, Van Hout-
Wolters, and Afflerbach (2006) said effective learners have a built-in metacognitive feedback
mechanism. Faculty who rely on built-in feedback can learn from their teaching interactions and
amend self-knowledge. Learner-centered instruction relates to providing educational
experiences that are personalized and place students at the center of classroom activities
(Conklin, 2013), and considering the classroom as an organization or CAO can serve to generate
innovative learning models. One of the first requirements for measuring effectiveness of
learning transfer constructs is for individuals to be aware of instructional design techniques
associated with teaching effectiveness (Hix, 2013). According to Hix (2013), action based on
experience is the core of the learning process. Welsh and Dehler (2007) found that institutional
barriers such as cost structure, faculty training, status hierarchies and accreditation can be
significant deterrents to faculty learners reinventing or refreshing their curricula. Introducing
classroom innovation and developing new teaching strategies takes considerable time and effort,
and faculty who work in certain types of environments may be more likely to contribute effort to
innovation and new teaching strategies.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 34
Faculty Knowledge, Motivation, and Organizational Influences
This section presents KMO influences in teaching data analytics in marketing the study
sought to explore. The KMO influences help to guide the study related to how faculty are
motivated to teach relevant content in marketing, how they acquire new knowledge to teach their
courses, and how their teaching is influenced by organizational nuances.
Knowledge Influences
MBA faculty need declarative and conceptual knowledge about data-driven marketing in
order to include it in course material and teach this topic. Because the AACSB does not directly
employ or influence faculty in various MBA programs, the MBA institutions being accredited
must establish related marketing curricula content goals in alignment with AACSB’s field goal.
Faculty must possess the individual knowledge to teach from the right textbooks and reading
material or seek to identify knowledge sources to deliver data-driven marketing content based on
current business needs and trends in the field. They must also be aware of what specific data
analytics skills should be covered in their MBA marketing syllabi and taught in the classroom or
other settings. The knowledge influences section examines inclusion of data-related content in
textbooks or readings and in marketing syllabi, as well as explores issues such as how faculty
monitor and remain current with marketing trends, including their process for textbook or
reading selections and frequency of engagement with practitioners. The KMO section also
examines how faculty determine the marketing skills that should be taught and the appropriate
learning settings and tools.
Education is any situation in which people acquire “conceptual, theoretical, and strategic”
knowledge and skills that might help them handle novel and unexpected future challenges and
problems (Clark & Estes, 2008, p. 59). For MBAs in general marketing roles in business
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 35
settings, having this capacity for handling the unexpected is an important skill for their ability to
grow into their responsibilities once they leave the classroom. According to PR Web (2013),
The only way to (adequately) equip MBA students to handle the novel and unexpected is
with education” because it provides students with solid and general conceptual and
analytical knowledge. This knowledge might be in the form of new and important
concepts such as new terms or variables, vital processes such as descriptions of how
things work in the marketing world. (p. 1)
In contrast, education might be delivered as principles and generalizations based on a
revision of Bloom’s taxonomy (Krathwohl, 2002). Obtaining general marketing education as
part of today’s MBA programs should involve developing strong analytical skills,
communication skills, and an up-to-date, theoretical, and practical knowledge of the domain of
global marketing (Dacko, 2001). Dacko’s (2001) work elicited that MBA marketing education
should include current industry-based knowledge about the field of marketing, what is happening
globally in classrooms related to the field of marketing, and the drivers causing these changes to
happen. The knowledge attainment of faculty regarding these topics is central to achieving the
field goal and solving this problem of practice.
According to CMU’s teaching principles (2016), teaching in itself is a complex,
multifaceted activity that is most effective when knowledge and skills of focus for transfer are
clear. Furthermore, when faculty are unable to clearly develop and deliver data-related content
based on what students need to know, then students are at risk of leaving the classroom lacking
key knowledge and skills. In order for students to have a successful learning experience,
teachers need to rely on some type of guide or framework. One suggested as useful by Rueda
(2011) is Bloom’s taxonomy which is focused on a cognitive, affective and psychomotor
domain. Rueda also points to Anderson and Krathwohl’s (2002) work as a model for how
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 36
teachers can dive deeper into the cognitive approaches related to knowledge and what they need
to know in order to achieve their performance goals in the classroom. Anderson and Krathwohl
(2002) specified the four different types of knowledge as factual, procedural, conceptual and
metacognitive. In the instance of MBA marketing faculty, in addressing the problem of practice,
they need to be explicit by way of their textbook selection and syllabus content to articulate
exactly what knowledge and skills MBA marketing students will need to master in the short
term, and then, later, use the framework from class settings to further build onto in their
corporate settings. According to Mayer (2011), “meaningful learning is reflected in the ability to
apply what was taught to new situations” (p. 2). This is what marketing faculty strive to achieve
by teaching theory now that will later convey as practice.
Faculty inclusion of experiential learning. Learning is one of the most important
activities humans devote time and energy to, and a significant amount of learning for MBAs
takes place in classroom settings. Bandura spent many of his research years writing about how
humans learn (Bandura, 1997; Shuell, 2016). It is understood that humans learn informally
through experiences and observations, and formally in classrooms (Clark & Estes, 2008).
Because MBA formal classroom learning is most effective under certain conditions, the
researcher considered what conditions faculty should apply. Mayer’s (2011) definition of
learning as a change in knowledge attributable to experience caused the researcher to ask what
experiences marketing faculty should include. One key question was whether or not a focus on
skill-building experiences transferred from faculty should be central to what is delivered as part
of student learning experiences, along with social and cultural contexts of business schools
(Mayer, 2011; Rueda, 2011), which directly impacts MBA student outcomes.
Considering that faculty were the presumed authors of marketing syllabi, and executed
the learning strategy, how they view their teaching effectiveness was important to consider. As
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 37
faculty studied are credentialed professors who have endured academic rigor to acquire expertise
in the marketing domain, their universal business knowledge and marketing skills to teach MBA
students are essential to close skill gaps. Certain types of knowledge transfer are more important
than others for teachers to achieve meaningful learning that allows students to apply the
knowledge concepts gained (Mayer, 2011). For solving the problem of practice, faculty needed
to have self-knowledge of their level of preparedness to teach data analytics topics in marketing.
Faculty examples of teaching skill included having strategic knowledge about marketing, having
knowledge about cognitive tasks related to marketing, and having self-knowledge (Krathwohl,
2002).
Initially, it was believed that metacognition referred to knowledge about and regulation
of one’s cognitive activities in learning processes (Brown, 1987; Flavell, 1979; Veenman, 2006).
Today, after extensive research, metacognitive knowledge and control have been associated with
more successful cognitive performance (Brown, 1987; Flavell, 1979; Veenman et al., 2006).
When students have knowledge and control of their own cognitive processes, their learning is
enhanced, and this applies regardless of the learning domain or activity type (Brown, 1987;
Flavell, 1979; Veenman et al., 2006). Based on this finding, MBA faculty need to focus on
student learning driven by the cognitive process, including experiential learning activities and
virtual classrooms to achieve their performance goals (Drake-Bridges et al., 2011; Hansen,
2008). In some MBA programs, internet technologies have been used to enhance experiential
learning by enabling innovative experiences that are more lifelike and effective for students, such
as simulation, gaming, virtual reality and augmented reality (Dacko, 2001). In evaluating such
approaches, a key measure of success has been placed on the extent to which a student meets the
needs for business skill development based on employer views (Dacko, 2001).
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 38
Faculty knowledge to support student learning. Learning is a change in knowledge
attributable to experience (Mayer, 2011). Experiential learning theory (ELT) is one of the most
influential learning theories relevant to faculty in marketing, particularly as applies to andragogy
(Kolb, 2009; Hix, 2013). As they continue to explore the most effective learning transfer
approaches in classrooms, MBA faculty must have an understanding of ELT and the
requirements of AACSB for teaching data-driven marketing content. Faculty must also be aware
that failure to meet classroom learning objectives might be a result of incorrect experimental
design or methodologies (Hix, 2013). As experiential learning challenges the approach of
traditional instructional design, faculty must have been aware of the most effective data analytics
skill-building activities to draw from the textbooks or reading in their syllabi and have
emphasized these skills as they taught marketing. They must also be aware of their own level of
preparedness to transfer knowledge and skills.
Cognitive process driven student learning, such as experiential learning, is more effective
than didactic learning (Drake-Bridges et al., 2011). Faculty must explore how best to adopt and
integrate new teaching strategies given their existing high workloads (Li et al., 2007). Not only
have arguments persisted for more innovative teaching strategies, learning and assessment (away
from tutor-driven teaching), but also that excessive structured learning is detrimental to growing
practitioners (Armstrong & Fukami, 2009; Mintzberg, 2005). Ideally, some level of reflection,
experience and action must be integrated into the marketing and broader business curriculum in
order to distribute cognition and create new knowledge through transformation of experience
(Armstrong & Fukami, 2009). In many aspects, MBA faculty are challenged to extend the
classroom in ways that produce a more current, active and interactive learning environment (Li,
et al., 2007). In so doing, faculty must be aware of the AACSB field goal and any institutional
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 39
MBA program goals related to keeping course content current based on market trends impacting
the field.
Faculty development at some level might be necessary to develop new teaching
strategies. Adoption of new teaching strategies and maximizing faculty teaching preparation can
be challenging because of the amount of effort required from faculty while they maintain high
demand existing academic and programmatic responsibilities. The amount of mental effort and
research to develop new course content is significant. Textbooks and readings are among the
most common sources of new content, and faculty might consider approaching this difficult
challenge by selecting chapters from new textbooks and supplemental readings they are most
comfortable teaching from, then later expanding on this. They might need to seek internal or
external support and training to fully integrate data-driven marketing content from new
textbooks. Whether or not faculty studied could do this on their own or with institutional support
is dependent on their other commitments and priorities, and the policies and practices of their
MBA programs.
Other faculty might also look to outside examples. Experiential learning is receiving
greater attention in business schools as a result of mounting pressure from external stakeholders
(Li et al., 2007). There is also a rise of CMBAs to address skill gaps seen in graduates of two-
year residential full-time MBAs. By and large, skill competency over lecture-centered
instruction is favored by students and favorably impacts knowledge transfer. Faculty may
require additional training, institutional resources and support toward instructional design, and
development of new teaching strategies to prepare MBA graduates to become high performing
21st century marketers. As 21st century MBA marketers need to learn continuously, the same
need is a requirement for faculty to ensure student knowledge and skill competency in corporate
settings (Hout, 2012).
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 40
Faculty knowledge on teaching skillsets. In examining faculty performance, central to
this issue was the notion of what specific information that a faculty member needs to know in
order to achieve the goal of effective knowledge transfer for MBAs in marketing. In developing
this knowledge and skillset, faculty must have relied on conceptual skills to select the right
textbooks or reading material, then design and implement an effective marketing course
inclusive of exercises, projects or web activities considering the AACSB goal and the existence
of an MBA skills gap. Faculty must have considered the cognitive domain (Anderson &
Krathwohl, 2002) which draws a focus on the conceptual knowledge (Rueda, 2011) of faculty,
defined as how they categorize, classify, theorize, structure, generalize or apply principles in the
area of marketing.
Specifically, when faculty consider marketing, the researcher examined how they regard
the need for data-driven marketing related to these categorizations or even the notion of
digitization. For the problem of practice, MBA students also require gaining some level of
proficiency with the discipline of marketing in a global context, such that they understand how to
solve related problems in it (Krathwohl, 2002). This was regarded as the “what to do” aspect of
knowledge (Krathwohl, 2002; Waters, Marzano & McNulty 2003), or for faculty, “what specific
marketing content to include in the course syllabus and transfer,” from an industry and trends
perspective. On the other hand, in this context, declarative conceptual knowledge (Krathwohl,
2002; Waters, Marzano & McNulty 2003) was considered as knowing what specific marketing
skill-building must be included, or taught, to ensure data-driven marketing skill competencies.
Declarative conceptual knowledge reflects the interrelationships among the basic elements of
marketing within a larger structure that enable all elements to function together (Krathwohl,
2002; Waters, Marzano & McNulty 2003). This type of knowledge involves topics such as
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 41
knowledge of marketing classifications and categories; knowledge of marketing principles and
generalizations; and knowledge of marketing theories, models, and structures.
Faculty knowledge of instructional design. There is strong evidence (Kirschner, Paas,
& Kirschner, 2009; Kirschner, Kirschner, & Janssen, 2011; Kirschner & Van Merriënboer, 2013)
that most systematic design process models should be centered on designing effective conditions
for the attainment of individual learning outcomes. Design process models also take into
account the learning environment’s modification necessary to support gaining a specific skill,
and point to effective instructional procedures for ensuring that individuals’ or groups’ human
cognitive architectures are taken into account for optimal learning (Kirschner et al., 2009).
Implementation of effective learning transfer by faculty required complete understanding,
because they are tasked with designing high quality tasks for students which are aligned with
their experience. Then, they must integrate opportunities for students to practice (Kirschner et
al., 2009). Interviewed faculty rely on resources from textbooks and other sources to assist with
developing the right instructional design for marketing courses.

Table 3
Knowledge Influences
Knowledge Type Knowledge Influence
Declarative Faculty need to know the details of what
technology-related knowledge and skills are
needed in the field of marketing to be included in
the syllabus.

Procedural Faculty need to know how to build technology-
related skills in marketing courses.

Declarative Faculty need to be aware of AACSB goals that
require MBA programs to include information
technology to stay relevant with the field.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 42
Motivation Influences

