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Only 5–6% of business schools worldwide—including Leeds—hold AACSB accreditation, a highly selective marker of excellence in business education. During her visit, AACSB President and CEO Lily Bi explored how global demographics, geopolitics and technology are reshaping the future of business education.

Lily Bi, president and CEO of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International, visited Leeds on April 10 to share her insights on “Business Schools in a Disruptive World.” Speaking to more than 100 CU �鶹ӰԺ leaders, Leeds board members, faculty, staff and alumni, Bi offered a wide-ranging look at how business education has evolved over the past century—and what lies ahead amid demographic shifts, technological disruption, geopolitical uncertainty and a rapidly changing workplace.

Positioning business schools within academia

The evolution of the AACSB mirrors the evolution of the business school landscape itself. Bi outlined five historical “inflection points,” that shaped the AACSB’s rise as the world’s leading global accrediting body for business schools, now serving 2,028 member organizations across 113 countries and territories.

Early in the 20th century, business schools worked to position themselves within academia as professional, degree-granting institutions. Later inflection points included globalization in the 1990s—when the AACSB expanded into Europe and shifted to principles-based accreditation standards. The aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis prompted a heightened scrutiny of ensuring that business education was producing meaningful societal impact.

“Business schools exist to support and advance business.”

—Lily Bi, president and CEO, AACSB

Today’s inflection point, she explained, "spans an interconnected ecosystem of learners, employers, technology, regulators, geopolitics and other stakeholders. Central to the AACSB’s mission is to elevate the quality and impact of business education globally. Since 2013, the organization has required schools to demonstrate societal impact through teaching, research and engagement,” said Bi.

Simply put, she said: “Business schools exist to support and advance business.”

A changing world—and a changing learner

With declining birth and fertility rates worldwide, Bi urges schools to think beyond traditional 18-22-year-old students, redesigning offerings for lifelong learners. She referenced learners from ages 18 to 80 and used her own path as an example, earning advanced degrees later in her career. “There are many different ways to access education,” said Bi, such as executive education.

Learners are also focused on return on investment, she noted, as affordability pressures rise and access to student loans tightens.

External policy shifts further complicate the landscape. Bi cited a roughly 15% drop in international student enrollments, driven by such factors as housing shortages abroad and high U.S. visa costs. “These are hard realities we are facing,” she said. Still, she emphasized that international students remain essential to talent pipelines, innovation and diversity of thought.

She retains her optimism: “If we adapt well, we will excel and use this era as a time of opportunity.”

What learners and employers want

Students continue to prioritize high-quality teaching, relevant curricula, experiential learning, strong communities and career support. Access to AI tools, global experiences and research opportunities also factor into college decisions.

“If we adapt well, we will excel and use this era as a time of opportunity.”

—Lily Bi, president and CEO, AACSB

Meanwhile, shifting expectations mean that “employers want skills, adaptability and job readiness,” Bi noted, adding that many organizations are treating AI as a technical problem rather than a business problem. A “skills-first” mindset—no degree required—may be reshaping views on the broader value of a degree.

While AI is accelerating demand for new skillsets, she said, across industries, employers continue to consistently seek competencies in navigating ambiguity, communicating effectively, and giving and receiving feedback.

Drawing on her own journey from computer science to business education, Bi described learning to operate in the “gray areas,” where problems are not clearly defined—a benefit of her business school training.

While employers worry about the “expiration date” of technical knowledge, Bi argued that foundational business education remains vital to discovery and intellectual development. It fosters the top three qualities employers seek: strategy, leadership, and community and influence skills. “Everything is integrated and holistic,” said Bi. Degrees and skills, she emphasized, must coexist.

Technology and the future of business education

AI, Bi emphasized, is the ultimate disrupter reshaping work, organizational architecture, leadership, and education itself. Rather than layering AI onto existing models, she said schools have the opportunity to rethink how humans and intelligent systems work together. Accountability, judgment and governance must remain human responsibilities.

She cited industry leaders, including NTT Data Group CEO Yutaka Sasaki and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, whose views reframe education not as job preparation alone, but as human formation. Quoting Sasaki, she said: “Human value does not shrink. It concentrates on aspiration, creativity, judgment and governance.”

The ultimate purpose of education is to prepare students for both employment and life, Bi said. “No one knows the future,” she concluded. “This isn’t a static challenge. It’s an adaptive one.” Key questions remain, including: “What is the future MBA? What is the future of business education?”

For Leeds, those questions align squarely with its strategic direction. Building upon 120 years of business education—and as the eighth oldest business school in the country—Leeds is well positioned to help shape the next era of business education, guided by its mission to foster business as a force for good.