Do business students deserve a digital learning transformation
Many might argue business students get a raw deal.
Not only are these people paying more for their university education but the well-publicised reduction in institutional finances has naturally resulted in service cuts and job losses.
Employability prospects for graduates are under the microscope too.
This summer, The Guardian newspaper reported UK graduates were facing the worst job market prospects since 2018. Down 33%, many point the finger at AI as a key reason fewer employers are hiring.
So how should universities respond to the challenges in 2026 and beyond?
And how might business schools change so they equip students with the key skills they need?
Education – Slow to change
Back in the late 19th century, horses were the main mode of land transport. Within 125 years the Bugatti Veyron recorded a top speed of 254 mph and self-drive cars are on the road.
Yet, in this time, education has not moved that far. Ordered industrial-model desk rows, a sage on the stage focus and memory test exam processes are commonplace.
However, business schools might argue there are good reasons why change is slow:
- Education carries public responsibility and works in multi-year cycles.
- Many stakeholders (from government and teachers to exam boards and accreditation bodies) must agree with each other.
- Education ideologies are value based and thus beliefs are deeply held.
- Educators have little spare time to innovate.
- The rigour of assessment processes reinforces traditional approaches.
Digital revolution
But lend an ear and critics will whisper that the unchallenging comfort of the university learning environment is another slow-change factor. How many lecturers are still allowed to habitually lean on their low-cost PowerPoint crutch and regurgitate the same standardised material year after year?
And primed by such behaviour, how many fresh intakes of undergraduates, whose ability to concentrate we are told is diminishing, have learnt to sit back in passive comfort? Unlike previous times, recorded lectures are available to listen to later at double speed.
To be fair, research indicates many more lecturers deploy active learning, collaborative tasks and flipped classrooms to boost engagement and student participation. But course design and delivery typically remains the sole domain of the academic.
Renowned educationalist and TED speaker, Sir Ken Robinson, always championed the teacher as central to all learning. But he also advocated that to do their job well, teachers needed to become learning facilitators – as opposed to ‘sage stage’ fonts of knowledge.
To emphasise his creative-centred philosophy, at the famous TED Long Beach California 2010 event, Sir Ken called for a ‘Learning Revolution’. He could see the value and power of the digital revolution and how new resources had the capacity to reshape and advance high quality learning at scale.
But what has happened within business schools in the last 15 years?
As shared in a previous ‘Learning Revolution’ blog post, when the UK introduced University £9k tuition fees, student numbers grew, university revenues jumped and class sizes ballooned. In response, universities typically chose a strategy of hiring more people and building more buildings.
Meanwhile, the digital revolution largely served to fuel greater use of education communication tools such as PowerPoint, LMS platforms and products like Zoom. Yet subject-specific digital learning resources typically attracted the attention of the brave minority. These people chose to invest time and then make a financial case to use innovative solutions to advance learning and teaching.
Innovative education ambition
Since 2004 our SimVenture team has continuously invested in digital learning solutions so the subjects of business, enterprise and entrepreneurship can be taught in a creative, learner-centred manner.
The goal has always been to design high-quality experiential learning solutions. Such ambition is built on the conviction that individuals and teams learn best when making active, authentic decisions amidst uncertainty, and then managing the consequences. Failure is always possible which means learning stimulates thinking as opposed to being a memory test. Students are central to the process so educators can facilitate at the point of need.
SimVenture was founded on the belief that most students prefer to engage in real-world practice, as opposed to being passive recipients of lectures and presentations. In our world today, education surely has a duty to prepare learners for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA) so they have the necessary employability skills and attitudes.
As importantly, learners deserve to be in engaged classrooms which provide far more opportunity for educators and students to share thinking, learn from peers and build reciprocal connections.
Products developed by the SimVenture team have also been designed to meet latest education challenges. The online business simulation, Evolution, scales in line with the ‘ballooning’ class sizes. The multiple scenarios and change language function are examples of how the simulation flexes for different learning situations and students.
Critically, at a time when AI is such a dominant assessment issue, educators can use Evolution and know that students must figure out the answers themselves. ‘Google and Co’ cannot see within the Evolution platform and thus have no idea how individuals have run their simulated businesses. As such any related essay or report submitted for assessment is always the student’s work.
Does SimVenture thinking work in practice?
Since first product launch in 2006, SimVenture has attracted hundreds of clients from all over the world. Over time, many customers have become friends and awards have been won.
Numerous SimVenture customers have also contributed powerful video testimonials. These vocal resources validate the value of student-centred business, enterprise and entrepreneurship learning that is supported by quality digital technology.
