Human Resource Management MBA Core Course Case Teaching Recommended Textbooks

Author: Zhao Shuming (Translated)
Publisher:
Publishing Time: Not Available
Features: This book selects 13 human resource management cases, all carefully chosen from the Harvard University Case Collection. Each case is self-contained, unique, and covers all aspects of human resource management. Every case in the book is a gem. The problems described in the cases immerse readers in the success and failure of these companies, as if they are experiencing them firsthand. When it comes to MBA education methods and case teaching, it has always been a focal point of debate. Where should case education hold its position? What proportion should it occupy in each course? How can the effectiveness of case teaching be improved? How should the relationship between case teaching and professional knowledge teaching be handled? Recently, when I attended the 2005 Annual Meeting of the China Association for Management Modernization in Beijing, a large number of deans from renowned management schools across the country engaged in a heated discussion on this topic. In the end, of course, the conclusion remained ambiguous. I think, even when looking at the birthplace of modern business management education—the United States—questions still persist. Modern business management education was initially born at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. In 1881, sponsored by a businessman named Joseph Wharton, the university established the first undergraduate major in business management. In 1900, Dartmouth College became the first institution in the United States to award a business master's degree. Subsequently, in 1908, Harvard University launched the first program called the Master of Business Administration (MBA). Initially, not only did business management programs fail to gain social recognition, but there was also no consensus on the teaching methods that business management education should adopt. Interestingly, the early proponents of university business management education were often economists, psychologists, sociologists, and others who lacked firsthand business knowledge and experience. Joseph Wharton's sponsorship of the undergraduate management education at the University of Pennsylvania was also due to his belief that the "learning from practice" method prevalent in American economics departments was not conducive to cultivating qualified business managers. At Harvard Business School, including its first dean, Edwin Gay, all four founding members were scholars without business experience. In the early-established universities, there were already two different views on how to operate the schools. Harvard advocated an education method based on general business management skills training, focusing on cultivating managers' management capabilities. Meanwhile, the University of Pennsylvania advocated an education method based on imparting specific industry knowledge and operational expertise, focusing on cultivating professional management and functional management knowledge. Soon, Harvard Business School adopted the case judgment analysis method commonly used in legal education and developed a teaching method centered on case analysis. At the same time, the University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University, and Stanford University, although they did not elevate case teaching to the level of Harvard, extensively used case teaching in their teaching process. Until the 1950s, case teaching, as a teaching method that realistically described management scenarios, explored management experiences, and learned to formulate management decisions, was warmly welcomed by students. However, the success of business management education could not hide the failure of business management academic research. People did not summarize and find more management theories from the cases. Undoubtedly, if management is only taught as a vague experience similar to folk wisdom, it cannot guarantee the long-term development of business schools.