Motivation has been described as the product of an interaction between an individual and
their work environment (Clark & Estes, 2008). There is no single right way to design classrooms
to foster motivation and learning by students (Pintrich, 2003). In order to sustain advancing the
field goal, MBA faculty must have high levels of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997; Clark & Estes,
2008; Pajares, 2006). They must be motivated (Clark & Estes, 1999; Pintrich & Schunk, 1996)
to solve the problem of practice, and must rely on their own declarative and conceptual
knowledge. Based on interpretation of motivational theories (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000), for this
problem of practice, faculty who see little purpose and reason for teaching data-driven marketing
are likely to be less motivated.
Teaching performance and faculty self-efficacy. Faculty teaching performance is
directly governed by their beliefs about themselves and their environment (Clark & Estes, 1999).
Faculty need to believe they are capable of teaching data analytics content in marketing and are
teaching in environments that are supportive of their motivation to teach. Furthermore, they must
be aware that although accreditation only takes place every five years, regardless of program
focus, AACSB-accredited MBA programs are expected to remain relevant with business needs
(Hernandez, 2015).
Although faculty do not teach solely focused on AACSB standards, they must include in
their employee mindset the competitive nature of MBA degree programs, and consider that MBA
applicants view accreditation status, comparative program statistics and rankings as metrics for
program selection. Faculty must recognize that, when academic programs deliver content that is
relevant to business needs, graduates are able to demonstrate proficiency in managerial
competencies and can become advocates, improving the perception of a business school’s
reputation and eminence while also enhancing a school’s curricular relevance and credibility
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 43
among corporations, students, and accreditation boards (Hamilton et al., 2000; Hernandez,
2015).
Faculty must also have value for inclusion of data-driven marketing content in their
coursework. Utility value is tied to usefulness or how a task fits into a faculty member’s current
syllabus or future teaching plans. Both utility value for data-driven marketing and action-control
expectancies impact inclusion of textbooks or reading material with a focus on data-driven
marketing in marketing syllabi. Faculty members’ task value beliefs about teaching data-driven
marketing are predictors of choice behavior in teaching data analytics marketing. Faculty with
higher beliefs about their information technology-related marketing teaching capabilities in the
classroom are more likely to teach data-driven marketing topics, and faculty who see themselves
as committed to faculty development are more apt to explore training or colleague support to
improve their teaching performance by deploying new teaching strategies and resources. In this
context, actual experience and performance are most valid for influencing self-efficacy.
In recent research studies, one primary human motive that was found to often drive all or
most of motivated activity (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000), was “expectancy and control,” or
“efficacy and agency” (p. 111). In this context, faculty are influenced by expectancy and
control. They choose whether or not to engage in the task of performing to meet the field goal or
to develop and teach relevant content. They choose whether or not to engage and persist, and
ultimately decided whether or not to expend mental effort to achieve the goal (Pajares, 2006;
Wigfield & Eccles, 2006). In this context, actual experience and performance are most valid for
influencing self-efficacy. Because decreased motivation to engage in a task can result from both
lack of experience and performance, the level of effort required for the task and the effort
required for other activities, it is important to consider whether or not faculty value completing
new teaching-related tasks. In general, there are three dimensions of cost effort required for
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 44
successful task completion: loss of ability to engage in other valued tasks, avoidance of a
negative mental state from struggle or failures (Pajares, 2006; Wigfield & Eccles, 2006), and
having value for completing the task. Faculty stakeholders need to see the value or importance
of solving the problem of practice.
Faculty also need to have enough self-confidence in their ability to complete a task or
performance goal, or believe they can make a difference in the long term. The gap indicator of a
task in this context is utility value. One’s beliefs resulting from the interpretations of past
experiences may not always be accurate (Clark & Estes, 2008), which is applicable to faculty
concerning their teaching performance related to teaching data analytics content in marketing. In
general, individuals who are positive and believe they are capable will achieve more than
individuals who are equally capable but tend to doubt their own abilities (Clark & Estes, 2011;
Bandura, 1997, 1997, 2005). This is the description of self-efficacy, and, in the presence of high
self-efficacy, one’s motivation is positively influenced (Pajares, 2006). In this case, it might be
submitted that faculty self-efficacy, or beliefs held about their own capabilities, result in certain
actions (Bandura, 2005). By linking individual or institutional rewards (Pintrich, 2003) to
teaching, institutions are able to help improve movement toward goal attainment. Furthermore,
faculty can receive instructional support to increase motivation (Pajares, 2006; Rueda, 2011).
Pintrich’s (2003) research found that when individuals have high levels of personal and
situational interest, there is a strong association with greater cognitive engagement. According
to Pintrich, self-efficacy and competence beliefs should be adaptive for fairly representing an
accurate perception of one’s capabilities. Faculty must build their performance in teaching data-
related technology in marketing in alignment with personal and institutional goals, often
supplementing personal knowledge and skills through additional training.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 45
Faculty value for usefulness of teaching technology. According to Wigfield and
Eccles (2000), when an individual sees little purpose and reason for doing a task, they may be
less motivated. Faculty must be motivated to teach technology and data-related topics in
marketing. They must value teaching data-related topics in marketing. Valuing something
means wishing to attain it (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). In their research, Wigfield and Eccles
(2000) found evidence that intrinsic or interest value for enjoyment is not the same as utility
value one attains from engaging in a task. According to Wigfield and Eccles (2000), utility value
is tied to usefulness or how a task fits into one’s future plans. Having utility value for
technology and data-related topics in marketing impacts inclusion of such content into courses.
Action-control expectancies of faculty impact inclusion of technology or data-related topics in
marketing coursework. Action-control expectancies concern a faculty member’s beliefs about
whether they can do a certain task. Faculty task value beliefs predict choice behavior in teaching
technology or data-related topics in marketing.
Faculty members’ task value beliefs about teaching technology in marketing can predict
choice behavior in what is included in syllabi outlining coursework and in what is ultimately
taught in marketing courses. Faculty who have strong task value beliefs are more likely to work
toward developing new teaching strategies to develop their students’ data-related marketing
skills.
Faculty value for teaching and AACSB goals. At times, MBA programs and other
types of organizations fail to make the connection between high-level organizational goals, such
as the AACSB field goal, and specific individual or unit work goals that are tied to day-to-day
functions led by workers and tied to their performance within a specific organization. A key task
of faculty as high performers is to be aware of the AACSB and general business MBA program
goals they support in case an MBA student skills gap performance problem needs to be solved.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 46
This task falls within the knowledge areas that Clark and Estes (2008) wrote about related to
teacher performance impacting student outcomes, and their reference to “people’s knowledge
and skills, along with motivation and organizational barriers as a direct cause of performance
gaps” (p. 42). The research of Clark and Estes (2008) found that, in the absence of clear and
specific performance goals, people tend to focus on tasks that help to advance their own careers
rather than helping the organization to achieve its goals, and this can be particularly true in
certain cultural environments where rivalry exists (Clark & Estes, 2008). In addressing the
primary causes of performance gaps, Clark and Estes (1999) also observed that, related to one’s
motivation to achieve a goal, there is often competition with other work that needs to be done,
and organizational barriers can get in the way such as the lack of resources or inadequate
processes. For this problem of practice, it is important to determine whether faculty have
adequate motivation to achieve the performance goal. For successful achievement, faculty must
have all three, knowledge, motivation and organizational support to achieve the goal. The three
must also be aligned with one another for successful goal achievement (Clark & Estes, 1999).
Knowledge and motivation are often common inhibitors of performance, and, when
faculty do not understand how to achieve the goal or cannot build and navigate a roadmap for
achieving the goal on their own, they can negatively impact student readiness for employment
and performance outcomes (Clark & Estes, 1999). In this context, when faculty cannot achieve
the goal based on their own existing knowledge or have not achieved this goal or a similar goal
in the recent past, they may need to attain more knowledge to achieve the goal (Clark & Estes,
1999). By linking individual or institutional rewards (Pintrich, 2003) to teaching, institutions are
able to help improve movement toward goal attainment. Furthermore, faculty motivation can be
increased with receipt of instructional support (Pajares, 2006; Rueda, 2011). Although earlier
researchers focused on affective aspects of engagement, more recent researchers have focused
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 47
more on cognitive aspects including effort, use of cognitive strategies, and metacognitive
strategies (i.e., planning and monitoring), and persistence during the initiation and execution of a
cognitive task (Rueda, 2011; Cox & Guthrie, 2001; Furrer & Skinner, 2003; Guthrie, Wigfield &
VonSecker, 2000). Research found that, even with high levels of engagement, effort alone was
not an automatic guarantee of a positive outcome (Rueda, 2011). In addition to effort,
motivation plays a key role in performance.
Faculty development in relation to attribution. One of the major goals of a good
education is to create self-regulated learners (Clark & Estes, 1999), and, in this context, the
researcher might consider faculty who select state-of-the art textbooks and reading content,
develop experiential course curricula, and teach from updated syllabi to be included in this
category of learners. Effective learning and development of faculty requires adaptive
motivational beliefs related to factors such as interest, goal orientation, attributions and other
variables, which also affect faculty levels of effort and persistence in learning new knowledge to
transfer to students (Bandura, 1997; Pajares, 2006). However, faculty development of self-
knowledge can be difficult when teaching environments are unsupportive and may require a
faculty-constructed community of support with exposure to resources, colleagues and
practitioners.
Attributions are tied to how individuals relate their success or failure in achieving a task
(Anderman & Anderman, 2009). In the course of teaching data analytics in marketing, faculty
might attribute their teaching success or failure to different causes and circumstances.
Attributions can vary depending on one’s unique perspective and circumstances. According to
Anderman and Anderman (2009), assigning credit for outcomes to effort, rather than ability,
increases performance and motivation. For marketing faculty, both performance and motivation
can be increased when successful teaching outcomes are attributed to faculty effort and a belief
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 48
is held that one has performed successfully due to having necessary control of the outcome
(Pintrich, 2003), enabling a positive result. In order for marketing faculty to achieve success in
teaching data analytics, it is important for them to view their success as due to their own
preparation efforts versus factors beyond their control.
Teaching performance and faculty self-efficacy. Motivation is broadly defined as the
internal psychological processes that launch our activity, keep us moving, and help us to
complete a task (Clark & Estes, 1999; Pintrich & Schunk, 1996). Motivation and related
processes drive engagement (Rueda, 2011). Motivation can be described as the product of an
interaction between an individual and their work environment (Clark & Estes, 2011), and, in the
context of this study, between faculty and their MBA programs in which marketing courses are
taught. Performance is directly governed by beliefs of individuals and their environments (Clark
& Estes, 1999). Faculty need to believe they are capable of teaching data analytics content in
marketing and are teaching in environments that are supportive of their motivation to teach. The
five key elements of work environments that most researchers agree are main destroyers of
motivation are vague and constantly changing performance goals as well as lack of feedback;
dishonesty and unfairness; unnecessary rules or barriers to completing work; constant
competition; and critical, biased or prejudicial feedback (Clark & Estes, 1999). Particularly in
the absence of clear communication of organizational or field goals, individuals are not
committed to work toward a goal and much less inclined to target goals beyond their own (Clark
& Estes, 1999).
Research supports the connection across motivational variables, learning strategies, self-
regulatory behaviors, and academic achievement (Bandura, 1997; Rueda, 2011). Research also
shows that the more innovative and complex a goal is perceived to be for an individual, the more
extensive the required performance support might need to be in order for a performer to achieve
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 49
the desired goal (Clark & Estes, 1999). In this context, it is critical to learn faculty perceptions
of barriers (Clark & Estes, 1999) that might prevent them from achieving the field goal of
closing the MBA skills gap. Self-regulation (Rueda, 2011) or generated thoughts, feelings and
planned actions adapted all play a role in achievement of performance goals. The play of
internal feedback helps faculty to assess the possible gaps in their teaching performance (Rueda,
2011). Furthermore, individuals who are capable of effective learning often choose the right
learning goals and elect to use adaptive knowledge and skills to direct their learning (Rueda,
2011). Additionally, such individuals have been shown to have the ability to select effective
learning strategies that are appropriate to their assigned tasks (or professional practice), including
self-regulation of their responsibility for the acquisition of maintenance and new skills associated
(Rueda, 2011).
Table 4
Motivation Influences
Motivation Type Motivation Influence

Expectancy Value - Utility Value

Faculty need to value the usefulness of adding
new content or enhancing marketing courses
with technology-related topics.

Self-efficacy
Attribution

Faculty need to believe they are capable of
teaching information technology topics in
marketing.

Expectancy Value - Attainment Value
Faculty need to see teaching as an important
aspect of their role and value developing
effective teaching strategies.
Effective teaching strategies.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 50

Organization Influences
Organizations are systems that have their own culture (Clark & Estes, 2008), and culture
and change processes typically interact. Even when high levels of faculty motivation and
knowledge or skills are present, missing or inadequate processes and materials within an
institution can prevent faculty from achieving their goals (Clark & Estes, 2008). Although the
skills gap goal has a field origin, the nuances of institutions and related work cultures of faculty
can filter and affect their teaching performance. Furthermore, faculty may be constrained by
school and program work processes, which specify how faculty roles and responsibilities and
program resources and materials are linked to tasks. Additionally, faculty may be affected by
available tools and value streams governing how an institution’s departments and divisions
interact and the processes in place related to teaching performance. One’s individual learning
can be an influencer in performance as well as organizational learning (Clark & Estes, 2008;
Kezar, 2005). Organizational learning determines how an organization as a whole functions and
changes over time, including its ability to adapt to changes in the environment. The AACSB
field goal is an adaptation required from the academic environment.
Institutional support and teaching performance. Institutional barriers such as cost
structure, faculty training, status hierarchies, high competition, and accreditation can be
deterrents to faculty task performance (Welsh & Dehler, 2007). Because developing new
teaching strategies takes considerable reflection, time and effort, faculty who work in certain
types of environments might be more likely to contribute effort to innovation and new teaching
strategies to close MBA skill gaps. In teaching cultures where there is perceived value in
achieving the field goal, demonstrated by policy and provision of resources, faculty can translate
that observation and experience into compatibility of institutional and field goals. The presence
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 51
of favorable policies and resources can also interact with one’s personal culture in terms of core
knowledge and motivational patterns (Clark & Estes, 2008).
Emphasis on teaching goals can take a back seat when universities are organized
primarily around disciplines (Welsh & Dehler, 2007) with an optimal structure for reproducing
researchers known to be the primary avenue for faculty recognition and advancement through
promotion and tenure. Since different types of organizations require different types of support in
higher education where hierarchy is pervasive, visible alignment of faculty goals with MBA
program leadership and institutional goals is paramount. In particular, general business MBA
program leaders setting and communicating a clear vision with goals related to AACSB
requirements can be beneficial. Institutional deans can influence faculty by providing them with
necessary time and resources to explore the relevancy of textbooks and reading content in place
for coursework, or to learn new data-related teaching strategies and skills in marketing.
Alignment with leadership is essential since faculty decision-making authority has been linked to
the right to make decisions, and to perform certain functions (Burke, 2008), and these rights
differentiate three sources of authority-from above, from below, and from within.
Institutional autonomy and value for innovation. Because value streams (Clark &
Estes, 2008) largely determine how organizations operate and change, for this problem of
practice, they are considered since any type of curricula change implemented impacts MBA
program goals. In developing teaching strategies, faculty must apply their understanding of their
program to their own institutional cultural models (shared mental schema; Gallimore &
Goldenberg, 2001), and the related work processes (Clark & Estes, 2008) that help them to
successfully achieve teaching tasks. Although cultural models can be difficult to detect, they are
dynamic (Clark & Estes, 2008; Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001) and expressed through practices
in specific contexts. Given that faculty work independently and may not always know if they are
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 52
on track for achieving a program or field goal, they must consider how their institutional cultural
models of teaching would likely impact their ability to effect change.
According to Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001), shared ways of perceiving, thinking, and
storing possible responses to adaptive challenges and changing conditions result in cultural
models which are often invisible and unnoticed by those who hold them. Furthermore, these
models often “define the way things are and should be” (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001, p. 47).
Changing marketing curricula and teaching strategies at the field level only makes sense when
they are relevant for the individual institution. In turn, faculty must be full owners and have a
strong voice in developing their syllabi and textbooks or readings beyond their original domain
of expertise. They also must have an understanding of how their teaching can impact achieving
AACSB goals and student outcomes. When elements of bureaucracy, negativity or dishonesty
exist, the ability of faculty to achieve performance goals is compromised (Kezar, 2001).
Effective transfer of learning occurs most efficiently when support is provided by the teaching
organization, leaders, and faculty peers (Hix, 2013) and when knowledge and problem-solving
are linked. Furthermore, supervisor support results in a significantly higher level of knowledge
transfer (Hix, 2013).
Institutional rewards and value for teaching. In higher education, what tasks leaders
reward and what they say and do in both formal and informal settings is considered influential in
what faculty regard as valued and prioritized within the organization. Among these priorities, in
most academic settings not described as teaching-intensive, teaching and service are regarded
differently than scholarly research, influencing how faculty allocate time and effort. Teaching
may be given less weight and emphasis or be given fewer specific measures for success.
Teaching tasks requiring significant resources and mental effort, such as new learning, new
textbook or reading resources, new skill-building methodologies, or identifying new learning
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 53
settings different from the traditional classroom may not be perceived as valuable as new
research, and, in turn, may be prioritized differently. Typically, MBA courses are taught as
academic subjects, separate and removed from the milieu of industry and business. Historically,
the scholarly research of MBA faculty has dominated in business schools, to some extent
overshadowing the fact that business management is, first and foremost, a practice incorporating
action, responsiveness, and organization leadership (Laud & Johnson, 2013). Additionally,
faculty whose institutions may not already provide supportive environments can benefit from
affiliations with communities of practice (Berbary & Malinchak, 2011) where teaching is
supported, rewarded and valued more significantly and where, according to Berbary and
Malinchak (2011), there is a collaborative versus cellular learning culture with shared interests
across a professional domain that involves active practice.

Institutional frameworks, politics and rewards. When faculty are engaged, rewarded
appropriately, and have ties to practitioners, their ability to innovate is enhanced. (Berbary &
Malinchak, 2011). One of the most important ways that institutions can influence faculty
teaching performance is by minimizing negative impact of a political framework and minimizing
competition among faculty for rewards and recognition. In a political frame, competition is high,
and the organization is made up of coalitions of individuals and interest groups (Bolman & Deal,
2013). There are lasting differences among group members, and the most important decisions
involve allocation of power and scarce resources (Bolman & Deal, 2013). Faculty stakeholders
are often at odds and there is no lack of frequent jockeying and bargaining for position power
and control.
Ambiguity and competing or conflicting programmatic and administrative goals and
priorities, along with the highly competitive enrollment landscape, can create a challenge for
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 54
faculty in achieving teaching performance goals. Under these circumstances, it has become
essential for leaders to communicate a vision and to influence groups and individuals to achieve
a common goal (Northouse, 2013). When leaders consistently focus on certain areas, they add
value, and, when they ignore certain areas, they send powerful messages to subordinates (Schein,
2004). Academic leaders might consider engaging faculty to set teaching rewards aligned with
the goals faculty intend to work toward, all ideally aligned as common ones. In the most highly
political environments, leaders might consider becoming advocates and motivators for group or
individual goals that are consistent with the faculty leader’s core values and in alignment with,
but not necessarily common to, program or institutional collective goals. Finally, by
implementing a less political symbolic frame, and removing internal barriers such as naysayers,
lack of funding, lack of training and development, lack of staffing, and lack of motivation,
academic leaders can help faculty meet their highest teaching performance goals and the AACSB
field goal.
Table 5
Organization Influences
Influence Type Organization Influence

Cultural Model

Organizations need to provide faculty with support and
resources toward achieving AACSB goals for teaching
information technology in marketing.

Cultural Setting

Organizations need to make faculty aware they have access to
instructional training to develop effective technology-related
teaching strategies.in marketing.

Cultural Model
Organizations need to make faculty aware they have the
capacity to change the location where they teach to produce a
more active, current and interactive learning environment.

Cultural Setting

Organizations need to promote cultures where learner-
centered education is practiced.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 55

Summary of Influences
The following table is a description of the knowledge, motivation and organizational
influences that are relevant to faculty members’ ability to teach data-driven MBA marketing
course content to stay relevant with the field. The intent of the table is to categorize the
influences that directly impact faculty in updating course curricula to include emerging industry
practice and related information technology.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 56
Table 6
General Literature Summary of Assumed Influences for Faculty
Assumed KMO Influences on Faculty
Teaching Performance in Marketing
General Literature
Knowledge Influences
Faculty need to know the details of what
technology-related knowledge and skills are
needed in the field of marketing to be
included in the syllabus
Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R. & Bloom, B.
(2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and
assessing (1st ed.). New York, NY: Longman
Faculty need to know how to build
technology-related skills in marketing
courses
Drake-Bridges, E., Strelzoff, A., Sulbaran, T. (2011).
Journal of Marketing Education, 33(3), 295–311

Faculty need to be aware of AACSB goals
that require MBA programs to include
information technology to stay relevant with
the field
Schlee, R. P., & Harich, K. R. (2010). Knowledge and
skill requirements for marketing jobs in the 21st
century. Journal of Marketing Education, 32(3), 341–
352

Faculty need to be aware of how inter-
organizational relationships (IOR) can
support teaching strategies

Legge, K., Sullivan-Taylor, B., & Wilson, D. (2007).
Management learning and the corporate MBA: situated
or individual? . Management Learning, 38(4), 440–457
Motivational Influences
Faculty need to value the usefulness of
adding new content or enhancing marketing
courses with technology-related topics
Wigfield, A., Eccles, J. (2000). Expectancy–Value
Theory of Achievement Motivation. Journal of
Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 68–81.

Faculty need to believe they are capable of
teaching information technology topics in
marketing
Pajares, F. (2006). Self-efficacy theory. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/self-
efficacy-theory/
Faculty need to see teaching as an important
aspect of their role and value developing
effective teaching strategies
Veenman, M. V. J., Van Hout-Wolters, V., B. H. A. M,
& Afflerbach, P. (2006). Metacognition and learning:
conceptual and methodological considerations.
Metacognition and Learning, 1(1), 3–14.
doi:10.1007/s11409-006-6893-0
Faculty need to see value in teaching
approaches that rely on reflection or
metacognitive feedback mechanisms
Flavell, J. 1979. “Metacognition and Cognitive
Monitoring: A New Area of Cognitive Developmental
Inquiry.” American Psychologist, 34, 906–9

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 57
Table 6, continued

Assumed KMO Influences on Faculty
Teaching Performance in Marketing
General Literature
Organizational Influences
Organizations need to provide faculty with
support and resources toward achieving
AACSB goals for teaching information
technology in marketing
Welsh, M. A., Dehler, G. E. Whither the MBA? Or the
withering of MBAs? Management Learning, 38(4),
405–423.
Organizations need to make faculty aware
they have access to instructional training to
develop effective technology-related
teaching strategies in marketing
Schein, E. (2004). How leaders embed and transmit
culture - organizational culture and leadership. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Organizations need to make faculty aware
they have the capacity to change the location
of where they teach to produce a more active,
current and interactive learning environment
Li, T., Greenberg, B. A., & Nicholls, J. A. F. (2007).
Teaching experiential learning: adoption of an
innovative course in an MBA marketing curriculum.
Journal of Marketing Education, 29(1), 25–33.
doi:10.1177/0273475306297380
Organizations need to promote cultures
where learner-centered education is practiced
Armstrong, S., & Fukami, C. (2009). The SAGE
Handbook of Management Learning, Education and
Development. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.

Conceptual Framework: The Interaction of Faculty Knowledge, Motivation and the
Organizational Influences
The diagram below reflects the interdependent relationships among faculty members’
various knowledge, skills and motivational influences. Faculty prioritize what is rewarded in
academia, which is typically scholarly work toward promotion and tenure. Faculty promotion
and tenure might be broadly based on three primary criteria: research, teaching, and service, with
greatest emphasis placed on research in research-extensive business schools. The presence of
faculty autonomy or academic freedom in determining MBA coursework is directly related to
what topics faculty are interested in researching or are capable of and motivated to teach. Also,
the resources allocated for faculty training and development toward new teaching strategies are
linked directly to what is taught and, to some extent, faculty interests. As noted earlier, faculty
members’ task value beliefs about teaching data-driven marketing can predict choice behavior in
what is included in syllabi and taught in marketing courses. Faculty with higher levels of self-
efficacy beliefs related to data analytics marketing teaching ability are more likely to teach data-
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 58
driven marketing, and faculty who see themselves as life-long learners are more apt to explore
new teaching strategies (Veenman et al., 2006). Faculty who perceive data analytics as useful in
marketing are more willing to exert the initial and sustained extra effort to teach data-driven
marketing topics (Veenman et al., 2006), although they may not consider themselves proficient
in teaching data analytics in marketing. Faculty must investigate how best to adopt and integrate
new teaching strategies given their existing high workloads (Li et al., 2007).

