Abstract
This article critiques the trend of universities adopting businesslike practices while corporations increasingly model themselves after universities. Drawing on themes from Re-Inventing the Corporation, it argues that higher education has been dismantling traditions of creativity, autonomy, and broad inquiry in favor of hierarchical management and narrow specialization. By contrast, innovative corporations such as Apple, IBM, and W.L. Gore emphasized vision, co-ownership, self-management, and creativity, cultivating environments that empower employees. The discussion contrasts corporate strategies for the Information Age—flexibility, decentralized communication, encouragement of innovation—with universities’ reliance on conformity, rigid structures, and centralized control. Insights from organizational studies suggest that universities have shifted toward constraining rather than enabling cultures, limiting personal responsibility and innovation. The article concludes that instead of imitating corporate models of the industrial era, universities should reclaim their traditional strengths, aligning more closely with the qualities now enabling corporate success in the Information Age.
Recommended Citation
Blanchard, Robert O.
(1987)
"Re-Inventing the Corporation and Rediscovering the University,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 62, Article 6.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol62/iss1/6
