As a former chief financial officer and director of administration for a 1,000 person public agency, I think I can speak with some authority about the importance of good communications and reasoned decision-making in the management of large-scale organizations ("UB School of Management eliminates business minor," March 23).
In my view, this was certainly not a shining moment for top school administrators who appear to have acted in secret and withheld important information from affected students without regard for its impact. Although this approach may have achieved its intended objective (from the school's perspective),school officials should have known better, and these students certainly deserved better. Somehow, I doubt the business school will be using this situation as a case study for teaching how to communicate effectively and work toward an equitable solution.
Certainly, a more reasonable middle ground could have been found. For example, students already working toward a minor in business could have been "grandfathered in" to the program and the new policy could have been implemented with the entering freshman class in the fall. It leaves one to wonder whether school officials thought about or cared about the impact their decision would have on students who were pursuing their studies in conformance with current policies and the guidance of their advisors.
While I can appreciate the school's desire to accommodate business majors first and live within limited resources, students such as my son who were working for almost two years toward the goal of pursuing a minor in business did not have to be entirely disregarded. My son and other similarly situated students are now left to rethink their academic and career plans midway into their 4-year degree program.
Unfortunately, it didn\'t have to be this way, if only the business school brought the affected students into the process and conducted its decision-making in the open. These management gurus should practice in real life what they preach in the classroom.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