Figure 1. Diagram of MBA theory-practice gap conceptual framework.
Finally, the cultural model of the organizations in which faculty teach is a strong
influencer of the extent to which faculty seek innovation in teaching and in building relationships
with practitioners in corporate settings. Even when high levels of faculty motivation and
knowledge or skills are present, missing or inadequate institutional processes and materials can
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 59
prevent faculty from achieving their teaching goals (Clark & Estes, 2008). Institutional barriers
such as cost structure, the lack of faculty training and professional development, status
hierarchies, high competition for faculty advancement, and over-weighted focus on accreditation
can be deterrents to task performance (Clark & Estes, 1999; Welsh & Dehler, 2007). The notion
that professional development can foster improvements in teaching is widely accepted (Kennedy,
2016). Since developing new teaching strategies requires protected time, adequate self-
reflection, and mental effort, faculty who work in certain types of environments may be more or
less likely to be able to contribute the required time and effort to innovation and new teaching
strategies that effectively close MBA skill gaps. However, general business MBA program and
marketing department leaders charged with setting and communicating a clear vision around
institutional goals related to AACSB can impact subject matter that faculty teach. Leaders can
also impact the level of politics and competition tied to faculty advancement that is present in the
culture. Faculty efforts to innovate with new teaching strategies may be constrained by school
and program bureaucratic or disjointed work processes which specify how individual faculty,
resources and materials are linked to tasks.
Participating Stakeholders: Research Sampling and Recruitment Narrative
The focus of the study was the stakeholder group of faculty from AACSB-accredited full-
time two-year MBA residential programs. Thirty-five syllabi of faculty dated 2012 or later,
across all course levels for residential general business MBA programs were collected randomly
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) by browsing general business MBA program sites offering marketing
courses as a part of the core curriculum in full-time two-year residential general business MBA
programs. Today, there are about 700+ accredited programs worldwide. About 40% of
programs identify as general business MBA programs. The study goal was to collect data from
30 to 35 syllabi, or at least one marketing syllabus from 10% of MBA general business
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programs, then follow collection with a questionnaire. Although random syllabus collection was
the goal of the researcher, there was possibility of sample bias due to syllabus collection. The
study also included questionnaire completion, inviting 75 faculty members identified through a
stratified single stage random sample whose syllabi were not observed.
Survey Criteria Sampling and Rationale
The study was initially begun using mixed-methods design, beginning with document
analysis, followed by a survey and interviews. An email was sent to the 35 faculty members
whose syllabi had been observed, and an email was sent to 100 randomly selected faculty
members from MBA directories, inviting them to participate in the survey which consisted of 22
items and was anticipated to take 30 to 40 minutes to complete. Survey response rate was poor,
so the focus of the study was redirected toward qualitative interviews. All those who completed
the survey were invited to participate in the interview. Of those two groups combined, eight
faculty members responded agreeing to participate in qualitative interviews. The interviews
consisted of eight items, were conducted by telephone and recorded, and took 30 to 45 minutes.
A $50 gift card incentive was offered and issued to participants who agreed to be interviewed.
As a part of the 35 faculty whose syllabi were collected, names of faculty instructors were
available to the researcher, but will not be disclosed in the study findings. The syllabus collection
showed the course level, and the specific title, author and edition of the textbook or reading
content faculty teach from was identified by the syllabus. By sending email requests directly to
100 randomly selected faculty inviting them to take the quantitative survey, the researcher’s goal
was to expand the response rate beyond the faculty whose syllabi were observed. This approach
did not yield a significant response rate for survey completion and collection of quantitative data
beyond syllabus observation. The following criteria guided sampling:

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 61
Criterion 1. Syllabus collection was from AACSB-accredited full-time two-year
residential general business MBA program syllabi in marketing programs posted online.
Criterion 2. Marketing syllabus owners were full-time tenured, tenure-track or non-
tenure track marketing faculty teaching in AACSB-accredited two-year general business MBA
programs.
Criterion 3. Marketing syllabi posted were no older than 2012 or later from AACSB-
accredited two-year general business MBA programs.
Interview Criteria Sampling and Rationale
Qualitative data collection was conducted with a standard, open-ended interview
(Johnson & Christensen, 2015) of full-time tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty.
Each interview was audio recorded. Eight faculty members agreed to be interviewed and eight
interviews were conducted. Questions were asked in the same sequence, and all faculty were
asked the same questions whether or not they had completed the quantitative survey. Thirty- to
45-minute interviews were conducted by phone. Interviewed faculty helped to identify
additional faculty to be interviewed. The researcher was able to stratify faculty by tenured,
tenure-track and non-tenure track status to compare responses. Interview responses helped to
provide understanding, context and meaning about how faculty complete the process of updating
course content and decide what and how to teach. The researcher also used interview questions
to gather information that demonstrated how tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure track faculty
update content, as well as about how male or female study participants update content, and for
how faculty over or under age 50 generate new content. A perceived benefit of direct access to
faculty by the researcher with this approach was that faculty could respond directly to express
their participation interest.
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The qualitative analysis interview segment used the semi-structured (Merriam & Tisdell,
2016) interview protocol. The interviews allowed the researcher to hear the language and words
of faculty. The researcher asked feeling and value questions (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) to
approach the unique experiences and beliefs of faculty. For example, questions related to how a
faculty member felt about the way their institution rewarded teaching, or how a faculty member
felt about the changes made in teaching approaches over time. Following each interview session,
the researcher wrote descriptive electronic field notes to develop portraits on participants (Fink,
2013) and kept these notes filed separately (Bogdan & Biklen, 2007) on the computer from the
recorded sessions.
Upon completion of the interviews, the researcher asked faculty to share the interview
invitation with other faculty colleagues who might teach marketing and meet eligibility
requirements. One additional faculty member was added to the interview group from the
snowballing technique. Faculty were able to share information about peers who were teaching
with a similar approach, teaching from similar reading sources, or had a particular interest in the
work. Interviews allowed faculty to provide supplemental information that was reflective of
their own values, beliefs, and institutional nuances and organizational circumstances. There was
the possibility that some faculty might also be marketing textbook authors and might wish to
provide more in-depth conversation as well as refer other specific colleagues to be surveyed or
interviewed. Since the standard open-ended interview allowed the researcher to ask faculty the
same questions in the same sequence but allowed faculty to respond in a completely open-ended
format, it was well suited to capturing the most comprehensive information.

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Criterion 1. Interviewed faculty were full-time tenured, tenure-track or non-tenure track
marketing faculty in full-time two-year residential AACSB-accredited (or accreditation-
applicant) general business MBA programs.
Criterion 2. Interviewed faculty taught marketing courses between 2012 and 2018.
Criterion 3. Faculty did not need to have completed the quantitative survey segment in
order to complete a recorded interview.
Documents and Artifact Analysis
Document analysis contained publicly available course-related artifacts such as syllabi,
course-associated websites, tools, visual documents, videos, marketing department home pages,
marketing faculty home pages or blogs posted by faculty. Thirty-five marketing syllabi (2012 or
later) were obtained for document analysis. Syllabus data collection helped to determine
whether or not faculty included a state-of-the-art textbook or custom reading content that
referenced data analytics. Documents and artifacts were accessed from the internet. Artifacts
posted online were observed from approximately 35 marketing faculty members and institutions
of general business MBA programs. Documents were selected randomly from MBA program
sites. Although random artifact collection was the aim of the researcher, there was the
possibility of sample bias in the process of artifact collection and observation. Observation of
visual documents was a source of descriptive data (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), and helped to
provide additional contextual (Merriam, 2016), organizational and individual experience
information. For example, artifacts shared information about organizational cultures, espoused
values and beliefs, stakeholders, communities, work processes, activities, messages, program
focus areas, desired behaviors, relationships, goals and priorities. Because artifacts help to
provide information to observers about culture, the researcher was able to learn more about the
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 64
visible structures and processes of MBA institutions as well as learn about observable and stated
values, underlying assumptions (Schein, 2004), and faculty behaviors.
Data Analysis
For data analysis, the researcher intended to rely on the five stages for data analysis from
Pazzaglia, Stafford, and Rodriguez (2016) in order to answer the research questions. The
researcher found it necessary to modify the original data collection and analysis plan, to ensure
the integrity of the study and to ensure the research questions were answered. Revision of the
analysis plan shifted the focus of the study to qualitative data collection and artifact observation
due to Qualtrics written survey low response rates. The integrity of the study was maintained
and has ensured that findings are valid, and the survey results address the key topics of interest
being examined. The researcher mapped the survey questions to the KMO issues being
investigated. Data recorded from interviews was coded and analyzed. The single open response
question was coded and analyzed. The researcher carefully examined interview responses to
confirm all responses made sense. All interview questions posed were answered by faculty who
agreed to be interviewed. Coding of qualitative data was completed using both inductive and
deductive analysis.
Study Findings
This section will document the study findings. The purpose of this study was to document
the progress of marketing faculty in implementing data analytics competencies in marketing
courses in full-time two-year residential general business MBA programs and to examine and
contribute to the discussion and debate on the theory-practice gap between business school
curricula and business practice in marketing. The following qualitative analysis includes
syllabus and artifact observations and marketing faculty interviews.
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The interview questions developed for the study were intended to gain understanding
about what knowledge sources faculty rely on to teach data analytics in marketing, how they are
motivated, whether or not AACSB goals play a role, and how their organizational cultures might
influence their decisions for what they decide to include in syllabi as textbooks or reading
material to teach from. The researcher noted that at least half of the faculty members
interviewed expressed a view that the term “digital marketing and analytics” from their
perspective was regarded as a more correct term and focus for how data was influencing the field
of marketing, rather than data analytics alone as an influencer. At least half expressed a view
that “good” marketing has always been data-driven, and many of the new buzzwords are not
based on new concepts at all, but are newer applications of old concepts.
Findings for Research Question 1
The following section presents findings in response to research question one related to
the faculty stakeholder group’s and marketing field’s adaptation to the rapidly changing
information technology environment and the pervasiveness of data. The findings show that the
field has been disrupted by information technology. Both the practice of marketing and MBA
marketing curricula have been significantly impacted requiring changes in how the work is
accomplished and how marketing is taught.
AACSB goal achievement for the field. The first research question sought to establish
the extent to which the field is meeting the AACSB goal of developing, implementing and
delivering data-driven marketing competencies via effective instructional strategies by 2020.
The study findings demonstrate that the speed of technological innovation and business demands
is moving faster than higher education’s ability to adapt (King, 2015) and confirms the findings
of Schlee and Harich (2010) that the majority of marketing faculty competent to teach
technology in marketing learned on their own. However, the individual faculty who are self-
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 66
taught, with strong self-schemas, technology backgrounds, experiential knowledge, and ties to
industry, have successfully achieved the field goal of implementing and delivering data-driven
marketing skill competencies via effective instructional strategies. They have accomplished this
by building communities of practice. This is the first theme identified from the qualitative data.
The change in adoption of data-driven marketing competencies was advanced at the individual
faculty level for 88% of faculty responders, rather than at the institutional level. In the absence
of these strategically placed passionate faculty champions, all but two institutions would have no
formal course review process in place to address emerging technology trends impacting
marketing courses in order to meet the AACSB goal. Furthermore, at least two faculty members
reported continuing this focus on data-driven marketing after a change in appointing institutions.
Findings for Research Question 2
Faculty knowledge for teaching data analytics. The second research question sought to
determine faculty knowledge and motivation related to designing effective teaching strategies to
implement and deliver data analytics skill competencies in marketing courses. The field of
institutions overall may be challenged to keep pace. However, individual faculty members have
high self-efficacy and attribution levels for effectively implementing and delivering data-driven
marketing competencies via effective instructional strategies. In the researcher’s study design,
the knowledge influences section was developed to examine inclusion of data-related content in
textbooks or readings and in marketing syllabi, and to explore issues such as how faculty monitor
and remain current with marketing trends, including their process for textbook or reading
selections for syllabus inclusion and their frequency of engagement with practitioners. All three,
the knowledge acquisition process, sources of new knowledge, and engagement with
communities of practice, emerged as primary themes in the study. The stakeholder group of
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 67
faculty have successfully adapted their course curricula with tailored content that enables them to
deliver marketing instruction that is relevant and inclusive of emerging trends.
Knowledge sources of course reading material. Typically, a course textbook would be
viewed as the classroom guide or roadmap for the content to be taught and students would expect
teachings to be loosely structured around the chapters of the textbook. For marketing faculty
interviewed, five of eight (62%) reported supplemental course materials to a selected textbook,
and two faculty members reported using no textbook at all. The inclusion of supplemental
materials from journals and web-based sources was reported by faculty as a means of providing
students with relevant knowledge and information that may not yet be available from publishers
in printed form as a textbook due to the lag between discovery and publication. The marketing
course materials faculty reported including are listed in Table 7. The group of faculty who
reported supplemental course readings was made up of faculty members of varied tenure-tracks,
backgrounds, genders, ages and appointment levels with the uniform goal of preparing students
for corporate roles as 21st century marketers. All eight faculty members included technology-
related topics in their course curricula with emphasis on data analytics and digital marketing. All
eight participants also expressed that today’s marketing is digital and data-driven, and having an
understanding of the purpose of data analytics was essential to marketers in today’s business
world. One faculty member said, “I add in my personal topics when the topic is relevant to add
depth in addition to market research methodologies.” Another faculty member stated,
I am always confronted with people who are thinking about similar problems that keep
me fresh and force me to think hard about what I am doing, what other people are doing
…I rely on the research community not just within the set of colleagues that I have, but
globally.
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In addition to curricular modification, faculty experiences and relationships emerged as
central to new knowledge acquisition. All eight faculty participants referenced experiences and
relationships as having a significant impact on their approaches to attaining new declarative
knowledge. Both relationships and experiential knowledge play a role. This is the fifth theme in
the research findings. Each responder described how they used their experience, personal
networks and relationships to gain information about what technology or digital content to
include in their courses and teach. One faculty member stated, “I was able to draw heavily on
the expertise of my colleagues and on prior course materials, and to update those [materials]
based on online sources—everything from trade journals, to popular media, to case studies.”
The updating of case studies became necessary as earlier versions were not inclusive of
data-driven marketing concepts, and, previously, case studies served the purpose of bringing
real-world experience to students. Case studies have been a mainstay in MBA programs for
many years, although they often only give students a limited amount of exposure to real-world
business decision-making. As one faculty member stated, “While [case study] is not direct real-
world experience, it does require engagement with the material in a way that is different from
straight lectures.” It is also a way that faculty can modernize the problem-solving approaches
and tools that students might use to solve the business problem. One definition for cases studies
is that they are “a miniature version of a business situation used in MBA programs to facilitate
learning” (Kamal, 2013, p. 1). Many of the corporate setting situations are vaguely described.
The percentage of case studies utilized by an MBA program is dependent on the program’s
teaching orientation and can range from 20% to 80% in the top business schools (Kamal, 2013).
At Harvard, 80% of instruction is delivered via case study (Kamal, 2013). Case studies might be
seen as a best practice over didactic lecture. However, without modernization, use of case
studies can present a different set of problems. For example, in a recent study of 53 award-
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winning MBA cases from the Case Centre by Ms. Lesley Symons, she found just seven with
female protagonists, all of whom represented “pink” market segments (Moules, 2018).
Another faculty member advised, “I tend to use established techniques that have old
fashioned names, and bring them in with a modern approach, to modern markets, with updated
examples and data that reflects current situations.” Therefore, using instructional course design
and prior knowledge, faculty participants were able to take advantage of their own business
expertise to expose students to technology, real-world problems and marketing trends. As
another faculty responder explained, “I had previously designed courses, [reflected on my
performance] and I conduct research extensively on the web covering the different theories that
emerge in marketing and some of the ways that [theories] have been updating over time.” The
combination of applying experience and researching trends was expressed by all faculty. A
tenured study participant reported,
I have personal expertise in the general business field and technology domains, so I have
both personal and professional contacts in Silicon Valley, and I am familiar with
educational material related to the use of data and mobile technology in the marketing
field.

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Table 7
List of Marketing Course Textbooks and Readings Reported by Faculty Interviewed

In all interview participant conversations, faculty expressed the need to rely on new
content to teach marketing courses because of the influences of technology and data. A senior
level faculty participant reported, “As I am talking to faculty, they’re saying technology is
relevant to marketing all over. They feel that they cannot teach marketing without talking about
technology.” The sources reported by faculty for gaining new knowledge were varied.
Reading Material in Course Syllabus Faculty Member Description
Self-designed personal course content using
mixed media

Top 20 male <50 Assistant Prof

Self-designed personal course content
- No Textbook

>Top 20 female <50 Assistant Prof

Web Marketing for Dummies (certification
in Google AdWords and Facebook
Blueprint)

>Top 20 female <50 Assistant Prof

Marketing Management Plus MyLab
Marketing with Pearson eText–Access Card
Package (15th Edition) by Kotler and Keller

Self-designed personal course content

>Top 20 male <50 Assistant Prof

Madigan & Pratt Digital Marketing

>Top 20 <50 female Associate Prof

Internet Marketing–Integrating Online and
Offline Strategies in a digital Environment
by Zahay and Roberts

