Our Managing Editor Mr.S.S.Dogra spoke to Mr.Douglas G. Viehland-Executive Director of Accreditation Council for Business Schools & Programs, USA. Let’s check it out:
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Mr.Douglas G. Viehland
Executive Director of Accreditation Council
for Business Schools & Programs, USA
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It was founded in the year of 1988.
What was the reason of opening it?
It was founded to create an accreditation process designed to fit the needs of business programs.
What is the aim of ACBSP?
It is mainly focused on teaching and learning that occurs during the classroom.
How many accredited business schools are running in USA under your aegis?
We have more than 550 business schools in USA.
What is your strength in India?
We have eight business schools in India. Delhi has two business schools accredited with us.
What are the courses, you grant accreditation?
We grant the accreditation for different business schools who are running business study courses like Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Marketing Management, Human Resource Management, Organizational Behaviour, Information Technology, Quantitative Analysis & Decision Making, Operations Management, Managerial Economics, Strategic Management & Leadership, Financial Concepts & Markets etc.
Upcoming events by your orgnisation in India or even in any parts of the world.
The next event in India will be on August 3-4, literally this weekend. It is a meeting of our regional organization, the South Asia Council of Business Schools and Programs, ACBSP Region 10. This organization meets annually and will discuss on Sunday the date and location for next year. I will be a participant in the SEAA Trust Accreditation Seminar in India on November 11-12 in New Delhi. The next major event for ACBSP is the inaugural International Conference in Brussels on November 27-December.
| Mr.S.S.Dogra talking to Mr.Douglas G. Viehland |
Who is the other popular Organization like yours working worldwide. Please. name them.
The SEAA Trust website does a good job of listing the various organizations. The Standards for Educational Advancement & Accreditation (SEAA) Trust.
What is the future of business schools in India?
The future is uncertain. The years of growth in the number of business schools has led to an oversupply in the opinion of many. Those who survive and thrive will be those who can demonstrate to students, employer, and others that they have documented their quality.
What is your personal experience with Indian business schools?
I have traveled to India approximated 15 times since 2008. I have met representatives from an estimated 200 business schools and visited over 30 campuses.
How does ACBSP assist them?
ACBSP offers a variety of member services that allows the institution to document, measure, and improve their educational offerings. We do this through the accreditation process, granting of awards and recognition, and services such as a peer review. We also offer a variety of individual member benefits to faculty such as a weekly newsletter, a scholarly journal, and participation is conferences and meetings.
How business school from all parts of the world come into your contact or you approach them to provide accreditation?
Our outreach is primarily by inviting business schools to attend our conferences and regional meetings. Also by my attendance and participation at conferences around the globe. Examples in India include the SEAA Trust Accreditation Seminar, Association of Indian Management Schools, and the MBA Management Conclave. Others find us because they have decided to pursue accreditation of their business programs and decided to review what is offered by several accrediting bodies.
How many members are in your team to select & grant accreditation to different business schools?
ACBSP staff team is composed of ten full time staff members, one part-time person and three independent contractors. While all of us are involved in some way to support the accreditation initiatives, I can say just over half are dedicated full-time to this process. The real work is done by the site team evaluators and mentors. They are faulty and deans who have taken their school through the accreditation process and now have taken on roles to engage in the selection and evaluation of schools that are moving through the accreditation process. Two internal reports by ACBSP conducted in 2012 identified 283 persons who have recently served as site team evaluators and 176 persons who are trained as mentors.
What are the guidelines you provide to your accreditated business schools?
The guidelines used by ACBSP are referred to as the standards and criteria. In each of the six areas there is a standard which is a statement of what is to be achieved. What follows is a series of criteria that is used by the business school to demonstrate that they do or do not meet the standard. The six standards are Leadership, Strategic Planning, Student and Stakeholder Focus, Measurement and Analysis of Student Learning and Performance, Faculty and Staff Focus, and Educational and Business Process Management
Any future planning of ACBSP, USA for expansion in India?
Our expansion will continue as greater awareness of the value of accreditation is occurring. As more and more schools obtain accreditation and become advocates, confidence by other to achieve accreditation will increase. We also have trained evaluators and mentors who live and work in India and this can provide cost savings and the belief that this is a global standard with local faces.
How to contact you?
You may visit us at www.acbsp.org
You may even follow us on facebook.com/acbsp
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Interview of Mr. Douglas G. Viehland at Dwarka Parichay newspaper:
