Revealed in conjunction with the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, a first-of-its-kind rating by Positive Impact Rating (PIR) has named the University of Vermont’s Grossman School of Business among the top echelon of business schools in the world that are emphasizing the importance of social impacts alongside business and economic advancements. The inaugural report, “Positive Impact Rating for Business Schools,” is a new rating conducted by students, for students, and is the product of the first global assessment by students on how well their schools confront business’ societal impacts.
“This adds to our string of accolades that affirm that we have developed the world’s best MBA program to educate students to address the world’s greatest sustainability challenges via the power, ingenuity and innovation of business,” said Sanjay Sharma, dean of the Grossman School of Business. “We welcome the Positive Impact Rating as a global initiative that empowers students in MBA programs all over the world to express their concerns for the future of our planet and how well the program prepares them to become responsible business leaders for the 21st century.”
UVM’s Grossman School of Business, which houses the Sustainable Innovation MBA (SI-MBA) program, was rated at the second-highest level, “level 4: Transforming,” alongside eight other schools worldwide. No school attained the highest level, “level 5: Pioneering,” among the thirty leading schools included in the report.
According to the report, “The nine top-rated schools on level 4 are recognized by their students for including sustainability and societal engagement in their mission and for the degree to which these are seen as a driving force for the school (23 percent higher than average). These schools are also recognized by their students for having a culture that is aligned with their school’s purpose, for most of their people being highly motivated beyond self-interest and for strongly supporting personal development (18 percent higher than average). The positive impact of business schools goes beyond their contribution to business and the economy; it addresses the need for their positive impact for society.”
UVM’s accelerated one-year SI-MBA program directly confronts this value shift by addressing environmental, ethical, poverty and inequality issues through global innovation and enterprise. Unique in its mission, the program replaced UVM’s traditional MBA program upon its creation in 2014, thereby eliminating the potential to “saddlebag” sustainability initiatives to the pre-existing program and truly rebuilding it from the ground up. Today SI-MBA retains the foundational business school toolkit required for graduates to succeed in business, while training future leaders to use business as a tool to make meaningful change in the world. Graduates have gone on to work for companies such as Unilever, Microsoft, and Starbucks, and have also started successful businesses such as Sap! Beverages and Propagate Ventures.
It has been ranked the No. 1 “Best Green MBA” by Princeton Review for the past three consecutive years and was ranked the No. 4 “Better World MBA” by “Corporate Knights,” a leading sustainable business magazine, in 2019. UVM’s SI-MBA team placed first at the inaugural Total Impact Portfolio Challenge last spring, beating out 25 other teams from schools including Wharton, Columbia, Yale and Georgetown in a competition to build financial portfolios that make profits and positive impacts on the world.
“Business schools are traditionally seen to serve students by developing their management competencies and to serve business organizations by providing them with educated talent, insights from research and continuous education for their staff…This new business school rating responds to these demands,” PIR said in a media statement. PIR and its activities are endorsed and supported by WWF Switzerland, OXFAM, Global Compact Switzerland and it is operated in close collaboration with student organizations including oikos International, Net Impact, AIESEC, SOS UK and Studenten voor Morgen.
Source: UVM News