>Top 20 >50 female Prof

Self-designed personal course content with
advanced excel functions

Top 20 >50 female Prof

Principles of Marketing Engineering and
Analytics by Gary Lillian and co-authors

Self-designed personal course content

Top 20 male >50 Prof
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 71
However, the collective source was the same: their community of practice. This was the sixth
theme that emerged. The elements and circumstances of their communities of practice were
different. However, every participant expressed some level of reliance on a community of
practice that was shaped based on their personal experiences, networks and relationships. Key
relationships were made up of individuals with shared values and interests from within and
outside of their organizations, across hierarchies, disciplines, functions and titles, including
superiors, colleagues, executives, alumni, consultants, volunteers and practitioners.
Faculty reliance on experiential knowledge and inter-organizational relationships.
Every responder indicated that they rely on experiential knowledge and IORs that make up their
community of practice in order to develop and implement data analytics in their marketing
courses. They also rely on experiential knowledge and IORs for skill-building in the classroom
which all viewed as important to include in their teaching. During interviews, faculty discussed
how they used prior knowledge, experience and IORs to ensure students gain critical skills in
marketing. Concerning development of student skills via effective instructional approaches, a
faculty participant stated,
I was previously running a digital marketing analytics program, and [from that
experience] I realized the importance of students not just having a straight theoretical
perspective of marketing but also needing to have the tools to get them the job.
Another participant said, “I teach in such a way that when [students] move through their career
they’re not just getting the latest and greatest, but they’re actually getting tools and ways of
thinking.” A different faculty member stated, “My students were being placed in corporate
headquarters [roles] and higher-ups were actually letting them create new positions and write the
job description. So, I realized that [my skill-building techniques] worked.”
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In adding additional contextual information about why skill-building is included and
taught, another faculty member explained, “The focus of student skill-building is related to
making comprehensive business decisions and deciding marketing plans.” While all eight
faculty members expressed the importance of IORs as a means of supporting their teaching
strategies, each member expressed reliance on different types of inter-organizational or
individual affiliations that supported their development of teaching strategies and new
knowledge, and these IORs were described as an important and integral part of their self-formed
community of practice. Mention of AACSB requirements for student learning was excluded
from any faculty response to any interview question related to how they design course content
and acquire new knowledge in the process of course preparation, or how they decide what to
teach or how to teach data analytics in marketing.
Faculty motivation for teaching data analytics. The majority of faculty (88%)
expressed that they worked extensively in the classroom to prepare students with work-related
job skills and understood the importance of students not just having a straight theoretical
perspective of marketing, but also needing to have the skill set and tools to gain employment. In
some cases, faculty members expressed the reward of hearing about how students were able to
take the class-developed skillset and either write their own job description or successfully secure
a corporate role. All eight faculty members also expressed the importance of presenting material
in ways that students can easily digest, and apply, but also in ways that students were able to
“give it legs” or understand its context and ability to adapt under a different name or be re-
purposed in a different way over time. Without that mindset or world view, faculty expressed
feeling their full task would be regarded as unmet. In other words, simply presenting the
components of marketing alone would be considered insufficient for meeting both student and
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 73
real-world learning and practice expectations without demonstrating how the aspects of a
marketing plan lock together and drive a business.
One responder with a direct marketing background explained in detail that, if we use a
term such as “digital disruption,” there is an implication that technology is basically changing a
whole industry in the way they work and how they do things. However, going back for years,
database marketers have always relied on data systems and data analysis for how they do their
work, according to the responder. For direct marketers, this was and still is the process for
justifying business decisions. For marketing practitioners in general, today’s access to data and
technology means a more intentional decision-based approach and justification for strategy.
Furthermore, the responder explained, “the true change in my institution is in how marketing is
being taught, with the inclusion of more simulation, role-play, software activities using
technologies from all the leading marketing product vendors, with students working toward
certificates for skill competencies.” All faculty members interviewed expressed a strong
commitment to student-centered learning and career preparation for practice. They also
expressed a sense of pride and value in seeing successful student outcomes as a result of having
gained skill competencies in their classrooms.
Faculty value for teaching new course content. The strongest motivation for faculty to
develop effective teaching strategies and to teach data analytics and technology in marketing was
from their high value for the usefulness of adding new data analytics content in marketing and
their high levels of self-efficacy for teaching information technology topics. Faculty view
themselves as experts, resisting the notion that a lag between research and practice should be the
framework for their process in course design. Faculty reported being avid readers, writers and
researchers with a self-directed requirement to stay relevant with the field of marketing. All five
faculty members reporting supplemental content as a way of adding depth to course learning, and
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 74
connecting students directly to the way the knowledge is used in practice, discussed different
types of content they uniquely source. For example, several reported inclusion of meaningful
real-world cases, guest lecturers, and student-led learning activities and projects. Some content
was web-based, and some was made available via faculty distribution. Faculty responders also
reported reliance on retired corporate executives and alumni as a source of personalizing
supplemental real-world content. A faculty participant stated,
This [teaching emerging data-related trends] is important because alumni from my course
can bring to the classroom marketing [expertise] from top-tier organizations
[demonstrating] how classroom experiences are being used, and should be transferred
into relevant real-world assignments…This is really how you learn marketing. Marketing
data simulations have been around forever—decades.
Other faculty expressed attending practitioner conferences as a key source of introducing
new knowledge in courses and gaining professional development. These are all demonstrations
of faculty behaviors where teaching is viewed as an important part of their faculty role, and
where cognitive or learner-centered approaches are highlighted and valued. Faculty responders
with research-extensive backgrounds expressed the importance in setting research-based or data-
driven expectations for students in terms of how they present, argue, influence, defend and
persuade when taking a position for a business decision or strategic direction, both in the
classroom, and in the field. All faculty attributed their marketing course design and teaching
success to their effort in preparation, their relationships and years of teaching and professional
experience, and each expressed strong self-efficacy beliefs about their ability to teach data-
driven marketing content.
Faculty beliefs on teaching technology topics. Five of eight faculty responders reported
use of self-designed personal course content, and three of the eight reported use of no additional
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 75
textbook at all outside of the content they personally developed. These faculty members shared
deep technology and data-driven subject-matter expertise, and strong relationships and
communities of practice as a part of their marketing course teaching strategy. One faculty
member reported, “I relied on my own experience and some industry experts, in addition, to
supplement the content.” Some responders described their research backgrounds as being heavily
influential in course design and instructional methodology, and the need to know specifically
how their research was being applied in the field. Others expressed how they saw data analytics
as an integral part of marketing and expressed how important it was to convey to students that
data analytics was not just an “add-on” topic. This faculty member said, “My goal is to integrate
[tools] appropriately throughout the curriculum, as opposed to presenting them as an add-on, or
tacked onto a curriculum in marketing. And I think that’s the general philosophy of the class that
I present.”
A majority of faculty members who expressed that teaching data analytics was important
also said it was one way for them to remain relevant themselves to how theory is being practiced
in the field. Another faculty member expressed it was a way to send students to the workforce
confidently and adequately prepared for success without making too many mistakes. Because
faculty value their teaching roles and see students as a by-product of their teaching, all faculty
gave statements demonstrating strong beliefs in their own ability to effectively teach data
analytics. They all also expressed value for the usefulness of teaching data analytics topics in
marketing. Furthermore, they expressed strong student support and a willingness to utilize any
necessary tools, resources, activities and supplemental assets to reach students and deliver a
positive experience. One faculty member offered this explanation about how they prepare
students for course rigor in marketing.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 76
I always say, in the classroom, you’re going to be frustrated; you’re going to be anxious.
you’ll probably hate me at some point, but I’m preparing you to get to the workforce and
be comfortable and not be anxious—to be confident and make decisions…I just think it’s
important for students to make as many mistakes as they can in the classroom, so they
can go to the workforce and not make those same mistakes.
Importance of teaching relevant content. Interviewed faculty shared feeling a true sense
of ownership of the educational experience they provide to students in their marketing
classrooms. They all viewed delivering a “real-world” experience as an important part of
teaching, and all expressed that extending learning beyond a single encounter with a student was
a priority in the sense that they hoped their instructional methodologies would enable students to
become successful practitioners. Related to the importance of teaching relevant content
including data-driven marketing, one faculty member clarified, “If you’re doing marketing, this
[data analytics] is something critical to the field of marketing at this point.” Another said,
“Philosophically, [my job] is to convey to students not just ‘how to’ but to give them confidence
that they have a framework for [successful work] throughout their career, not just for next year.”
Still another responder viewpoint was, “Everything today is numbers driven. Whether that’s
positive or not, it’s just the reality of today. We want our students to get on the job and be
confident to make decisions and move up quickly.”
Research-extensive faculty members expressed that they felt a sense of duty as members
of a community of practice, to send students fully equipped with the most relevant data analytics
knowledge and skill competencies. A different research faculty responder reported,
As a researcher, the types of scholars that I share my research with, and whose research I
read, forces me to keep updated on what’s new and what are the soundest theories and
techniques. It’s important for [students] because it relates to a career long, or a life- long
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 77
learning process…as things change throughout the world…and everything’s changing.
Social media has been hot for several years, but we may not be using that in 15 years.
The same researcher also said,
If we are representing the way that business takes place, and the skillsets that are
expected, and the, for lack of a better word, “lingua franca,” [the language that people
speak in modern business], then it’s critical to understand at least the principles that go
behind [data analytics] and the way the data can be used.
In gathering new knowledge, all faculty participants reported relying on both internal and
external support resources.
Findings for Research Question 3
Organizational cultures and contexts play a key role in how faculty knowledge and
motivation to achieve the field goal is influenced. Although availability of teaching support
resources is important, institutional resource availability alone is insufficient for fully meeting
the needs of faculty to refresh course content and re-design courses in step with emerging
industry trends. Furthermore, the absence of organizational structures, cultural models and
cultural settings where course refresh support is visible and prioritized, can serve as a barrier to
faculty achievement of the goals of teaching data-driven competencies in marketing and
delivering effective instructional design.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 78
Organizational Findings
Institutional support for teaching data analytics. Being able to access varying levels
of institutional support was a common positive theme among faculty responders and, in some
cases, faculty struggled to identify a single improvement their institutions could make by
enhancing teaching resources in support of their teaching commitments. All responders shared
the view that teaching was a holistic part of their role as a faculty member and the distribution of
their duties across institutional research, service and teaching commitments was an expected part
of their service and work unrelated to how institutional resources might be applied. Some
reported multiple centers of excellence. All but one reported having different levels and types of
funding and shared resources to support their teaching and expressed a feeling of confidence in
gaining necessary resources when needed. One faculty responder reported,
My institution supports [me] in a variety of ways. On the research side, I have a
generous budget that I use to travel to meet other researchers and get ideas from them,
and share my ideas. I also am afforded a budget for teaching purposes…For example, my
department will help to defray statistical software costs and faculty colleagues share
materials and resources used as teaching tools.
Another faculty member expressed, “There are multiple dimensions on which [my institution
supports me]. One is informally through my colleagues. One is more formally through faculty
mentorship.”

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 79
Table 8
Faculty Views on Institutional Support for teaching
Question Faculty Comments
How does your institution demonstrate
support for teaching?

“We have faculty sessions where sometimes the
sessions are guided based on what people need, and
sometimes they are unguided, for example, if there
is a conversation that keeps coming up, we just
discuss what’s going on in our teaching. We also
have a lot of sessions throughout the year, and then
at the end of the semester–during closure we have
four days of professional development, and it’s
amazing!”

“My institution formally recognizes our need to
have [supported learning networks]. It’s funny, we
actually have communities of practice that are
structured!”

“I can request the teaching materials that I want to
use in the class.”

“Faculty can [develop] a community of practice that
is a formalized version or, have a more unstructured
community ...Our university is very focused on
collaboration and trying to break down silos.”

“There are repositories of the prior material that has
been used to teach the class so, there’s access to the
breadth and scope of the materials used so you can
see how the class developed.”

A very wide range of different types of resources was reported, with some institutions
enabling faculty to influence resource type and allocation to their courses directly, while other
resources were reported as renewing to a group or individual annually or being made available
on demand. Three out of five participants with research backgrounds expressed that research
priorities might somehow be viewed by faculty as overshadowing or having greater importance
than teaching needs primarily because research support is much more hierarchical and structured
based on research ladders and tiered advancement. Nonetheless, 88% of faculty members
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 80
expressed feeling supported with a combined breadth and scope of teaching materials and
resources generated from their combined communities of practice and institutions. Two of the
eight (25%) faculty members expressed feeling a dearth of necessary teaching support resources
to enable development of new course content, causing them to rely much more heavily on their
communities of practice to feel motivated, gain necessary support, and sustain their desired level
of teaching excellence. Of all faculty interviewed, 100% reported having institutional autonomy
in determining course direction and content. Seventy-five percent of faculty reported having
more than a minimal level of institutional teaching support, and all expressed ability to
independently decide on how available resources allocated to them could be applied to support
their teaching.

Figure 2. Percent of faculty who reported specific institutional resources to develop new course
content.

Institutional support for teaching technology. Most faculty (75%) expressed that their
institutions provided good overall support for teaching technology topics in marketing.
However, all indicated the need to supplement these resources from their own communities of
practice and from their own knowledge and experience base. The expressions from all faculty
25%
75%
Yes No
% of Faculty Who reported Resources to Develop New Course Content
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 81
responders indicated the high level of difficulty with initial and sustained course preparation,
involving significant amounts of time spent reading and researching, forming and implementing
an effective teaching strategy, and gaining high student evaluations while indicating their
institutions provided little or no protected time for these activities.
Furthermore, all faculty talked about the complexities of identifying and including the
right mix of technology-related classroom activities and materials to develop and build on
concepts, incorporating new ideas with old, building skill competencies, experimenting with
methodology, and all without having clear and direct feedback within a reasonable timeframe
about what is or is not working. Some expressed a view that the larger MBA institutions with
established rankings did a better job at providing course design processes within their
organizational structures. Some faculty also expressed a belief that top-tier MBA institutions
were more likely to incorporate technology training for use in teaching courses and more likely
to provide faculty with shared resources for teaching. Faculty participants also said they
believed top MBA institutions did a better job of providing faculty with historical feedback in
the form of student evaluations, and other teaching metrics, allowing them to rely more fully on a
“best practices” approach to support faculty teaching. This was the expression given by a faculty
participant with structured institutional support for teaching. “We have several centers of
excellence in our institution.” Another said, “Beyond the content area in which my school is an
expert in, a pedagogical support center exists on the campus.” A third faculty member stated,
We have a super high-tech room for MBAs for remote conferencing and a BlueJeans
system. We have a business research institute with a huge bank of individual data
collection computers with privacy walls, and we also have eye-tracking galvanic skin-
response measures.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 82
Additionally, a senior level faculty member reported, “No. [I cannot think of a single additional
ask of any type in teaching support I would need.] We are very fortunate!”
Institutional support and importance of teaching. Faculty who expressed feeling their
institutions provide inadequate technology resources in tangible assets simply expressed the need
for distribution of equitable resources in support for teaching excellence compared with scholarly
research excellence. A faculty responder said, “We have financial incentives [for research], as
long as it is a peer-reviewed journal. And, if one publishes in an A-level journal, faculty receive
a one-course release from teaching.” However, a course release as a reward could be viewed
within the organization as giving teaching less importance than research and send a message that
both the environment and faculty value having protected time for research over teaching.
Of the five faculty members who expressed feeling adequate institutional teaching
support in tangible assets, two expressed the view that they might benefit from more formal
recognition of their need to rely on, sustain and develop their communities of practice as a source
of technology content. Both a senior faculty member and an early career research faculty
member expressed a view that one inhibitor to attempting to include more technology innovation
in the marketing classroom was the possibility of receiving poor student evaluations: “Rewards
are based on student votes for annual awards in various [teaching] categories…Another way
faculty receive rewards is through salary increase and promotion.” It was reported by a faculty
responder that equitable school-wide support for teaching support is available to faculty in
different forms, but some support is tied to evaluations. One faculty member expressed that
faculty might benefit from having their teaching evaluated over time more similarly to how a
faculty member’s research is evaluated and evolves over time. The responder stated, “I need to
have annual performance evaluations for teaching rewards which can be problematic [because
there is no cumulative view].”
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 83
In addition to not always being able to quantify their contributions to student success over
time, faculty participants also expressed concerns about not having an institutionally supported
professional forum to bring like-minded marketing faculty together with industry practitioners to
share ideas and work on instructional strategies collectively. The need for mutual recognitions
and exchanges appears to be escalating given the technology impact on the field. Such
affiliations have been shown to offer certain benefits. On this issue, a faculty responder stated,
“We could have an invitation only top 40 marketing program teaching faculty meet-up
[allowing] companies to [engage with] MBA programs in higher education to share ideas and
learn from each other. That would be a huge win-win.” Two additional participants echoed this
sentiment. One stated, “We have relationships, to some extent, with industry partners, but that
has not been a focus to the level I would like to see it.” The other said, “One strong benefit
[would be] creating a forum to unite academia and industry in order to advance faculty
affiliations and access to new marketing information and technology trends.”
Faculty expressions and views were strong related to how they must balance between
teaching with rigor, gaining favorable student evaluations, advancing in their careers toward
promotion and tenure, and being rewarded favorably for teaching performance given the varied
stakeholder expectations. They might be less challenged and feel more supported if the
stakeholder groups were more aligned on expectations, rewards and value for high performance
in teaching, and if academic institutions made visible steps to bridge the gap between industry
and academia.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 84

Figure 3. Percent of faculty who reported benefits from receipt of data or technology-related
teaching support resources.
Faculty rewards for teaching. All faculty interviewed were well versed about how
teaching is rewarded at their institutions and how they, as researchers who also teach or as
faculty, were rewarded. All reported their desire for demonstrating teaching excellence as
professionals and expressed strong views and understanding about the subjectivity of teaching
evaluations while researchers expressed feeling less pressure from these metrics due to their
multi-dimensional roles. Faculty with multi-dimensional roles mentioned their ability to split
time across functions and, in effect, to lessen the burden and emphasis placed on them for being
measured based on teaching performance alone because of its student evaluation risks and its
subjectivity. By having the added performance measure from research activities, faculty
75%
Goal:
100%
1
%MBA marketing faculty reporting benefits from receiving
data or tech-related teaching support resources
2018-2020
2018 2020
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 85
expressed feeling more fairly measured or less at risk due to the specificity of performance
measures for scholarly research. A research faculty participant stated, “We have a 40/20/40 load
often times—research, teaching, and service. Research is 40% and teaching is 40%. Teaching
success is, oftentimes, recognized through awards. We have a teaching award.” Another faculty
member stated, “We have a high value on teaching quality.” However, half of faculty responders
expressed a desire to see more specific teaching metrics implemented beyond quantitative
assessments at their institutions that would more adequately measure and indicate a strong
culture and value for teaching more similarly to the metrics and value shown for scholarly
research. Seventy-five percent of faculty responders also expressed the need for their institutions
to consider quantitative evaluations combined with other measures. One faculty member
suggested that student evaluations be combined with grade distributions. Another responded,
“Having peer evaluators evaluate your teaching performance, as opposed to, just student
evaluations being given an inordinate amount of weight [would be a good change].”
In addition, a majority of faculty expressed a desire to see more opportunities to reward
experimental teaching or teaching innovation and application of different teaching strategies and
approaches without being placed at risk for poor quantitative assessments in the form of student
evaluations. Being able to have an evaluation of teaching performance over time was also
viewed as more helpful. The faculty member stated,
I cannot wait for five or 10 years in the future for student evaluations to be given …and
[later someone say], now we will give you your pay hike from 10 years ago. That is not
practical, but it can be, at some level, if built into the [evaluation] system, at least for
faculty who have been teaching for five-ten years, and then [teaching performance can be
seen), over time, and how [students benefit] as opposed to, when they are in the here-and-
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 86
the-now, and may be experiencing some pain with the course workload or the difficulty
level.

Figure 4. Percent and type of faculty who expressed that teaching rewards should be better
clarified.

