Charles Street Chats: Q&A with Raju Balakrishnan
Dr. Nagraj “Raju” Balakrishnan is starting his first semester at The University of Baltimore as the new dean of the Merrick School of Business. Balakrishnan brings a wealth of higher education experience to UBalt, having most recently served as dean of the University of Michigan - Dearborn College of Business.
Behind the Chat
Order: caffè latte
Location: Starbucks
Distance from campus: 0.2 miles
Q: How do you hope to build upon the Merrick School of Business’ success to best serve today’s and future generations of students?
A: The Merrick School obviously has a strong record of success in the past, so there’s no need to really reinvent the wheel here. What we need to do is to continue focusing on a couple of things.
First, we need to ensure that our curriculum and what we are offering our students both inside and outside the classroom always stays current and relevant, because business is changing very rapidly. We need to ensure that our students are always being exposed to the latest technologies and getting cutting edge information that is going to be of service to them, not just now, but down the road.
The second thing we need to have is a razor-sharp focus on student success. That’s got to be our No. 1 priority in almost anything we do. And how do we define student success? Everybody has their own definitions; I look at it from three perspectives: Once we get the student in, what are we doing to make sure we are retaining them while giving them the best possible education? What are we doing to make sure that they are graduating in a timely manner? And what are we doing to ensure that they have that perfect job when they graduate, which is why they joined us in the first place?
Watch: Raju discusses what he appreciates most about UBalt
Q: Business, as a whole, has long been seen as the best pathway toward a stable career. With opportunities here in information technology, data analysis, and STEM, our business school is well equipped to develop a well-rounded student. Based on your own experiences, what would you advise students to consider when they’re choosing their major? And how do you think they can make the most of their college experience here?
A: There are several things that go into play there. In today’s business environment, nothing is a silo. You can’t just say I know accounting and that’s all I know, or I know marketing and that’s all I know. Everything interacts with everything else. I would advise students, when they are pursuing any degree, particularly a business degree, to take a more holistic approach. You can’t be masters of everything, but also don’t ignore certain things because you don’t think it is going to be relevant. At the end of the day, no matter what job you take, you’re going to end up working with other people and eventually managing other people, and you need to understand how that fits in. You need to have that holistic attitude.
Second, today’s world is dominated by technology, and it is going to be increasingly dominated by technology. So embrace technology, learn how to use it, to make your work that much more efficient, that much more effective. Third, look at the amount of data that we are generating on a daily basis. Students need to learn how to collect and organize the data, how to analyze it, and how to make sense of the information they get from that analysis.
Those, I think, are the kinds of skills that are going to set business students apart. As we review and update our own curriculum, we need to ensure that students are exposed to these skill sets so that when they graduate from the Merrick School and University of Baltimore, they can go out to a prospective employer and say, ‘I know how these things work in today’s environment and I’m ready to use it effectively in the workplace.’
In conjunction with that, I also advise students very strongly to go just beyond the business discipline. What I mean by that is, you want critical thinking skills, you want problem solving skills. I encourage considering a minor in a non-business field. I’m a big advocate of people going beyond their major. Historically, schools have been very protective of turf and if you’re a business student, we have wanted you to do everything within the school. I think that’s a disservice. We don’t have the capability to develop every resource on our own and I’d like to leverage resources that are available in other places at UBalt.
Q: How do you think today’s students can use the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) to their advantage, so they thrive in a world where it dominates and aren’t sidelined by it?
A: AI is here to stay. And its role in society, its role in every aspect of all jobs, is going to increase. We talk here about ChatGPT all the time. I think the worst thing we can do as educators is to try and ban students from using AI. To say, oh, no, no, you’re going to cheat by using AI so we don’t want you to use AI. I think that’s a great disservice.
Now, it’s going to be challenging for us as educators because we’re going to have to change our own mindset, how we teach, how we assess, but if we can show students how AI can be a powerful tool to enhance their performance, then the student will really understand that AI is a complement to their work and not a replacement for their work. The student is going to bring things to the job that AI cannot.
What Charms Us
We end all of our Charles Street Chats with the same question: What do you love most about Baltimore? Here's Raju's answer.
I just moved here about a month ago. I can tell you that my experience, even this month, has been phenomenal. It’s a beautiful city. The people are very friendly. I am very much looking forward to going to my first Orioles game. My first Ravens game. I’m thrilled about being in a city that actually wins—having come from Detroit where our teams haven’t won a championship in God knows how long. Those are things that I am very excited about and looking forward to.