{"id":18399,"date":"2026-09-15T13:37:52","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T12:37:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/?p=18399"},"modified":"2026-09-15T13:37:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T12:37:52","slug":"leadership-work-organisation-education-focused-scholarship-seminar-on-executive-education-and-the-business-elites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/2026\/09\/15\/leadership-work-organisation-education-focused-scholarship-seminar-on-executive-education-and-the-business-elites\/","title":{"rendered":"Leadership, Work & Organisation – Education-Focused Scholarship Seminar on Executive Education and the Business Elites"},"content":{"rendered":"

Date: Wednesday 7 October 2026<\/p>\n

Time: 09:00 to 11:00<\/p>\n

Location: Online on MS Teams<\/p>\n

Join: <\/span>https:\/\/teams.microsoft.com\/meet\/363469336530310?p=vpRt9TVXWo91ZRP4OA<\/a><\/div>\n
Meeting ID: <\/span>363 469 336 530 310<\/span><\/div>\n
Passcode: <\/span>CB6L8mz7<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
It is with great pleasure that I invite you to this very special “double bill” set of two presentations and discussions on business school executive education and the business elites.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Both talks are based on papers recently published in the journal Academy of Management Learning & Education <\/i>(pdfs attached).<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The first talk is based on historical research into executive education in Finland and will be delivered by Dr Virpi Sorsa<\/b>\u00a0from the University of Eastern Finland (and other co-authors will be able to join we hope too).<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The second talk is based on longitudinal data on career trajectories of executives and will be delivered by Professor Charles Harvey <\/b>from NUBS (and also hopefully some co-authors in attendance too).\u00a0Abstracts are provided below.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
There will be a short break between the two talks and plenty of time for discussion and Q&A after each presentation. The talks are being scheduled on the same day to enable discussion of contrasts and connections between the two studies.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
This event is online only<\/u> (Teams). Please feel free to forward this invitation to others with an interest in the topic, including colleagues outside of our University (there are no limits on participant numbers due to holding this online).<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
PART 1 (09:00-10:00 GMT)<\/b><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Executive Education Tradition: Mechanisms of Business Elite Formation<\/b><\/div>\n
Published in Academy of Management Learning & Education<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Corresponding author:<\/div>\n
Virpi Sorsa<\/div>\n
University of Eastern Finland<\/div>\n
Business School<\/div>\n
virpi.sorsa@uef.fi<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Co-authors:<\/div>\n
Pasi Nevalainen<\/div>\n
University of Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4<\/div>\n
School of Business and Economics<\/div>\n
pasi.a.nevalainen@jyu.fi<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Aleksi Korhonen<\/div>\n
Aalto University<\/div>\n
School of Business<\/div>\n
aleksi.o.korhonen@aalto.fi<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Juha Kansikas<\/div>\n
University of Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4<\/div>\n
School of Business and Economics<\/div>\n
juha.kansikas@jyu.fi<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Abstract:<\/div>\n
Executive education affects business leaders, corporate practices, and, by extension, broader society. Yet research on the executive education programs\u2014and particularly the traditions embedded within them\u2014remains limited. To examine how educational tradition can function as a gateway to the business elite, we conducted a historical case study of the Finnish Institute of Management (LIFIM) and its executive education program from the 1950s to the early 2000s. During this period, LIFIM emerged as a pioneer of executive education in Finland and became the country\u2019s dominant provider. Our study contributes to research on executive education and business elites by identifying four interdependent mechanisms\u2014honoring, educating, networking, and socializing\u2014through which executive education traditions operate as gateways into the business elite. Furthermore, our historical approach extends existing research by revealing how educational traditions are dynamically developed, stabilized, and may eventually erode over time.<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/b><\/div>\n
PART 2 (10:00-11:00 GMT)<\/b><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
ELITE MBAS IN THE MAKING OF TOP BUSINESS CAREERS<\/b><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/b>Published in Academy of Management Learning & Education<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
MAIRI MACLEAN<\/b><\/div>\n
University of Bath<\/div>\n
Claverton Down<\/div>\n
Bath, BA2 7AY, UK<\/div>\n
email: <\/i>kmm57@bath.ac.uk<\/i><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
GERHARD KLING<\/b><\/div>\n
University of Aberdeen<\/div>\n
Edward Wright Building<\/div>\n
Aberdeen, AB24 3QY, UK<\/div>\n
email:<\/i>\u00a0gerhard.kling@abdn.ac.uk<\/i><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
CHARLES HARVEY<\/b><\/div>\n
Newcastle University<\/div>\n
The Frederick Douglass Centre<\/div>\n
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE4 5TG, UK<\/div>\n
email: <\/i>charles.harvey@ncl.ac.uk<\/i><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
WILLIAM M. FOSTER<\/b><\/div>\n
University of Alberta<\/div>\n
Augustana Campus<\/div>\n
T6G 2R6, Canada<\/div>\n
email: <\/i>wfoster@ualberta.ca<\/i><\/a><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/div>\n
Abstract:<\/div>\n
The Master of Business Administration (MBA) remains contested, and its long-term association with executive attainment underexplored. Drawing on Bourdieu\u2019s theorization of capital, field, and symbolic power, we analyse the career trajectories of 106,874 S&P 500 executives from 2000 to 2018 using longitudinal BoardEx data. Empirically, we identify consistent patterns in the timing and likelihood of executive advancement associated with elite MBA credentials, even after accounting for demographic and career-related factors. Theoretically, we extend Bourdieu\u2019s framework by proposing a recognition-based typology of elite reproduction under uncertainty, distinguishing consolidated reproduction, crisis-legitimated inclusion, symbolic accommodation, and defensive retrenchment. This typology specifies how the symbolic value of elite credentials is granted, constrained, or withdrawn under varying macro-institutional conditions. Practically, we show that elite MBA programs continue to shape the composition of corporate leadership, albeit unevenly. While American men benefit most consistently, women and non-US nationals experience conditional and shifting recognition, particularly following the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). These findings suggest that elite MBAs function not only as educational signals but as socially contingent markers of legitimacy. Overall, our study advances research on management education, inequality, and executive careers by highlighting both temporary inclusion during crises and the reassertion of symbolic boundaries thereafter.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Date: Wednesday 7 October 2026 Time: 09:00 to 11:00 Location: Online on MS Teams Join: https:\/\/teams.microsoft.com\/meet\/363469336530310?p=vpRt9TVXWo91ZRP4OA Meeting ID: 363 469 336 530 310 Passcode: CB6L8mz7…
Read more<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11659,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[1260,1259,428],"class_list":["post-18399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-research","tag-lwo","tag-lwo-scholarship-seminar","tag-seminar"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11659"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18399"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18399\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18401,"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18399\/revisions\/18401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microsites.ncl.ac.uk\/nubsstaffblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}