Most recently, a series of SimVenture-rooted presentations were delivered to nearly 300 Business, Enterprise and Engineering students at the Universities of Nottingham, York and Munster (Cork). For reference, the talks didn’t focus on how SimVenture products advanced entrepreneurial thinking and skills. Moreover, the talks delved into issues relating to how people learn, communicate and problem-solve as well as the value of developing a mindset that perseveres with uncertainty, discomfort and rejection.
Following one talk a young woman shared her unsolicited feedback:
“One of our major modules uses the SimVenture Bicycle Simulation [Evolution]. I’ve spent the last few weeks wrestling with it, and honestly, at first I absolutely hated it. It drove me insane, and I genuinely questioned my life choices every time I ran a quarter!
“But then I watched Peter Harrington’s guest lecture at my university… and I don’t say this lightly: it completely changed my entire attitude toward the simulation, but also my academic/career journey overall.
“The way you spoke; your story, your energy, the authenticity in how you explained the journey, it genuinely moved me. For the first time, I felt inspired instead of defeated, and I actually wanted to give the simulation a real chance.
“So I went back to it with a fresh mindset, and surprise surprise, I’m doing so much better now. I can actually see the brilliance and detail behind what you and your brother created. It’s such an impressive simulation.”
For any entrepreneurial team, receiving such eloquent praise is always heartwarming validation that the decades of effort were worthwhile. Over the years many other students have quietly shared their kind gratitude too.
But if pedagogical change is going to happen within business schools so all students can be better equipped to meet the inevitable employment challenge, hidden voices must be heard. Every ounce of supportive energy is needed to create a digital learning transformation.
Discomfort the key ingredient
Such ambition will sit well with the minority of educators, but for many the cry for digital learning action will generate a ripple and possibly a wave of discomfort.
The thought of change is uncomfortable. Using digital technology can be unnerving. Then there are the time-poor who also fear losing their sage-stage control or don’t want to appear anything less than knowledgeable and competent in front of their students. Finally, for the Dean decision-makers there is the discomfort of cost. Lectures are the traditional, cheap solution. So why spend another £50 on every student especially when budgets are tight?
The answer lies in the need to accept the discomfort, digital transformation and thus change. We have to do better for our students now, so they have a chance of a better future.
Measuring this choice on cost may seem logical. However, if a learner can fundamentally shift the way she thinks through use of one piece of digital technology, £50 is a very small price to pay.
And staying with this student who shared her initial discomfort with the Evolution simulation, persevering with the difficult and putting pain before pleasure, as Dr Anna Lembke recommends in her brilliant book ‘Dopamine Nation’, often leads to better things.
Yet if we continue to be hypnotised by the past and accept the traditional conveyor belt of lectures, and the like, we should think very carefully about Albert Einstein’s advice…
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
Let’s make change happen
One person whose life has been full of change and believes in the power of digital transformation within education is Dr Margaret Korosec.
In her 2023 TEDx talk, Dr Korosec (Director of Digital Education and Learning Innovation at the University of Leeds) implored institutions to “serve their students” and create digital learning experiences that promote curiosity and experimentation.
When asked for her thoughts in the context of this article, Margaret added “Institutions that cater to their students through flexible, online learning do not need to compromise human connectivity between educators and students. This is evident every time I have the pleasure of conferring degrees to those who have never set foot on campus. Despite meeting in person for the first time, the dynamic connection between the academics and fellow students is palpable. Progressive institutions will prioritise designing for the learner, not the institution.”
To support Margaret’s thoughts, a WONKHE report published in March 2025 entitled ‘Capability for change – preparing for digital learning futures’ dedicates a whole page (18) to how universities and technology providers can work together. The idea of partnership is at the heart of the thinking as opposed to the standard client supplier relationship.
For partnerships to work, business schools must reach out to suppliers and vice-versa. But for partnerships to really work, faculty staff need to know how and why digital technology is being adopted so they can be involved. It’s not enough for faculty leadership to make new digital technology available and let people stay in their traditional teaching comfort zones. That said, we must all accept technology cannot replace good educators. The teacher is central to everything.
But this is a post about students and encouraging the student voice.
For digital transformation to happen in Business Schools, fee-paying students especially should be encouraged to make clear to academics and faculty chiefs how and why digital learning technology benefits them. Being able to express true feelings about the value of creative learning opportunities is critical. Democratic, regular two-way communication is necessary so the real value of digital learning solutions can be appreciated. Feedback must not be confined to the impersonal, annual student satisfaction survey.