Institutional rewards can influence faculty teaching excellence. “Teaching is in-an-of
itself your own reward, in a sense that when you see people…become successful, and they later
say, ‘this helped me,’” one faculty member explained. For both research-extensive and other
faculty, teaching excellence is driven by both a service commitment to the faculty role, and self-
rewards from the satisfaction of teaching students, and achieving excellence in a domain that
allows a faculty member to apply their cumulative experience, knowledge, tools, resources and
50%
0 0 0
50%
1
2018 2018
%MBA teaching faculty who believe teaching recognition and rewards should be
better clarified and more closely aligned with mission:
at AACSB schools at their institution
Top 20 male <50 Asst Prof
>Top 20 female <50 Asst Prof
>Top 20 <50 female Assoc Prof
Top 20 >50 female Prof
>Top 20 male <50 Asst Prof
Top 20 male >50 Prof
>Top 20 >50 female Prof
>Top 20 female <50 Asst
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 87
strategies. “There’s no benefit that I specifically associate with teaching well, but it is considered
to be an important element,” stated one interview participant. Although this is true, all faculty
interviewed expressed value for having their teaching measured and rewarded equitably as a part
of their holistic faculty service. A faculty participant expressed,
There’s more specificity [for teaching] in the expectations than for research, but that’s
also because in a business school research varies across a lot more dimensions between
subfields. So, a finance professor does not look like a marketing professor, from a
research perspective, but there can be similar metrics for teaching.
In one setting that was reflective of high value for rewarding teaching excellence, a
faculty member addressed how their motivation for teaching excellence was favorably
influenced. The faculty member said,
There are several ways [teaching excellence is celebrated]. We have the normal teaching
award, teacher of the year, and we get promotion. Then, also what’s really cool is, there’s
a huge push to do a lot of experiential learning.
Another faculty member stated, “Specifically for teaching, [faculty] get rewarded if [they] are
doing more innovation within the classroom.” Regarding ways that teaching excellence might be
enhanced through teaching rewards, faculty members expressed these additional comments.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 88
Table 9
Instructor Suggestions for Ways Institutions Might Better Reward Teaching Excellence
Questions Faculty Comments
What rewards would you like to see made
available for teaching excellence?

“The number one thing I would love to see us
do [to reward teaching] is have more of a
relationship with industry, so that we could
have really good…not case studies, but data
availability so that [students] could
conceptualize a problem in the real world, and
use a type of data that answers that problem
ideally.”
“The one thing that’s been brought up a few
times is that faculty [rewards] are very
heavily focused on our student course
evaluation. So, if you don’t do well in the
student course evaluation ... that’s not
positive for you in the future, for getting a
promotion.”
“We’ve talked about teaching pedagogy &
andragogy, asking how can we create a
structure where it’s okay to…not be
innovative, but try new pedagogical methods
instead of just the same thing you do
always?”

Community of practice role in teaching excellence and experiential learning. All
faculty responders expressed strong reliance on a community of practice to support their
development of new knowledge and the experiential learning component in the classroom. Their
reliance was expressed as both direct for speakers and new content, and indirect as a source of
professional development in order to deliver an experience. The community of practice might be
shaped or facilitated in part or whole by the institution. For faculty to deliver experiential,
student-centered learning, the community of practice was reported as the source that provides
faculty with a collective of new ideas, materials, teaching support resources, feedback and
enhanced self-efficacy that is central to their teaching excellence. This same source was reported
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 89
by faculty as important for introduction and adoption of new experiential learning strategies.
Only two faculty members (25%) reported being a part of an institutionalized community of
practice while all reported reliance on their community of practice to develop and deliver
experiential components of their teaching. As reported by one faculty member, “I like to invite
some guest speakers who practice, who can talk about how they approach their job.” Another
said,
I have someone come who can teach me about how to communicate the message and
how to interact with students. So, this is independent of technology or the specific topics
I’m covering, but more about how the ideas are communicated to students.
A third faculty member stated, “I think it’s important that students see that some of the
techniques and ways of thinking conveyed, by [somebody in the ivory tower] are actually being
used in practice.” And finally, one additional participant comment was, “Experiential learning
should or can be done via networking and should be recognized via faculty evaluations.
Particularly for top programs, as this is very important.” In each comment, faculty found that
external content helped them to achieve their teaching goals more effectively. All faculty
expressed the ability to supplement their knowledge through the incorporation of subject-matter
experts in the classroom to deliver experiential learning as a positive. Additionally, the
following comments reflect faculty views on the need and importance of delivering relevant,
real-world experience in the classroom (Table 10).

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 90
Table 10
How Faculty Build and Utilize Their Communities of Practice
Question:
How do you rely on your community of
practice?
Faculty Comments

“We bring in individuals, technologically, that
are experts in a field, and, often times, we can
encourage them to bring their understanding
of information databases, or whatever, into
the classroom because we have the facilities
for it.”

“I rely on industry experts to supplement my
course content.”

“I’ve teamed up with two other faculty
members and we are building inter-
organizational relationships with community
clients to run cross-team collaborative student
marketing projects, and break down silos to
experience how it really haps in real life.”

Faculty see value in challenging students through experiential learning to optimally
prepare them for the same types of problems they will face when they become practitioners in
the field. All eight faculty interviewed expressed value and commitment toward providing
MBAs with skill competencies and transfer of business knowledge in alignment with emerging
industry trends.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 91

Figure 5. Percent of faculty who rely on self-initiated communities of practice to deliver data-
driven instruction.

Interaction between faculty and organizational cultures. The third research question
sought to determine the interaction between faculty, organizational culture and context, and faculty
knowledge and motivation. Even when individual faculty members have a world view and high
value for instructional design that is data-driven and learner-centered, their institutions can
encourage or dissuade their emphasis on teaching innovation and introduction of new data
analytics skill competencies by the cultural models and settings in place and shaped by
institutional leaders. In cultural models and settings where structures and rewards support teaching
100%
2018 2020
%MBA faculty who rely on a self-formed community of
practice to deliver data-driven learning-centered
instruction in support of their teaching & professional
?
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 92
data analytics or digital marketing and processes for development of new or refreshed course
content are incorporated into course planning and preparation, faculty receive clear indications of
institutional support and value for teaching data analytics in marketing that is reflective of
emerging trends. Where there is dedicated academic leadership at the dean’s level that is
focused on ensuring curricular excellence and relevance, faculty can have a single source of
accountability and advocacy beyond their department chair for refreshing course content. One
participant stated, “There is no appointment of a teaching associate dean at our institution which
presents challenges for course refresh. Having a dean would be helpful.” An additional
responder stated, “In our [internal] research we [concluded that] the dean’s understanding of
what digital marketing is all about was the most important [finding] in terms of faculty feeling
most supported.” Another said, “We have a very structured curriculum committee, and we set
deadlines. We usually have a [six-week] turnaround for [creating new course content]. My
process went well, and my new course was created easily.” Building a new course takes
considerable time and effort and combining the task with other responsibilities is difficult. The
time might not be protected in some environments and, because of the research component in
course design, the process can last for weeks. A faculty participant stated,
We [recognize] deadlines. It’s usually a month turnaround, actually a month and a half I
would say. My new course went through very easily, but it required a discussion with my
chair. My chair gave me full range, knowing my abilities, and just said, ‘Here, you go
and do what you want with it.’ I received final sign-off after review and full support.
In the two institutions where there are formally established policies, processes and
resources to facilitate acquisition of new knowledge and new course development, individual
faculty values, beliefs and motivation are positively reinforced. A faculty responded reported, “As
I am talking to faculty, they’re saying technology is relevant to marketing all over. We’ve
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 93
included, both, digital marketing and analytics; we’ve just infused it throughout our curriculum.”
In the remaining six institutions where there are no established processes in place, faculty must
assume the full burden of advocating for resources, identifying communities of practice and
protecting time to develop and implement new technology-related course content. A senior faculty
responder stated, “There are guidelines and interactions with the other faculty in terms of the
overall curriculum that the students receive. And, again, this sort of blurs the lines between
informal and formal, but there are repositories.” Although they have high levels of purpose and
utility value for teaching data-driven marketing, they are at risk of failing to stay relevant or to
innovate in the classroom due to the need to give the greatest amount of time and effort to the tasks
and systems in which their institutions recognize them for eva1uation and advancement. As one
faculty member responded,
I think that some of the research [exclusive] institutions may not have the same view
about their mission, related to the [teaching] priority. We have institutional teaching
rewards and have faculty who have been recognized by industry for teaching excellence.
Another participant stated,
We do have [institutional] teaching rewards; we do have student-based awards, but I do
not think that there is a uniquely codified reward for teaching in that way. I think it’s
more of an expectation of excellence than a reward for [teaching].
Opportunities for instructional training. The display of passion for teaching and the
thrill of gaining new knowledge and experimental nature emerged in the responses from faculty in
describing how they implemented teaching strategies and methodologies. Faculty described
seeking resources and professional development both inside and outside of their organizations to
advance their teaching priorities and achieve the level of excellence desired. They expected to
receive money, state-of-the-art technology, opportunities, access to industry and instructional
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 94
training and relationships, and institutional facilitations to benefit and support their teaching. Six
of eight faculty interviewed expressed easy access to such support requests. Another more senior
faculty participant stated,
We do have school-wide support that offers aid for teaching. I don’t mean financial aid,
rather, expert aid—people we can talk to about teaching in class, about new technology
use in class, about software that we use in class, about teaching methods, about proving
our teaching methods, about having someone come to our class and offer suggestions for
improvement.
This type of timely feedback was viewed as very important to faculty, allowing them a chance to
refine and revisit their delivery of content that might be in early stages of development.
Alternatively, fewer (only two of eight), expressed having the necessary protected time for course
design and having the formalized relationships with industry that might more readily facilitate their
professional development. Successful faculty development programs involve teachers in learning
activities that are similar to ones they will use with their students (Viswantha, 2018). Related to
teaching support for instructional design, two faculty members expressed strong desire to shake the
status quo for teaching support in their institutions and bring in new resources and leadership
intentionally designed to support teaching excellence more equitably relative to scholarly research.
Learner-centered teaching environments. One of the key benefits of faculty
experience and ties to practitioners is the ability to create learner-centered environments that are
interactive and memorable. Faculty responders gave strong views about minimizing didactic
instruction and enlivening the classroom with activities and experiences that would allow
students to practice data-driven marketing decision-making. A faculty participant discussed the
need for students to have the ability to understand and support their positions in class settings.
The responder stated, “I encourage [students] to backup whatever they have to say in class with
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 95
some evidence. They can support it with logic; they can support it with data; they can support it
through analogy.” The participant further stated that students needed to additionally be able to
convert and apply those teaching exercises and processes into different settings as practitioners.
Teaching students how to understand data analytics concepts and then convert knowledge into
practice can be difficult when their real-world experience is limited and might require iterations.
Faculty might need to test different approaches to see which classroom activities have the
greatest impact. One faculty participant stated,
I am not a modeling person. I am an experimental, at best, empirical researcher, and I
think the type of data that you get from experimental data is slightly different from some
of the data that is acquired by companies.
When company practitioners enter the classroom, students can learn firsthand how
relevant knowledge is being applied in corporate settings. Faculty must seek out such guest
lecturers based on personal relationships and networks. Almost half of faculty participants
expressed concerns about the ad hoc nature of how they build relationships with industry,
develop their self-knowledge and identify new sources of knowledge, suggesting that the ad hoc
approach to building relationships and communities of practice can be inefficient and time-
consuming, opening up a need and possibility for a more formal industry-academia facilitation
that might accelerate this process. A junior faculty member expressed, “I rely on a combination
of storytelling and activities mixed in with that real data [provided by] key contacts in my
community of practice…in the field to discuss how they are using data in their real-world roles”
The early career faculty member went on to say, “I think faculty teach what they know instead of
what students need and sometimes shared content from prior course instructors is not available
which is very challenging for young faculty.”

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 96
Table 11
Faculty Comments on Data-Related Teaching Strategies for Skill Competencies
Question Faculty Participant Comments
How do you design courses with
effective data-related teaching strategies
for skill competencies in marketing?
“I was able to draw from [classes] I previously
taught as they were very well established and very
well designed ... in addition to the colleagues and
my own expertise in the field, and my own research
and development of educational materials.”

“technology and data, and many of these issues, are
extremely important... I think that to convey their
importance, my goal is to integrate them
appropriately throughout the curriculum, as
opposed to presenting them as tacked onto a
curriculum.”

“I [created the course] from my experiential
knowledge. But …a prior faculty leader designed a
rock-solid curriculum…”

“buzzwords come along like analytics…they have
meaning...though they’ve been around a while, so
the methodology and strategy is to integrate early
concepts and apply them to new buzzwords
.so, students understand their relevance.”

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 97

Figure 6. Percent of marketing faculty who reported reliance on supplemental data-related
teaching support resources.

Document and Artifact Analysis
This section summarizes findings from the publicly available documents and artifacts
mentioned previously, such as the marketing syllabi, faculty web pages, videos, blogs, faculty
vitae and faculty marketing home pages. Documents and artifacts were accessed from the
internet and further supported the qualitative data collection in the presence of the low response
rate for the written survey. The most significant findings in artifacts collected demonstrated the
field of marketing is evolving, dynamic, customer-driven, global and strategic in focus, and
many MBA programs have escalated their brand visibility using many of the concepts and
100%
TBD%
2018 2020
?
%MBA marketing faculty who report relying on
supplementing insitutional data-related teaching support
resources to deliver relevant content via effective
instructional strategies
2018-2020
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 98
approaches included in the practice of marketing to promote their programs and marketing
course content. The artifacts and documents from the majority of institutions gave a clear
indication that MBA marketing programs remain highly competitive, are globally focused, and
demonstrated organizational shifts toward promoting cultures and teaching expertise with a
blend of traditional and experiential faculty talent with subject-matter expertise beyond
classroom instruction. Additionally, many sites offered high-touch marketing content, including
descriptive segments, rich media, consumer-focused content, including student portfolios,
revolving stakeholder content and visual graphics seeking to compete, differentiate, engage and
attract a desired talent pool.
Table 12
Summary of Artifact Observations for Knowledge, Skills and Data-Driven Innovation
Q1: What does the
artifact say about the
faculty or program’s
knowledge, skills and
focus areas?

Q2: What does the
artifact say about the
faculty or program’s
view on teaching data-
related topics in
marketing?

Q3: Are there elements
of the artifact that are
reflective of data-driven
innovation?

Q4: Are there
elements of the
artifact that are
reflective of the
application of
learning to the
field?
70% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts
that support faculty
knowledge, skills and
focus on group learning,
learner-centered
approaches, project-
based learning,
development of
foundational tools for
business decision-
making and leadership,
extensive marketing
plan exercises and
phased skill-building
workshops integrated
into courses.
70% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts
that support
instructional content
that is focused on data-
related group learning,
learner-centered
approaches, project-
based learning, data-
related hands-on
decision-making, web
analytics and data
resources for student
learning.
60% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts that
support highly innovative
approaches including
industry marketing data-
driven activities, presence
of core faculty with real-
world evidence and
experienced incorporated
into course design,
simulation-driven content,
integrated marketing
central to business strategy
content, student-developed
analytical tools and
consumer-centric data-
related content.

30% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated
artifacts that support
inclusion of core
faculty in marketing
with strong
engineering or
information
technology
backgrounds, skills
IORs and prior direct
field experience.
50% of
organizational
artifacts reflect
faculty consulting
roles as a source of
field engagement.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 99
Table 13
Summary of Artifact Observations for Instructional Design, Tools, Topics and Textbooks
Q4: What does the
artifact say about the
faculty or program’s
use of learning
techniques beyond case
method or didactic
sessions?

Q5: What does the
artifact say about the
faculty or program’s
view on teaching data-
related topics in
marketing?

Q6: Are there elements
of the artifact that are
reflective of skill-
building innovation?

Q7: Are there
elements of the
artifact that are
reflective of the
evolving
instructional
design?
50% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts
reflective of high value
for inclusion of real-
world evidence in
marketing course
content and in faculty
experience relevant to
the field.

70% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts
reflecting strong views
on dynamic, evolving
teaching practices in
marketing and
demonstrating the
importance of teaching
data analytics and other
technology topics in
marketing.

70% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts
supporting innovative
approaches to developing
marketing plans,
consumer-driven
marketing planning,
business decision-making,
global relevance,
practitioner leader guest
lecture influence and
presence, technology guest
lecture influence and
presence in teaching
marketing.

70% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated
artifacts that support
inclusion of teaching
using of data-
intensive
supplemental faculty-
developed or
designed reading or
course content
beyond a traditional
marketing textbook
such as Kotler &
Keller (2006).
54% of programs
demonstrated artifacts
supporting inclusion of
course labs, analytical
and statistical tools, data
science, course packs,
SQL or SAS coding,
coursework using
primary data.
100% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts
reflective of high value
for software and
internet use, inclusion
of analytical skills in
teaching data-related
topics in marketing

60% of MBA
organizations
demonstrated artifacts that
support teaching with
strong cultures stakeholder
relationships and visible
exchanges through videos,
blogs, published thought
leadership.
30% of MBA
organization artifacts
demonstrated use of
no formal text book
or use of a textbook
only as a reference,
while 34%
demonstrated use of a
more strategic-
focused alternative
text, with 40%
artifacts
demonstrating use of
the traditional Kotler
& Keller (2006)
textbook.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 100
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences
The following sections present recommendations to address knowledge, motivation and
organizational influences identified as gaps or needs in response to the research questions posed
related to the field’s progress in closing the MBA skills gap in AACSB-accredited programs.
First, two knowledge influence gaps were identified in the findings: the need for greater faculty
awareness about how institutional and AACSB instructional goals are aligned and the need for
institutional faculty support to gain new information technology knowledge through industry-
sponsored conferences or affiliations. Second, two motivation influence gaps were identified in
the findings. The first of these is the need for inclusion of new teaching evaluation policies that
align expectations and incentives that serve to elevate faculty task beliefs about the usefulness of
adding innovative course content. The second is the need for more teaching excellence
incentives tied to innovation and instructional design, including the addition of an institutional
expedited course review process.
Lastly, the highest number of gaps identified were associated with organizational
influences. The first and most significant need identified is for institutions to establish cultural
models that are inclusive of faculty development and instructional design resources unique to
faculty teaching performance goals, including support for protected time, community of practice
building, and access to expedited course review to support teaching in information technology-
intensive courses. The second need is for institutions to create cultural settings that allow faculty
to practice behaviors and communicate acceptance of technology-related training and receive
protected time to secure training in industry or academic settings to support their teaching
strategies. The third need is for implementation of written policies and/or processes in support of
faculty instruction in “real-world” settings to show leadership demonstrations of value for
interactive, “real-world” learning activities and settings. The fourth gap identified is the need for
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 101
institutions to create cultures of learner-centered education rooted in “real-world” activities
including faculty IORs and formalized communities of practice.
Table 14

Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations

Knowledge Influence Principle and Citation Context-Specific
Recommendation
Faculty need to be aware of
AACSB Assurance of
Learning goals that require
MBA programs to include
information technology to
stay relevant with the field
(D)
The only way to equip people
to handle the novel and
unexpected is with education
(Clark & Estes, 2008).
Business schools accredited by
the Association to Advance
Collegiate Schools of Business
(AACSB) look to AACSB for
guidance in the development
of business curricula that are
relevant to the ever-changing
business environment (Schlee
& Harich, 2010).
As faculty gave no reference to
AACSB Assurance of Learning
in determining what to teach, the
recommendation is for AACSB
to specify AOL requirements to
accredited programs with
information technology and data
content in courses and to provide
information to faculty about how
institutional goals are aligned
with AACSB Assurance of
Learning goals.

