March 10, 2021 - 82% of business schools are planning to invest further in technology over the coming two years to enable online teaching, according to new research by AMBA & BGA in association with Barco.

The report reveals that decision makers from business schools worldwide are looking forward to a new era of education technology, after proving both pragmatic and agile in the face of 2020’s disruption. 

Key findings reveal that business school leaders switched en-masse their delivery methods due to Covid-19, but almost three quarters were already using online delivery methods pre-pandemic. 

Additionally, they predict that blended and hybrid models will replace the traditional classroom-based delivery of courses in the next five years. Digitalization is deemed to be the most important concept in the running of a Business School over the next 10 years, with almost two thirds of leaders (63%) believing it to be very important. 

The next steps for business school leaders is to move from crisis mode to further innovate, develop and refine their methods, moving from digital replacement to a full, long-term digital transformation strategy, as global economies start to move into recovery.

David Woods-Hale, Director of Marketing and Communications at AMBA & BGA, said: ´Last year, for many, represented a tipping point in terms of education technology and was the year business school leaders crossed the Rubicon into unchartered tech territory and into a future that has, undoubtedly, taken business education into a new phase from which we can never return.’

Simone Hammer, Global Marketing Manager for Teaching & Learning Solutions at Barco, added: ‘We believe the future of education is bright and full of exciting possibilities for those who stay agile and are ready to embrace and adapt to this “new normal” with a long-term vision, pedagogy at the forefront and technology as the catalyst for innovation.’

The research was carried out by AMBA & BGA in October 2020, by circulating an online questionnaire resulting in 216 participates and interviewing 10 survey participants for in-depth qualitative analysis. You can read the full report here.