The focus of business schools in 2026?
As 2026 begins, business schools are navigating an environment shaped by profound transformations: rapid technological advancement, climate urgency, geopolitical tensions, shifting expectations from students and employers, and the questioning of traditional management education models.
To better understand these changes, EFMD Global recently published an article featuring 18 deans and leaders of business schools worldwide, asking them about their strategic priorities for the coming years.
Their testimonies reveal common approaches, highlighting major shifts in management education. This article provides a concise, thematic synthesis of these contributions, with particular focus on sustainability, a central issue aligned with Sulitest’s mission.
Business schools in systemic transition
A first observation is clear: business schools can no longer operate as isolated entities. Several deans emphasize the need to move beyond siloed approaches—whether disciplinary, institutional, or sectoral—to address challenges that have become systemic.
Bruno van Pottelsberghe (Corvinus University of Budapest, a TASK Change Leader) highlights the importance of connecting disciplines and developing cross-cutting skills that enable students to navigate complexity. Anthony Brabazon (UCD College of Business) refers to an “ecological” approach to the business school, conceived as an active actor linking companies, public institutions, regions, and civil society.
This vision is widely shared: business schools are called to become platforms for collaboration and impact, bringing together multiple stakeholders around pressing contemporary issues.
Sustainability as a strategic guiding principle
Among the priorities expressed by the EFMD-interviewed deans, sustainability emerges as a central, structural and transversal focus.
Some institutions integrate it explicitly at the heart of their strategy. Federico Frattini (POLIMI Graduate School of Management ) highlights the PIE – Positive Impact Through Education plan, with ambitious quantitative objectives in training, awareness, and resource mobilization to support sustainable transition.
Other deans stress the responsibility of business schools in educating decision-makers capable of making informed choices in an uncertain world. Joachim Lutz (Mannheim Business School) and Delphine Manceau (NEOMA Business School, TASK Change Leader) underscore the importance of ethical, critical, and human skills so that technologies—and AI in particular—serve as tools for progress rather than ends in themselves.
Sustainability is no longer being treated as a peripheral topic but as a criterion of academic quality, a factor of attractiveness for students, and a cornerstone of the societal legitimacy of business schools.
Developing transition-ready skills
Another major point of convergence concerns the evolution of the skills that business schools must develop.
The contributions collected by EFMD highlight:
- the responsible and ethical integration of artificial intelligence,
- the development of interdisciplinary skills,
- understanding climate, social, and geopolitical challenges,
- and strengthening human skills: critical thinking, responsible leadership, collaboration, resilience, and adaptability.
Delphine Manceau emphasizes the necessary complementarity between emerging technologies and the humanities, while Sankar Sivarajah (Kingston Business School) stresses integrating future skills and AI to meet the expectations of the labor market and society.
From intent to demonstrable impact
Finally, several deans highlight a major shift in how the concept of impact is approached. It is no longer enough to talk about it; it is essential to measure, demonstrate, and make it visible.
Bruno van Pottelsberghe, Rector of Corvinus University of Budapest, emphasizes this shift:
“In my view, 2026 will be about how well business schools can adapt and how confidently they can look ahead. Real progress for our future leaders comes from connecting fields and allowing new ideas to emergeat their meeting points. Sustainability remains central, and we need to lead by example while preparing students for the complex challenges ahead.”
This demand for credibility is essential to reinforce the trust of stakeholders—students, employers, public institutions—and to support the transformation of educational models.
What these trajectories reveal about the future
Across the testimonies collected by EFMD, a common vision emerges: the business schools of tomorrow will be evaluated as much on their societal impact as on their academic excellence.
Sustainability, responsibility, collaboration, pedagogical innovation, and the ability to educate informed decision-makers now constitute key markers of their trajectory. In this context, frameworks and educational tools to understand, assess, and strengthen sustainability-related competencies is more important than ever. Initiatives like TASK (Transformative Action for Sustainability in Knowledge) support schools in this journey, providing validated tools and best practices that help integrate sustainability and societal impact across teaching, research, and community engagement, making their contribution tangible and measurable.
Source and Editorial Disclaimer
This article provides an editorial analysis and synthesis based on content published by EFMD Global: “18 business school deans share their priorities for 2026”. The statements and priorities cited originate from the contributions of deans interviewed by EFMD. Their reformulation and perspective are solely those of Sulitest and aim to highlight major trends in management education, particularly regarding sustainability.