Faculty need to know how
to build technology-related
skills in marketing courses.
(P)
Cognitive process driven
student learning, such as
experiential learning, is more
effective than didactic learning
(Drake-Bridges et al., 2011).
This emerged as an asset as
faculty subject-matter experts are
aware of how to build
technology-related skills in
marketing. However, given that
technology skills are
continuously emerging, the
recommendation is to provide
faculty with support resources to
attend at least one technology
industry conference each year.
Abbreviations Key: (D)eclarative; (P)rocedural; (M)etacognitive
Faculty need to be aware of AACSB standard 9 Assurance of Learning (AOL) goals that
require MBA programs to include information technology to stay relevant with the field.
Business schools accredited or seeking to become accredited look to AACSB for guidance in the
development of business curricula that are relevant to the ever-changing business environment
(Schlee & Harich, 2010). Although AACSB oversees MBA curricula in accredited programs,
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 102
“there are potential concerns, not so much with the intent of the AACSB standards, but with the
interpretations and implementation within programs” (Stepanovich, Mueller & Benson, p. 103).
Although AACSB guidelines “advise schools that learning objectives are not static but should be
revised as needed to generate continuous improvement in the business school curriculum,
AACSB allows considerable latitude and individual institutional discretion in attainment of AOL
goals” (Balotsky, Stagliano & Haub, p. 75). The recommendation is for a policy change within
AACSB and for an institutional change in how goals are aligned with AACSB. The
recommendation for policy change is for AACSB to add more specificity to the guidelines for
course content that involves data and information technology, including marketing courses. The
recommendation at the institutional level is that organizations inform faculty about how overall
institutional goals are aligned with AACSB goals reflective of changing market trends.
For MBAs, “live case studies” is a common moniker for typically semester-long projects
that match student teams with major client issues (Bove & Davies, 2009; Camarero, Rodríguez-
Pinto, & San José, 2010). As a part of case studies, faculty need to ensure they are including
necessary technology-related skill-building activities for students to become 21st century
workers in marketing. Cognitive process-driven student learning, such as experiential learning,
is more effective than didactic learning (Drake-Bridges et al., 2011). Active learning, where
students participate in the learning process, has been shown to generate good learning outcomes
(Elam & Spotts, 2004). “I am not a modeling person; I’m an experimental, at best,” one faculty
member self-described. As previously mentioned, one suggested approach (Rueda, 2011) is
Bloom’s taxonomy and another is for teachers to dive deeper into the cognitive approaches
related to knowledge and what they need to know to achieve their performance goals. Although
this emerged as a faculty asset, given that technology skills in marketing are continuously
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 103
emerging, the recommendation is for faculty to attend at least one industry conference each year
to support their skill-building strategies.
The second section appearing in Table 15 below addresses needs, barriers or gaps in
motivation influences and provides related recommendations in response to influences based on
theoretical principles. The conceptual framework guides the discussion. Faculty motivation
influences were mixed with assets and gaps showing a strong utility value for teaching data-
related technology in marketing, but structural and policy barriers at the institutional level were
seen as gaps impacting motivation and preventing faculty from developing new course content as
frequently or as vigorously due to absence of specific teaching incentives.
Table 15
Summary of Motivation Influences and Recommendations
Assumed Motivation
Influence

Principle and Citation Context-Specific
Recommendation
Faculty need to value the
usefulness of adding new
content or enhancing
marketing courses with
technology-related topics.
(utility value)

Expectancy Value Theory -
Utility Value

Utility value or usefulness
captures extrinsic reasons for
engaging in a task and refers
to how a task fits into an
individual’s future plans
(Wigfield & Eccles, 2000).

Rationales that include a
discussion of the importance
and utility value of the work
or learning can help learners
develop positive values
(Eccles, 2006; Pintrich,
2003).
Provide teaching evaluation
policies that align expectations
and incentives to motivate
faculty to elevate task beliefs
about the usefulness of adding
new or innovative content
relevant to the field, and to
enhance their ability to teach
data-driven marketing topics to
facilitate learning transfer
between marketing courses and
the field.

Faculty need to see teaching
as an important aspect of
their role and value
developing effective
teaching strategies.
(attainment value)
Expectancy Value Theory -
Attainment Value

“Attainment value or the
importance of doing well on
a given task incorporates
Provide policies and incentives
for teaching excellence,
innovation and instructional
design, and implement an
expedited review process to
address changes in the field that
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 104
self-schema” (Wigfield &
Cambria, 2010, p.4).

“The important motivational
principle is that the higher an
individual values an activity,
the more likely he or she
chooses, persists, and
engages in it” (Rueda, 2011,
p.43).
require immediate and timely
adaptations to teaching
strategies and course content.

Six of eight faculty interviewed expressed the need to have teaching rewards at their
institutions that were more specific, consistent, and eminent, similar to rewards for research. In
discussing the impact of teaching evaluations on faculty recognition, advancement and success, a
common topic of concern was the negative consequences from poor student evaluations that may
or may not accurately reflect course effectiveness and faculty performance. The risk of receiving
a poor student evaluation might cause faculty to avoid innovating or modifying instructional
design from a past successful approach even when course contents may be becoming obsolete.
On this topic, a faculty participant stated, “One suggestion to change teaching rewards, is to
deemphasize, or significantly reduce, or marginalize the weight of student evaluations. Student
evaluations are being given an inordinate amount of weight.” Another participant added,” Grade
distributions should be considered for use along with student evaluations.”
Faculty also need to have utility value or see the usefulness of adding new course content
or enhancing marketing courses with technology-related topics. Utility value or usefulness
captures extrinsic reasons for engaging in a task and refers to how a task fits into an individual’s
future plans (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). Rationales that include a discussion of the importance
and utility value of the work or learning can help learners develop positive values (Eccles, 2006;
Pintrich, 2003). When faculty with technology content-usefulness hold strong self-beliefs, and
hold this self-belief as highly important, this self-schema will likely be accessed repeatedly
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 105
compared to a self-schema for which a lower value is held (Pintrich et al., 2016). Also, self-
schemas with higher importance to faculty are more likely to be activated, resulting in novel
teaching approaches and in more visible examples of teaching eminence. The recommendation
is to provide expectations and incentives to motivate faculty to elevate task beliefs about the
usefulness of adding new innovative content relevant to the field, and to enhance their ability to
teach data-driven marketing topics that facilitate learning transfer between marketing courses
and the field. Furthermore, faculty should not be placed at risk for promotion and tenure
advancement due to implementation of marketing course innovation.
In the absence of sufficient training, time, and incentives, common barriers to change go
unresolved (Brownell & Tanner, 2012). Furthermore, research supports the need for greater
teaching rewards to motivate change in university settings where there are few incentives for
teaching in novel ways or for introducing new evidence-based strategies (Brownell & Tanner,
2012). When teaching is rewarded, and parallels attainment value in expectancy value theory, it
becomes a part of a faculty member’s self-schema (Eccles, 1983; Feather, 1982; Pintrich et al.,
2016).
Faculty need to see teaching as an important aspect of their role and value developing
novel, effective teaching strategies. “Attainment value or the importance of doing well on a
given task incorporates self-schema” (Wigfield & Cambria, 2010, p.4). The important
motivational principle is that the higher an individual values an activity, the more likely he or she
chooses, persists, and engages in it (Rueda, 2011). Also, studies have indicated that when
teachers believe technology uses are valuable, they are more likely to incorporate those uses into
their practices (Ottenbreit-Leftwich, Glazewski, Newby & Ertmer, 2010). The recommendation
is to provide a rationale for the importance of developing effective teaching strategies reflective
of changing trends in the field of marketing, moving toward digital marketing and analytics as
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 106
the standard and provide rewards for demonstrations of excellence and innovation in
instructional design related to digital marketing and analytics.
The third section, appearing in Table 16, below addresses the needs, barriers or gaps in
organizational influences and provides related recommendations in response to influences based
on theoretical principles. The conceptual framework guides the discussion. Faculty
organizational influences emerged to show a strong influence from cultural models and settings
inclusive of faculty development and instructional design support. A gap in supportive cultural
models and settings for teaching technology in marketing emerged for 25% of faculty
organizations represented in interviews. For the 75% of organizations providing resources, there
is opportunity to further refine and enhance resources based on these recommendations.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 107
Table 16

Summary of Organization Influences and Recommendations

Assumed Organization
Influence

Principle and Citation

Context-Specific
Recommendation
Organizations need to provide
faculty with support and
resources toward achieving
AACSB Assurance of
Learning goals for teaching
information technology in
marketing. (CM)
Institutional barriers such as
program or cost structure,
faculty training, status
hierarchies, high competition,
time constraints and
accreditation can be
deterrents to faculty task
performance (Welsh &
Dehler, 2007).

Provide a cultural model that
is in alignment with AACSB
Assurance of Learning
standards to respond to
emerging trends related to
pervasiveness of data in
marketing and to offer faculty
development and
instructional design resources
unique to faculty teaching
performance goals, including
protected time, communities
of practice and expedited
course review to support
faculty teaching information
technology in marketing.

Organizations need to make
faculty aware they have
access to instructional
training to develop effective
technology-related teaching
strategies.in marketing. (CS)

Culture is a “pattern of shared
basic assumptions learned by
a group” and used to solve
external and internal
problems through accepted
and believed norms (Schein,
2004).

Provide a cultural setting that
allows faculty to practice
behaviors and communicate
acceptance of AACSB
Assurance of Learning
standards, technology-related
training and protected time to
secure training in industry or
academic settings to support
teaching strategies.

Organizations need to make
faculty aware they have the
capacity to change the
location where they teach to
produce a more active,
current and interactive
learning environment. (CM)

Skill competency over
lecture-centered instruction is
favored by students and
favorably impacts knowledge
transfer (Li et al., 2007).
Provide written policies or
processes to support AACSB
Assurance of Learning
standards, faculty instruction
in “real-world” settings to
show leadership
demonstrations of value for
interactive, “real-world”
learning activities and
settings.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 108

Table 16, continued
Assumed Organization
Influence

Principle and Citation

Context-Specific
Recommendation
Organizations need to
promote cultures where
learner-centered education is
practiced. (CS)
Students learn the wrong
things in the wrong ways
(Armstrong & Fukami, 2009).

Excessive structured learning
is detrimental to growing
practitioners (Armstrong &
Fukami, 2009; Mintzberg,
2005).

Organizations need to create
a culture of learner-centered
education rooted in “real-
world” activities, up-to-date
case studies reflective of
multi-cultural and diverse
protagonists and faculty
relationships and
communities of practice.

Organizations need to provide faculty with support and resources toward achieving their
own teaching performance goals as well as toward AACSB goals for teaching information
technology in marketing. Institutional barriers such as program or cost structure, faculty
training, status hierarchies, high competition, and accreditation can be deterrents to faculty task
performance (Welsh & Dehler, 2007). The recommendation is to provide a cultural model that is
inclusive of faculty development, instructional design resources unique to faculty teaching
performance goals, communities of practice, and expedited course review to support faculty
teaching new information technology trends in marketing in alignment with their own self-
schemas.
In teaching cultures where policy and provision of resources are made available (Rueda,
2011), faculty can translate that observation and experience into their own personal value for
teaching innovation (Clark & Estes, 2008). Research shows that, by adopting one or more
specific institutional strategies, faculty can be empowered to explore new technology trends and
harness them to deliver more innovative, enriching, and engaging student learning experiences
(Bisoux, 2017). In order to address faculty development needs, some academic environments
have found it necessary to create staffed business units to facilitate innovation and digital
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 109
pedagogy (Bisoux, 2017). This practice delivers a more efficient mechanism for faculty to
initiate and sustain communities of practice with origins based at their home institutions.
Organizations need to make faculty aware they have access to instructional training to
develop effective technology-related teaching strategies in marketing. In cultural settings where
there is a pattern of shared basic assumptions learned by a group and used to solve external and
internal problems, these patterns of behaving become accepted norms (Schein, 2004). In
academic environments where there is no pattern of faculty accessing training and resources in
preparation to teach new technology skills, it becomes a norm. The recommendation is for
organizations to provide a cultural setting that allows faculty to practice behaviors and
communicate acceptance of technology-related training and protected time to secure training in
industry or academic settings to support teaching strategies.
When gaps in cultural settings exist, they can cause a negative impact on faculty teaching
and student outcomes. In a gap analysis study conducted by Hamid (2015), evidence was found
that an institution’s cultural settings gap, due to the lack of equipment and facilities and the lack
of strategic planning within a college environment, caused a negative impact for faculty to teach
effective competency-based education training to students.
Organizations need to make faculty aware they have the capacity to change where they
teach to produce a more active, current and interactive learning environment. Skill competency
over lecture-centered instruction is favored by students and provides a more effective learning
experience for knowledge retention (Li et al., 2007). The recommendation is for organizations to
provide visible leadership demonstrations of value for flexible teaching settings in experiential
locations and development of related supporting policies, practices and rewards.
Technology and marketing are linked (Capon & Glazer, 1987; Hansen, 2008; Granitz &
Koernig, 2011), as are technology and marketing education (Atwong & Hugstad, 1997; Granitz
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 110
& Koernig, 2011; Krentler & Willis-Flurry, 2005; Paladino, 2008). Innovative teaching in some
organizations has included a wide variety of effective learning interventions that gain strong
student interest and discussion, such as using props during lectures and bringing advanced
marketing and sales technology into the classroom as well as using videos and social media
(Whalen & Coker, 2016).
Organizations need to promote cultures where learner-centered education is practiced.
Students learn the wrong things in the wrong ways (Armstrong & Fukami, 2009). Excessive
structured learning is detrimental to growing practitioners (Armstrong & Fukami, 2009;
Mintzberg, 2005). Institutional leaders (Heskett, 2005) have suggested that faculty themselves
should possibly be required to have a real-world experience to qualify for promotion, or undergo
a practitioner review in advance of certain research article publications. Faculty interviewed
reported many different approaches to delivering learner-centered instruction. However, almost
half of the institutions represented are delivering content that is heavily weighted on simulation
or case study and may not include a strong component of real-world activities. The
recommendation is to improve experiential learning opportunities for MBA marketing students
beyond simulation and case study and become more inclusive of real-world activities.
In some organizations, marketing faculty have adopted an experiential learning paradigm,
with a premise that knowledge is socially constructed, in the form of conversations and
interactions by the various parties about a particular topic (Granitz & Koernig, 2011; Brown &
Adler, 2008; Li et al., 2007; Wright, Bitner, & Zeithaml, 1994). With this paradigm, the
relationships between faculty and students become more personal and they jointly construct
knowledge through cooperative learning activities (Granitz & Koernig, 2011). Moreover,
Granitz and Koernig (2011) found that in technological-based environments, experiential
learning has yielded more effective learning (Hamer, 2000; Li et al., 2007). Furthermore,
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 111
Granitz and Koernig’s (2011) research found that successful inclusion of technology in
marketing could be enhanced if marketing faculty (a) explicate Web 2.0 concepts and their
relation to experiential learning, (b) determine whether and how Web 2.0 principles can be
applied to marketing education, (c) apply Principles of Web 2.0 to specific experiential
marketing exercises, and (d) identify strategies to motivate faculty adoption of the Web 2.0
paradigm.
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan
Implementation and Evaluation Framework
The methodology and approach to designing an integrated implementation and evaluation
plan to solve the problem of practice is based on a framework from the New World Kirkpatrick
Model, developed by Dr. Don Kirkpatrick in the 1950s to evaluate his training programs to
determine their effectiveness (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Over the years, thousands of
professionals have utilized and adopted the model for use in their organizations. In the design of
the Kirkpatrick model, there are four levels that remain in place today: reaction, learning,
behavior and results. With implementation of the model, Kirkpatrick explained that the order of
the four levels was not necessarily linear and sequential, but could develop and unfold in reverse
as well, with initial emphasis on outcomes. The specific meaning of the four stages are as
follows:
● Results: the degree to which targeted outcomes occur as a result of training and support
and accountability included
● Behavior: the degree to which participants apply learning as a result of training and
includes critical behaviors, required drivers, and on-the-job training
● Learning: the degree to which participants acquire intended knowledge, skills, attitude,
confidence and commitment based on training participation
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 112
● Reaction: the degree to which participants find the training favorable, engaging and
relevant to the work they do (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016)
Organizational Purpose, Need and Expectations
The field mission of AACSB is to advance quality management education worldwide
through accreditation and thought leadership. According to Section 2, Standard 9 subcategory,
accredited programs should include learning experiences that address general business and
management skills at mastery level in information technology topics impacting business
practices.
The global goal for the field is that by 2020, 100% of MBA AACSB-accredited full-time
two-year residential general business MBA programs will develop and implement marketing
content with data-related competencies to improve MBA graduate professional development.
The stakeholder goal is by September 2020, 100% of MBA faculty in AACSB-accredited
programs will implement data-driven marketing competencies via effective instructional
strategies.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 113
Level 4: Results and Leading Indicators
Table 17
Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes
Outcome Metric(s) Method(s)
External Outcomes
1. Employers no longer need
to retrain marketing MBA
hires lacking data-related
skill competencies

Percentage of Employers that
report MBA retraining costs have
declined
Industry reports
2. AACSB requires MBA
programs to develop and
follow an expedited review
process related to courses
disrupted by pervasiveness
of data to refresh data-
related marketing course
content in response to major
industry trends
Number of MBA programs that
demonstrate an expedited review
process for data-related marketing
content in response to major
industry changes
AACSB reports that confirm MBA
programs have an expedited review
process in place allowing
development or refinement of data-
related marketing content to
support faculty teaching

3. AACSB requires
assignment of tasks to
existing academic program
deans for expedited
refresh/review of curricular
areas disrupted by
pervasiveness of data
including marketing content
to ensure relevance and
adherence to Assurance of
Learning standards

Number of MBA program
implementations based on AACSB
policy guidance for expedited
review and assignment of tasks to
existing academic program deans to
ensure relevance

AACSB reports on institutional
leadership adherence to data-
related marketing content policy
requirements
4. Industry organizations
report stronger affiliations
with academia

Number of industry firms reporting
formalized ties to academia
Industry reports and AMA faculty
survey responses

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 114
Table 17, continued
Outcome Metric(s) Method(s)
Internal Outcomes
1. Faculty receive required
resources, protected time,
rewards, incentives, training,
support and skills to keep
data-related marketing
course content relevant in
response to major industry
changes.
Number of faculty that report
having necessary policies,
processes, resources, protected
time, ties to industry, rewards,
training, and skills to develop,
teach and refresh data-related
marketing course content in
response to industry changes.
AACSB, AMA or NACE Post-
survey of faculty for satisfaction
about institutional Assurance of
Learning policies, processes,
protected time, ties to industry,
rewards and incentives, resources.
skills, training, and support for
developing, teaching, and
refreshing data-related marketing
course content.

2. Faculty are working in
organizations that promote
cultures where learner-
centered, “real-world”
education is practiced.

Number of faculty that report
working in organizations where
promotion of learner-centered
cultures including “real-world”
activities is actively practiced.
AACSB, AMA or NACE Post-
survey of faculty for satisfaction
about institutional promotion of
learner-centered cultures including
“real-world” activities being
actively practiced.
3. Faculty see teaching state-
of-the-art content as an
important aspect of their role
and are rewarded for
developing innovative
teaching strategies.
Number of faculty that report being
rewarded for innovative teaching
(not penalized by student
evaluations) and developing state-
of-the-art content as an integral part
of their annual performance
evaluation.

