A Serious Conversation About the Global Business Education System

Author: Prof. Andrii Azarov

A Discussion Worth Supporting

In 2018, Professor Martin Parker published his manifesto in The Guardian entitled “Why we should bulldoze the business school” and his book Shut Down the Business School!. His key message is clear and crucial: the system of university business education, shaped over the past half-century, is in urgent need of deep modernisation.

We fully share this view. Moreover, our experience proves that society already has real alternatives.

Why Parker’s Criticism Matters

Parker rightly points out that:

• Traditional business schools have become commercial enterprises, detached from the real needs of society.
• Their programs are often outdated and prepare corporate employees rather than creators.
• Ethics and social values are present only formally, not at the core of the educational process.

These arguments resonate with what we saw and felt when, in the early 2000s, we created MINIBOSS BUSINESS SCHOOL.

A Real Alternative: What We Have Built

We not only agree with the necessity of change — we have been implementing a system that addresses the challenges Parker described for many years.

📌 MINIBOSS & BIGBOSS BUSINESS SCHOOLS, as well as the programs of the International Business Academy Consortium, represent:

• Philosophy – developing the personality and mindset of an entrepreneur from childhood.
• Ideology – raising a generation of creators capable of improving the prosperity of society, not merely personal income.
• Methodology – a unique system of courses and practices where children and young people do not study abstract cases but create their own startups, defend projects, and work in teams.
• Business Model – an international franchise network that unites schools across continents and ensures common standards of quality.

An Example of Modern Business Education

What Parker describes as a need for radical reform, we have already put into practice.

• Our students begin at MINIBOSS BUSINESS SCHOOL,
• Continue their path at BIGBOSS BUSINESS SCHOOL,
• And can then progress to specialised MBA programs within the International Business Academy Consortium.

In this way, we have created a holistic educational trajectory: from the first steps in business to professional and university-level education.

Conclusion

The world indeed needs a new business education. And we stand with Professor Parker: old models must give way to new ones.

Today, MINIBOSS & BIGBOSS BUSINESS SCHOOLS, created by us and developed within the International Business Academy Consortium, are a vivid example of what modern business education should look like: focused on the individual, on practice, on creation, and on the future of society.

We are not just discussing the need for change — we have already brought it to life.

 Part II. The Method: A Step-by-Step Blueprint for Modern Business Education

Source: Official MINIBOSS Intellectual Property page

1) Admissions by Conscious Choice

MINIBOSS FOR EVERYONE — because every child deserves to be successful and happy.
MINIBOSS NOT FOR EVERYONE — because enrollment starts with a personal interview where the child, not the parent, answers: What future do I want? What am I doing for it? Am I ready to grow these competencies?
Outcome: a learner who chooses development, not one who is passively “signed up”.

2) Scientific Foundations

We revive educare (“to bring up, to nourish”): the teacher cultivates innate abilities rather than stuffing information. Education is growth through activity, experience and the whole personality — not a mechanical transfer of facts.

3) Designed for the 21st Century

Today’s children live in real-time, digital, high-velocity environments. Mass schooling still produces a “standard worker”. MINIBOSS answers the century’s demands by adding the fourth pedagogical dimension: a child’s upward striving — meaning, creativity, purpose.

4) A New Pedagogical Paradigm (Humane Pedagogy)

Practice follows theory. Our system is built on humane pedagogy: ecological communication with the child, optimism, creativity, and self-disclosure. Teachers are trained as bearers of light; the classroom becomes a space of inspiration and insight — the MINIBOSS Lesson.

5) Collective Synergy

Children are organised in groups united by a shared aspiration to a bright future. This creates a “collective light” that accelerates individual progress and achievement mindsets.

6) Three Pillars of Global Quality

1. Holistic system: 8 theoretical courses + 12 forms of practice.
2. Rigorous teacher training: continuous development of exceptional pedagogy.
3. Global business framework: franchised standards ensure quality across countries.

7) The 8Q Model: Beyond IQ

We expand development across eight intelligences:

• IQ (Mental)
• EQ (Emotional)
• CQ (Creative)
• PhQ (Physical)
• MQ (Managerial)
• TQ (Teaching)
• XQ (Entrepreneurial)
• SQ (Spiritual / meaning & values)
  This multi-dimensional model is registered with WIPO (UN, Switzerland) and the Library of Congress (USA).
  Why it matters: children don’t just “know more”; they become more — balanced, resilient, purposeful.

8) Programme Architecture: 8 Consecutive Courses

Across eight courses, learners:

• discover and apply unique talents;
• build divergent & creative thinking;
• turn ideas into ventures;
• develop systems & strategic thinking;
• master communication, negotiation, networking;
• strengthen resilience and leadership for life success.
  Age groups: 6–8, 9–11, 12–14, 15–17 — the right challenge at the right time.

9) Practice Engine: 12 Applied Formats

Theory is fused with practice through:

• interactive lessons & simulations;
• team-building;
• master classes with entrepreneurs;
• business games and incubators;
• festivals of divergent thinking;
• startup forums, championships & international camps.
  Result: children do entrepreneurship, not merely study it.

10) The Annual Learning Cycle (Step-by-Step)

1. Interview & placement (conscious choice; age cohort).
2. Baseline profile (8Q orientation; goals).
3. Weekly cadence: interactive lesson → applied task → reflection.
4. Mentored practice (incubator, master classes, forums).
5. Public performance (pitches, debates, showcases).
6. Feedback loops (teacher, peers, entrepreneurs).
7. Portfolio growth (evidence of skills, impact, leadership).
8. Year-end assessment (see §11).
9. Progression (next course; increased responsibility).
10. Pathways (BIGBOSS; later — IBA Consortium MBA).

11) Milestones, Certification & Diploma

Certification (per Course):

• Complete one full course (theory + practice)
• Create an end-to-end team project
• Pass a year-end exam
• Deliver the speech “My Achievements of the Year”

International Diploma (UK):

• Complete all 8 courses
• Submit an essay and deliver the capstone speech “My Achievements in MINIBOSS”
  Universities worldwide recognise the diploma; it often brings additional points, privileges and scholarships at admission.

12) Early Start, Lifelong Impact

Neuroscience is clear: early years shape character, values and long-term outcomes. By starting from age 6, MINIBOSS uses the brain’s sensitive periods to build capabilities that compound across school, university and life.

13) Teacher Excellence & Quality Assurance

Educators are continuously trained in humane pedagogy and the MINIBOSS lesson format. The international network ensures standardisation where it matters and localisation where it helps.

14) The Continuum: MINIBOSS → BIGBOSS → IBA Consortium MBA

• MINIBOSS (ages 6–17): foundations, experiments, startup literacy.
• BIGBOSS (advanced youth): scale, leadership, venture building.
• IBA Consortium MBA (specialised programmes): professional mastery — the university-level progression of the same philosophy, ideology and method.

Why this blueprint answers Parker’s call

Parker asks for a School for Organising that cultivates creators, ethics, and social value — not just corporate operators. MINIBOSS is that school in practice: a humane, theory-led, practice-rich system that starts early, develops the whole person (8Q), and carries them forward into university and professional programmes without breaking the pedagogical line.

Prof. Andrii Azarov
CEO, International Business Academy Consortium