AACSB, AMA or NACE Post-
survey faculty for satisfaction
about rewards for innovative
teaching, and developing state-of-
the-art content as an integral part of
their annual performance
evaluation.

4. Faculty are aware they
have the capacity to change
the location where they
teach to produce a more
active, current and
interactive learning
environment.
Number of faculty that report being
aware they have the capacity to
change the location where they
teach and relationships adjacent to
the industry to produce a more
active, current and interactive
learning environment.

Observation of faculty for
satisfaction about the flexibility
they have in developing IORs,
alternative teaching locations and
supplemental encounters to
enhance student experience, skill-
building, and job readiness.
5. Faculty have access to
resources such as formalized
communities of practice, ties
to industry and protected
time to support their
instructional design for
teaching effectiveness.
Number of faculty that report
having access to formalized
communities of practice to support
their instructional design for
teaching effectiveness.
Observation of post-survey faculty
for satisfaction with having access
to more formalized communities of
practice, ties to industry, and
protected time to support their
instructional design for teaching
effectiveness.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 115
Level 3: Behavior
Critical behaviors. Because institutions are independently governed, AACSB must
drive the first critical behavior by setting greater policy guidance and expectations around MBA
data-related marketing course content. The second critical behavior is that MBA programs must
be held accountable for implementing cultural models and settings, oversight and processes that
enable expedited review to refresh data-related marketing course content. The third critical
behavior is that faculty stakeholders must be motivated and incentivized for developing data-
driven marketing and refreshing course content reflective of industry trends, by accessing
resources and/or processes made available.
Table 18
Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation
Critical Behavior Metric(s) Method(s) Timing
1. AACSB
strengthens its policy
to require accredited
programs to meet
Assurance of
Learning standards in
curricular areas
impacted by
pervasiveness as a
requirement for
continued
accreditation.

AACSB requirement
for MBA programs to
meet Assurance of
Learning standards in
curricular areas
impacted by
pervasiveness of data
with annual expedited
review for course
content refresh to
remain in compliance.

Completion of AACSB
Assurance of Learning
standard policy change
related to curricular
areas impacted by
pervasiveness of data in
order to remain in
continued program
accreditation status.
MBA Programs receive
notification.
One-time
effective date
2. MBA programs
respond by AACSB
deadline, and confirm
curricular areas
impacted have been
refreshed.
Number of programs
responding with
action by deadline to
remain in accredited
status. Programs
provide demonstration
to AACSB of
response actions taken
and implementations
achieved.
Program response
actions taken and
implementations
achieved to remain in
active accredited status.
six months after
effective date

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 116
Table 18, continued
Critical Behavior Metric(s) Method(s) Timing
3. Faculty respond to
incentives and
rewards and access
resources to support
teaching data-related
marketing.
Number of faculty
reporting new
teaching rewards,
incentives and
resources to support
teaching data-related
marketing.

Utilized Institutional
rewards, incentives,
resources and processes
to support data-driven
instruction.
six months after
implementation
date

Required drivers. Faculty require rewards and incentives to access resources that
facilitate more formalized ties to industry and communities of practice enabling a structure to
meet AACSB guidelines for periodic review and refreshment of data-related marketing course
content. Faculty rewards and incentives in place from institutional resources demonstrate value
and support for faculty participation in communities of practice and industry affiliations that can
serve to enhance access to relevant marketing knowledge and trends for inclusion in course
content. The table below shows required drivers for critical behaviors.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 117
Table 19
Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors
Method(s) Timing Critical Behaviors Supported
1, 2, 3 Etc.

Reinforcing

MBA programs provide written and visual
information to faculty about rewards,
incentives and access to communities and
industry, and encourage their use of all
available resources to teach data-related
marketing knowledge and skills needed in the
field for inclusion in syllabi.

Initial & Ongoing 3

MBA programs provide teaching performance
evaluation policies and practices that align
with expectations, rewards and incentives
with emphasis on not penalizing faculty for
teaching innovation related to data-driven
marketing topics to facilitate more
experimental teaching strategies.

Initial & Ongoing 1,2,3

MBA programs provide faculty support and
protected time to seek their own peer
resources as part of training and development
activities to stimulate instigation and
sustained competency in teaching data-driven
marketing.

Initial & Ongoing 1,2,3

MBA programs provide policies, practices
and incentives for teaching excellence and
instructional design in alignment with
AACSB., to address changes in the field.
Initial & Ongoing 1,2,3

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 118
Table 19, continued
Method(s) Timing Critical Behaviors Supported
1, 2, 3 Etc.

Reinforcing

MBA programs create a cultural model that is
reactive to AACSB Assurance of Learning
policy change and their institutional response
to the change in curricular areas impacted by
pervasiveness of data is widely embraces in
order to remain in accredited status.
Institutions adapt internal policies and
procedures inclusive of approaches such as an
expedited review process for updating course
content impacted by pervasiveness of data
with immediate and timely adaptations to
teaching strategies and course content in
response to AACSB.

Initial & Ongoing 1,2,3

MBA programs provide a cultural setting that
allows faculty to practice behaviors and
communicate acceptance of technology-
related training to support teaching strategies.

Initial & Ongoing 1,2,3

MBA programs provide written policies,
practices, and teaching rewards for interactive
learning that demonstrate the organization’s
value for innovative teaching settings.

Ongoing 1,2,3

MBA programs create a culture of learner-
centered education rooted in faculty
relationship, “real-world” activities and
learning-centered affiliations such as
communities of practice.

Ongoing 2,3

Organizational support. Institutions must support stakeholders and adhere to AACSB
policy guidance by creating cultural models that allow protected time and opportunities for
faculty to request expedited review of data-related marketing content. Programs also need to
support faculty stakeholders by creating cultural settings where faculty can openly seek
professional development, including protected time to develop teaching curricula and explore
innovation and new trends through communities of practice. Because of data’s strong influence
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 119
in marketing, changes in cultural models and settings are necessary in order for institutional
programs to address technology influenced fields where emerging trends and continuous change
are constants. An important way that faculty can pay attention to their levels of declarative and
procedural knowledge in the field is by maintaining strong ties to communities of practice to
assure state-of-the-art instructional strategies and approaches (procedural knowledge), and
content (declarative knowledge). Although communities of practice are loosely bound groups of
people with shared passion for a topic, there is strong evidence communities of practice have
improved organizational performance across industries (Wenger, McDermott, & Snyder, 2002).
For example, Wenger et al. (2002) found that in all industries, companies have discovered that
communities of practice are critical to mastering increasingly difficult knowledge challenges,
and once embraced and given legitimacy within an organization, they offer new possibilities,
even beyond the boundaries of the organization itself, that might otherwise go undiscovered.
Petriglieri (2018) an associate professor of organizational behavior at INSEAD found that
communities or “tribes” are not only a source of advice, but also a place of questions, and found
evidence these groups were more than pools of experts serving as resources when faculty needed
them, but these “tribes” were also places to raise the questions that help faculty to explore the
edges of their competence and identity, or places to which faculty could be sent into new
directions. Petriglieri’s (2018) work further suggested that faculty cannot find such
communities, but, instead, must build them.
Level 2: Learning
Learning goals. The learning goals of the recommended policy change and program
introduced to faculty will
1. Explain the AACSB policy change related to the Assurance of Learning standard in
curricular areas impacted by pervasiveness of data. (D)
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 120
2. Explain to faculty why their professional development support in curricular areas
impacted by pervasiveness of data, including marketing will be continuous related to
data-driven industry trends. (D)
3. Apply institutional steps provided as faculty to meet AACSB Assurance of Learning
requirements in curricular areas impacted by pervasiveness of data based on emerging
data-related industry trends. (P)
4. Apply available institutional academic and industry training resources to support data-
driven marketing instructional design and teaching strategies.
5. Explain to faculty available institutional incentives and rewards in support of teaching
excellence and innovation for data-driven marketing. (D).
6. Explain to faculty teaching performance evaluation policies and practices in support of
teaching excellence and innovation.
7. Explain to faculty the AACSB program oversight and monitoring requirements.
Program. The recommended program is that MBA programs provide faculty with a
written communiqué on how AACSB policy changes in Assurance of Learning will affect their
teaching in curricular areas impacted by pervasiveness of data, and how institutional policies will
support data-driven marketing through revised policies, structures, incentives, rewards, and more
formalized ties to industry and communities of practice.
Evaluation of the components of learning. The recommended program or communiqué
is intended to notify faculty of the AACBS policy change, advise faculty of how the change will
be implemented within the institution and to inform faculty of how they will receive the
necessary support and resources to maintain data-driven competencies in marketing courses
disrupted by pervasiveness of data. Attitude changes of faculty should be observed immediately
upon notification of the AACSB policy change and implementation of the institutional changes
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 121
outlined in the communiqué through a focus group, and then followed up within one month.
Faculty should be invited to submit implementation recommendations and institutional support
requests for protected time and other resources within one month of releasing the communiqué.
Table 20
Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program
Method(s) or Activity(ies) Timing
Declarative Knowledge “I know it.”
Interactive Discussion about Policy Impact &
Communiqué
During and Immediately After
Procedural Skills “I can do it right now.”
Interactive Discussion about Expedited Review
Process, Resources, Rewards and Teaching
Incentives
During and Immediately After
Attitude “I believe this is worthwhile.”
Observation or Focus Group During and Immediately After
Commitment “I will do it on the job.”
Self-Reports During and Immediately After

Level 1: Reaction
The recommended program reaction measurement should be whether or not policy
change is understood and helpful or needs modification and if resources are utilized to include
data-driven competencies in marketing course syllabi of MBA programs. Reaction measurement
should be ongoing for engagement, relevance and faculty satisfaction.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 122
Table 21
Components to Measure Reactions to the Program
Method(s) or Tool(s) Timing
Engagement
Level of Participation Immediately After Implementation
Relevance
Pulse Check During and Immediately After
Customer Satisfaction
Anonymous Survey Immediately After Implementation

Evaluation Tools
Immediately following the program implementation. Because the program
implemented is both a policy and program change and will be communicated in the form of a
communiqué but directly affect some faculty more than others, it is subject to self-reporting by
faculty for evaluation. The communiqué (Appendix E) will undergo Level 2 evaluation via self-
report immediately upon implementation and Level 1 evaluation via anonymous survey one
month afterward. The immediate feedback will provide insight about faculty’s attitude and
commitment toward the AACSB and MBA program changes in response the AACSB Assurance
of Learning change and described in the communiqué (Appendix F).
Delayed for a period after the program implementation. At the six-month timeframe
(Appendix G), the program change will be evaluated with a blended anonymous survey tool that
evaluates reaction, learning, behavior, and results from Levels one through four with a response
based on a Likert scale to determine stakeholder perceptions and experience.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 123
Table 22
Reported Change in Stakeholder Progress toward the Field Goal
Reported Change Stakeholder Metric
75% change The number of MBA marketing faculty receiving data or
technology-related teaching support resources from any
source to teach marketing.

25% change The number of MBA faculty reporting protected time to
explore innovation and new strategies related to providing
data or technology-related as a teaching support resource
embraced in their cultural model comparable to research.

25% change The number of AACSB MBA programs that have
implemented an expedited review of data or technology-
related marketing course content from an institutional
level to stay relevant with the evolving field.

100% change The number of MBA faculty reporting benefits from
teaching resources or self-formed communities of practice
to support teaching data-driven or technology-related
marketing course competencies.

The faculty survey data collection stage is important because AACSB and institutions
will want to have some degree of confidence that the policy, structure, incentive, rewards and
Assurance of Learning requirement change has helped MBA programs to keep pace with
emerging market trends and disruption from pervasiveness of data in marketing. The survey
will also measure the extent to which faculty have adapted courses to emerging market trends in
alignment with the AACSB policy change to remain in accredited status. Institutions and the
AACSB can then determine if the change implemented requires further steps to fully meet the
desired goals, or if the initiative has failed and should be stopped. For many institutions, there
might need to be consideration given to applying a continuous improvement PDCA (Plan, Do,
Check, Act) process because each institution will have different steps to take and resource
requirements, and each will be on a different journey to effecting the desired AACSB policy
change and outcomes sought in faculty teaching. For other institutions, they might simply
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 124
continuously measure engagement and satisfaction levels of faculty, to the extent possible, from
anonymous surveys and focus groups, to assess whether the value and program return on
investment desired from resources, policies, incentives, rewards and structures are being
realized.

Figure 7. Plan Do Check Act improvement model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016).

Although the typical training curve is distributed across the spectrum for return on
investment, MBA programs might rely on this or a similar tool to measure perceptions related to
positive or negative return on investment from providing faculty with resources, protected time,
access to communities of practice and policies supporting expedited course reviews.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 125

Figure 8. Return on investment measures (Brinkerhoff & Mooney, 2016).

Conclusion
The study findings demonstrate that the speed of technological innovation and business
demands is challenging and, for some environments, may be moving faster than higher
education’s ability to adapt (King, 2015). Because of this, tougher AACSB Assurance of
Learning policy changes are recommended to require MBA programs to address curricular areas
impacted by pervasiveness of data to ensure course content is reflective of emerging industry
trends. Study findings further confirm that the field of faculty stakeholders has successfully
adapted on their own due to strong self-schemas, backgrounds with experiential knowledge and
business consulting, ties to industry and practice, and development of mostly informal
communities of practice to enable them to drive data analytics marketing skill competencies. The
faculty stakeholder group can benefit from changes in their institutional structures, cultures,
models and rewards for teaching excellence. For this problem of practice, a communiqué alone
cannot achieve the desired outcome for all institutional programs and stakeholders by 2020. The
AACSB Assurance of Learning accreditation body tougher policy requirements for MBA
programs related to pervasiveness of data, and the varied institutional structures, teaching
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 126
policies and teaching support resources to faculty are interconnected and also necessary. The
four must scaffold and work together to bring about the desired knowledge, motivation and
organizational outcomes. In order to ensure that the benefits of the declarative and procedural
knowledge gained as a result of the AACSB policy and MBA program change, protected time,
expedited course review process, and more formalized affiliations with industry and
communities of practice are maximized and endure, the feedback collected from faculty
stakeholder survey data can be utilized as a gauge for continued engagement and impact. The
Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016) New World Model may serve as a guide for future program
change implementations.
As recently as 2016, a GMAC alumni study reported that 14,000 MBA alumni surveyed
in 2015 found 92% self-identified as employed by a company with 21% in the marketing sector,
and 19% in the technology sector. Although findings showed a flattening level of perceived
educational return on investment (ROI) at 40%, the cohort still expressed high levels of positive
MBA educational outcomes in the form of professional development which was viewed as the
primary metric for success in completing a full-time two-year MBA program. A future study
might specifically focus on the MBA alumni stakeholder group and their perceptions on
preparedness for corporate marketing roles. As these findings are important to practitioners and
academics alike, such organizations that might view these results as important include the
American Marketing Association, National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE),
Poets & Quants and MARS (an affiliate of Emory’s Goizueta School of Business). The
researcher notes that the theory-practice gap analysis approach is applicable to other industries
and disciplines.
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 127
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Appendix A: Protocols
Survey Protocol
Quantitative Survey
Date: _________
Participant: __#####____
Participant Instructions:
This questionnaire is addressed to faculty instructors that choose textbooks to teach
marketing courses in AACSB-accredited general business, two-year, full-time, residential MBA
programs. The purpose of the study is to understand how general business MBA programs use
textbooks to prepare students for corporate roles in marketing. Your responses are very
important in helping to learn more about preparing students for corporate roles in marketing.
Some of the questions in this questionnaire ask about the data-driven marketing content
in the textbook and in the marketing syllabus you currently teach from. A copy of your
marketing syllabus may have been accessed online through your institution’s website. By
completing this questionnaire, you consent to use of the syllabus for research purposes. It is
important that you answer each question carefully so that the information provided reflects your
situation as accurately as possible. It is estimated that it will require approximately 20 to 30
minutes to complete this questionnaire. Your cooperation in completing this questionnaire is
greatly appreciated.
Your participation is completely voluntary, and you may withdraw from participating at
any time. Your anonymity is assured, and no identifying information is being collected for any
part of this questionnaire. The questionnaire will take approximately 20 to 30 minutes to
complete.

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Researcher Self-Disclosure: Researcher is a former professional staff member leading AACSB
Master of Business Administration Career Centers.
The 22-question written will take approximately 20-30 minutes to complete.
Please complete this section with information about yourself.
1. Indicate faculty type: Tenure-track, Non-tenure-track
2. Indicate Faculty Rank: Instructor, Assistant Prof, Associate Prof, Professor
3. Indicate Gender: Female, Male, Neither
4. Indicate Age: <50 years, >50 years
5. Indicate Course Level: ______ 6. # of hours of content: _____
7. Indicate how you would describe the ranking of the program you teach in:
a.) ___top 5 b.) ___ top 10 c.) ___top 15 d.) ___ top 20 e.) ___>top 20
Thinking about the textbook you use and the marketing course you teach, please answer
the questions below.
Questions about Inclusion of Data Analytics Content, Trends and Skills in Marketing
8. Does the marketing textbook you currently use in your course include chapters focused on
data-driven marketing? What is the title and edition of the marketing textbook you currently use
in your course? ___________________________
9. Is there a website with data analytics tools and exercises associated with this text? Y/N
10. When I develop my course syllabus and teaching plan, I often rely on AACSB goals to
determine my marketing course content.
-Strongly agree
-Agree
-Disagree
-Strongly disagree
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11. Please identify the top 2-3 marketing topics you teach that are tied to trends you believe most
recently and significantly are impacting the field of marketing.
1._________
2._________
3._________
12. Describe 2-3 specific ways in which you identify new course content to teach in your
marketing course.
1.______________
2.______________
3.______________
13. Describe 2-3 specific teaching strategies you use to build data analytics skills in your
marketing course.
1._______________
2._______________
3._______________
14. List in order of importance the top 3-5 information technology topics in marketing you
believe MBA students need to know in order to meet today’s business needs:
1. ____________
2. ____________
3. ____________
4. ____________
5. ___________
Questions about Teaching Effectiveness
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15. To what extent do you self-assess your teaching effectiveness for data analytics marketing
topics?
-Never self-assess (Skip to question 17)
- Self-assess somewhat (at least every 2 or more years)
- Self-assess frequently (at least every year)
- Self-assess very frequently (more than once yearly)
16. Describe specific ways in which you self-assess your teaching effectiveness for teaching data
analytics marketing topics.
1. _____________
2. _____________
3. _____________
17. I often rely on instructional design training in order to improve my teaching effectiveness in
marketing.
-Strongly agree
-Agree
-Disagree
-Strongly disagree
18. I often rely on student sessions delivered by marketing practitioners in corporate settings to
supplement my teaching strategies.
-Strongly agree
-Agree
-Disagree
-Strongly disagree
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19. I often rely on alternative learning settings outside the classroom to support my data
analytics teaching strategies.
-Strongly agree
-Agree
-Disagree
-Strongly disagree
20. Describe the settings you rely on:
1. ________________
2._________________
21. I feel confident about my ability to effectively teach data analytics topics in marketing.
Strongly agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly disagree
22. I feel confident about my ability to support students in applying data analytics marketing
skills in the field.
Strongly agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly disagree
Questions about Importance of Teaching
23. I view teaching as an important aspect in my faculty profile.
Strongly Agree
Agree
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 147
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
24. Please describe how your institutions ranks the following 1-3 in order of importance in your
faculty profile:
____teaching ___ research ___ service
25. Please describe how you view the following 1-3 in order of importance in your allocation of
time:
____teaching ___ research ___ service
26. Please describe the rewards you receive at your institution for teaching. ___________
27. How important is teaching data analytics for marketing practice to you?
Very important
Somewhat important
Not very important
Not important at all
28. How often do you engage professionally with marketing practitioners in the field?
Very often (daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly)
Somewhat often (quarterly, annually)
Not very often (bi-annually)
Never (Skip to end.)
29. What are the reasons you engage professionally with marketing practitioners in the field?
1.___________________
2.___________________
30. Describe the ways your institution supports your engagement with practitioners in the field?
1.___________________
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 148
2.___________________

Thank you for your participation. Please share the link for this Qualtrics Survey with other
faculty using the marketing textbook you teach from.

As a next step, I would greatly appreciate to hear further about your reasons for selecting the
textbook you use and your experiences in teaching MBA skills related to data-driven marketing.
Please indicate below whether you are available for a brief 45-minute Skype or Adobe Connect
conversation about your experience in teaching data-driven marketing topics. If interested, via
the separate link below, please include your Skype account number or the direct email where I
can send a Google calendar invite. No monetary compensation is available for the interview.
This questionnaire has been approved by the University of Southern California (USC)
Institutional Review Board (IRB).

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Interview Protocol
Qualitative Interview - via Skype or Adobe Connect
Date: _________
Participant: __#####____
Participant Instructions:
This interview is addressed to faculty instructors of marketing courses in AACSB-
accredited two-year, full-time, residential general business MBA programs. The purpose of the
study is to understand how general business MBA programs can prepare students for corporate
roles in marketing, and more specifically, learn about the textbooks faculty rely on to teach data
analytics topics in marketing. Your responses are very important in helping to learn more about
preparing students for corporate roles in marketing. It is estimated that the interview will require
approximately 45 minutes to complete. Your cooperation in completing this interview is greatly
appreciated. There is no monetary compensation for participating in this interview. As a token
of appreciation, the researcher will send you a gift card in the amount of $50 to the email address
that you provide. The researcher will also enter you into a drawing for a $250 gift card. A copy
of the final dissertation will also be made available through USC and a link will be sent to the
email address that you provide.
Your participation is completely voluntary, and you may withdraw from participating at
any time. Your anonymity is assured, and no identifying information is being collected for any
part of this interview.
During the interview, the researcher will be utilizing a recording device to assist me in
capturing all of your responses accurately and completely. This recording will not be shared
with anyone outside the scope of this project. The recording will be transferred to password-
protected files on a cloud file storage account and deleted from the recording device immediately
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 150
upon transfer. The recording will then be destroyed after two years from the date my dissertation
defense is approved.
With that, do you have any questions about the study before we get started? If not, I
would like your permission to begin the interview. May the researcher also have your
permission to record this conversation? You may cover or disallow the video access to remove
any physical identifiers and protect anonymity.
Researcher Self-Disclosure: The researcher would like to disclose to you that she has prior
service as an appointed executive and professional staff member at two different state
institutions, heading MBA and graduate business career centers. Both institutions were AACSB
member organizations, one of which was a top 20 program. In both roles, the researcher was
responsible for career preparation and employment outcomes of MBA graduates.
The 12-question interview will take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
Please answer the following questions about yourself and the marketing course you teach.
1. Indicate faculty type: Tenure-track, Non-tenure-track
2. Indicate Faculty Rank: Instructor, Assistant Prof, Associate Prof, Professor
3. Indicate Gender: Female, Male, Neither
4. Indicate Age: <50 years, >50 years
5. Indicate Course Level: _______ 6. # of hours of content: _______
7. Indicate how you would describe the ranking of the program you teach in:
a.) ___top 5 b.) ___ top 10 c.) ___top 15 d.) ___ top 20 e.) ___>top 20

Thinking about the course you teach in marketing (and the textbook in your syllabus) as part of a
two-year, full-time residential AACSB-accredited general business MBA program, I would like
you to start by asking you to:
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 151
1. Please summarize the circumstances when you first began teaching data analytics topics in
your marketing course(s), specifically, how it came about, and for you, the greatest source of
influence on adding data analytics. What was the process like in terms of steps taken,
permissions, timeline and resources?

2. Tell me about the ways in which you apply your own data analytics knowledge to teach data-
driven marketing knowledge and skills to students in marketing.
3. Tell me about the reasons that teaching data analytics topics in marketing is important to you.
4. Tell me about how your institution supports your teaching overall, supports your teaching in
marketing, supports teaching data analytics topics in marketing.
5. Tell me about the ways in which teaching technology (not data analytics) topics in marketing
is supported. Can you think of ways in which the school could support teaching in these areas
more?
6. Please share how teaching is rewarded in your institution. How does that compare with
accomplishments in research? Are there ways in which you think teaching could be better
rewarded in your institution?
7. To what extent do you agree that including a practice or experiential component in marketing
is important for student learning and performance outcomes in the field? Tell me more about
your views on this topic and strategies or relationships you may have forged or deployed.
8. Thinking about the course you teach or the textbook you use; is there any additional
information you would like to add?
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 152
Document Review Protocol
This tool helps to guide examination of artifacts/documents posted by faculty that will help to
inform about their practices and approaches to teaching IT in MBA marketing courses.
PROMPTS
Was there a website identified that is associated with the marketing course taught?
Based on User reports available, how often was the website accessed by students?
What percentage of students in the class used the website?
What specific tools, activities, exercises, projects were included on the website?
What does the artifact/document say about the faculty’s inclusion of data-driven marketing
topics? For example, is there a specific reference to inclusion of software for the course?
What does the artifact/document say about the faculty’s view on the importance of teaching data
analytics topics in marketing, for example, are there chapters and assignments that reference
data?
What does the artifact/document say about the faculty’s knowledge, skills, abilities or focus
areas for teaching data analytics in marketing, for example, what percentage of overall
coursework involves data and information technology?
What does the artifact/document say about the faculty’s values and beliefs about teaching
information technology topics in marketing, for example, is more than 50% of coursework
involving data and information technology?
Are there elements of the artifact/document that are reflective of teaching innovation, for
example, are any learning techniques reflected other than case method and didactic sessions?
Are there elements of the artifact/document that are reflective of the application of learning to
the field, for example is a guest lecturer/practitioner involved?
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What does the document say about the classroom learning experience that students learning data-
driven marketing might participate in, for example is there a project, lab or experience involved?
What does the document say about the learning setting of the experience that students learning
data analytics topics in marketing might participate in?
What specific language, terms or phrases does the faculty member or website use about teaching
data analytics topics in marketing?
What specific language, terms or phrases does the faculty member use about application of
learning data-driven marketing topics to the field, for example is there a reference to quality of
engagement as well as frequency?

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Appendix B: Credibility and Trustworthiness
The concept of qualitative validity (Creswell, 2014) is important because it means the
researcher has checked for accuracy of findings from data collection and analysis by utilizing
certain methods and procedures which are standard and consistent among researchers and
studies. However, since use of methods and procedures does not guarantee validity (Maxwell,
2013), conclusions of a study must be tested to confirm validity (Maxwell, 2013), and
trustworthiness and reliability must also be considered. Because validity is an important strength
of qualitative research (Creswell, 2014), the study strictly adhered to its described execution
plan. The evolution of validity is primarily related to the fact that it is relative and must be
assessed in the context of the particular research project being conducted. Researchers must be
aware of and note that data are the evidence and the clues (Bogdan & Biklen, 2007).
In order to best address validity, the researcher must focus on evidence (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016), over methods conducting thorough and comprehensive data collection that is
irrefutable (Maxwell, 2013), along with adhering to the conceptual framework developed, and
precisely following established random sample data collection methods as outlined in the IRB
proposal. Trustworthiness of the researcher is important for study participants to engage
willingly, and for readers to adopt study findings. Furthermore, trustworthiness is enhanced
when study participants can see there is rigor in the study (Merriam & Tisdell, 2008). The
researcher demonstrated a commitment to the rigor of the study to build and maintain trust with
participants.
Another strategy for this study the researcher deployed was to build trust with faculty
participants by being truthful about the purpose of the study, demonstrating ethical practices
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2008), adhering to the study design and time commitments, expressing
genuine respect and concern for the work and institutions of faculty, following through with
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what was stated to participants (Gallup Business Journal, 2009), and communicating clearly and
consistently. Furthermore, the researcher sought to gain trust by engaging with participants and
conducting the study demonstrating dependability, reliability and objectivity (Merriam & Tisdell,
2016). In particular, the researcher reaffirmed with faculty that the report of findings would be
completed accurately based on the data, and would not violate their confidence or use their
information or the data collected in any manner or for any purpose other than as described
(Maxwell, 2013).
For the purpose of this study, the researcher conducted a pilot survey, and interview with
an MBA faculty member to gain feedback on how to entice interest and enhance faculty
participation. The researcher also examined how to minimize sample bias during the syllabus
collection phase of artifact observation. Trustworthiness for this study was further supported by
acknowledging the researcher’s past affiliations and any concerns faculty might have about bias
up front as well as by emphasizing the researcher’s commitment as an academician and
practitioner to learning about the topic. As the researcher, this information was included in the
conceptual framework, specifically noting the researcher’s prior affiliation in board-appointed
leadership roles with full-time -year general business MBA program career development centers
and the researcher’s prior long-term professional affiliation in administrative faculty roles in
academia.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 156
Appendix C: Validity and Reliability
Validity is the extent to which a tool measures what is intended to measure (Salkind,
2017). Validity is divided between internal and external types. Internal validity refers to the
alignment of research findings with reality (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The validity of any good
study is related to reliance on “careful, patient systematic, diligent inquiry or examination”
(McEwan & McEwan, 2003, p. xii) to guide study conduct. It is also related to the consistency
of the assessment tool to measure the intended study group to answer the questions posed, based
on a carefully monitored study process, controlling for areas and observations that require
researcher attention such as response rate, non-response rate, non-response items, and other
variables in order to achieve a reliable and repeatable outcome or study result.
As a researcher, the factors that could be controlled were addressed such as sampling and
rationale, question types, sequencing of questions, and measures designed to maximize response
rates. The interview and survey protocols started with references to the textbook in order to
begin the probing on a positive topic of strong interest other than opening with questions about
faculty’s knowledge and motivation. The textbook was perceived to be central to creating an
important and meaningful engagement about the approaches taken in preparing to teach
marketing and identifying relevant state-of-the-art content that was interesting and compelling.
Faculty expected to have their experiences and expressions documented accurately in response to
how they were delivering marketing course content that was intended to provide students with
necessary knowledge and skill competencies in data analytics.
The interview items then eased into more personal questions about faculty’s knowledge
and motivation to teach information technology in marketing. By opening in this manner with a
discussion about the course textbook, yet still focusing on faculty values, beliefs and teaching
practices, the intent was that faculty interest in responding, richness of expression, and openness
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 157
or willingness to share experiences could be increased. The sampling number of 35 syllabus-
driven and 75 additional individuals was appropriate based on the 300+ accredited general
business MBA programs and helped to reduce sampling error (Fink, 2013). The sampling size
was determined to provide a true reflection of the views of the larger group of general business
faculty.
The qualitative component of the study helped to confirm findings. Should a study
produce results which appear incongruent with reality, the study lacks internal validity (McEwan
& McEwan, 2003). Criterion validity has been addressed through the established criteria for
study participants and artifacts for each type of data collection. For this study, content validity
for the current setting (Salkind, 2017) was tested through the pilot test with a marketing faculty
colleague. Construct validity was addressed in the conceptual framework and was based on
testing the hypothesis that faculty with high levels of self-efficacy for teaching data analytics
topics in marketing would be more likely to include information technology content for inclusion
in syllabi and teach data-driven marketing topics in courses.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 158
Appendix D: Ethics
As the principal investigator conducting this evaluative study, the researcher initially
elected to include both quantitative and qualitative data gathering approaches in research design
and felt confident with this approach. Because human subjects were involved in the study, the
researcher relied on and adhered to all established USC Institutional Review Board (IRB)
policies, procedures, and practices and completed CITI GCP training and earned related credit.
A formal application and detailed research proposal was developed for submission to the USC
internal IRB for expedited review and approval. The IRB submission ensured the study was
designed with the necessary intellectual rigor, methodological approach, and appropriate
strategies for data collection, with the goal of maintaining the highest ethical research standards
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
An information sheet specific to the study was included as a part of the IRB proposal
submission. In order to ensure participants’ complete privacy and anonymity, absence of harm,
and full disclosure, the research proposal fully outlined strategies and processes to address these
issues (Glesne, 2011). Participants were asked to read the information sheet to acknowledge
their understanding of the purpose of the study and give assurance they were aware that practices
were in place ensuring their privacy and rights. All collected data are kept in a secure and
protected space in compliance with USC’s IRB policies. As some information may have been
gathered from publicly available websites, study participants were informed that this information
was accessed and were asked to consent to the use of this data for the purpose of the study.
Because of the researcher’s prior professional work experiences in academia, disclosure was
given, and the researcher also took measures to maintain an appropriate level of distance by
withholding any opinion, remaining neutral and allowing the research survey questions to drive
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 159
the discussion and findings so as not to influence participation, responses or the outcome of the
study.
Participants were advised that the researcher had no current conflict of interest
relationships in academia. Design of the study was intended to ensure the study was conducted
ethically and objectively, absent of influences or bias. The study conclusions and findings
reported addressed my prior roles and relationships in academia and in corporate settings that
were related to the study. Participants were offered the opportunity to receive the full study
report at the conclusion of the study.

THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 160
Appendix E: Level 2 Evaluation Tool

Evaluation Tool
Level 2: Immediately following Policy and Program Change Communiqué
Declarative & Procedural Knowledge Item
Self-Report What Assurance of Learning teaching resource do you
plan to most often rely on to enhance your marketing
course content?
(a) Community of practice
(b) Strategic partnership
(c) IOR
(d) Industry conference
(e) Faculty colleague
(f) Expedited course review
(g) Something else
Attitude
Self-Report
Do you agree AACSB Assurance of Learning policy and
institutional program changes outlined in the
Communique will be valuable?
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
Commitment
Self-Report
I plan to utilize the Assurance of Learning resources
and information in the Communiqué for professional
development?
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 161
Appendix F: Level 1 Evaluation Tool

Evaluation Tool
Level 1: One Month following Communiqué implementation
Methods or Tools
Engagement Item
Anonymous Survey:
I utilize Assurance of Learning resources to support
my teaching
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
Relevance
Anonymous Survey:
I find Assurance of Learning course content resources
helpful in supporting my teaching
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
Customer Satisfaction
Anonymous Survey:
I am satisfied with the Assurance of Learning course
content and teaching resources
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 162
Appendix G: Blended Evaluation Tools

Blended Evaluation Tools
Level 1, 2, 3,and 4 Delayed for a period after the program implementation
EvaluationItem
Survey 6 months after Implementation of the Communiqué
L1: Reaction What I learned from the Assurance of Learning training
has been valuable to my teaching.
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
L2: Learning I was able to access new teaching resources I might
not have otherwise utilized.
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
L3: Behavior My peers and I use the Assurance of Learning
program process for requesting teaching resources.
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
L4: Results I am able to include data-driven marketing content in
my course because of the Assurance of Learning
policy change.
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 163
Appendix H: Study Participant Summary Statistics
Faculty participants interviewed were comprised of 75% tenured or tenure-track faculty,
with 62% at the full professor or associate professor level, and 62% under age 50.

Figure 9. Faculty participants by appointment rank.
50%
37%
13%
Asst Prof Prof Assoc Prof
Faculty Interview Participants by
Appointment Rank
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 164

Figure 10. Faculty participants by tenure status.

Figure 11. Faculty participants by gender.
Faculty Interview Participant Summary Statistics
Tenured, Track-Track Non-Tenure Track
Faculty Interview Participant Summary Statistics
Female Male
THEORY- PRACTICE GAP IN MBA CURRICULA 165

Figure 12. Faculty participants by institution type

Figure 13. Faculty participants by age.
Faculty Interview Participant by School Type
Top 5 Top 20 >Top 20
Faculty Interview Participant Summary Statistics
>50 years <50 years

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Asset Metadata

Creator Allen, Chequeta D. (author)

Core Title Theory-practice gap: MBA curricula as preparation for business practice in marketing

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Organizational Change and Leadership (On Line)

Publication Date 02/14/2019

Defense Date 12/10/2018

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag 21st century marketers,AACSB,AACSB accreditation,AACSB Assurance of Learning,AACSB goals,AACSB policy,AACSB standard 9,academic leadership,AMA: American Marketing Association,andragogy,AOL,ASTD,attainment value,attribution,business school,business skills,center for teaching and learning,CMBA,cognitive learning,community of practice,corporate MBA,cultural model,cultural setting,curricular adaptation,data analytics,data-driven marketing,data-related marketing skills,declarative knowledge,digital marketing,ELT,emerging industry trends,evaluation,evaluation framework,expectancy value,expedited review,experiential curricula,experiential learning,experiential learning theory,faculty development,faculty evaluations,faculty incentives,faculty promotion,faculty protected time,faculty recognition,faculty resources,faculty rewards,faculty stakeholders,faculty training and development,gap analysis,GMAC,Higher education,importance of teaching,industry marketing,industry relationships,information technology,innovative teaching,institutional barriers,institutional cultures,institutional models,institutional rewards,institutional structures,institutional support,instructional design,instructional strategies,instructional training,inter-organizational relationships,IOR,KMO analysis,knowledge influences,learner-centered instruction,learning objectives,learning-center affiliations,Marketing,marketing case studies,marketing course content,marketing course review,marketing curricula,marketing faculty,marketing practitioners,marketing syllabus,marketing trends,MBA alumni,MBA curricula,MBA curricula reform,MBA education,MBA faculty,MBA graduate school,MBA job performance,MBA program,MBA program policy,MBA ranking,MBA ROI,MBA skill-gaps,MBA student evaluations,MBA students,metacognitive feedback,motivation influences,NACE,National Association of Colleges and Employers,networking,OAI-PMH Harvest,organization influences,organizational barriers,pedagogy,peer evaluations,pervasiveness of data,procedural knowledge,procedural skills,professional development,promotion and tenure,real-world experience,relevant course content,research and practice lag,rewards for teaching,self-efficacy,self-schema,skill competency,skill-building,specialized skills,specialized technical skills,state-of-the-art course content,student readiness,student-centered learning,teaching attitude,teaching commitment,teaching effectiveness,teaching excellence,teaching methods,teaching performance,teaching rewards,teaching skills,teaching strategies,teaching support,teaching technology,technology disrupting field of marketing,theory-practice gap,utility value,value for teaching

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Advisor Seli, Helena (committee chair), Britt, L. D. (committee member), Robles, Darline P. (committee member)

Creator Email cheqallen@gmail.com,chequeta@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-120624

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