Nurse it....don't milk it

In a recent Tripadvisor post based on a flight to Moscow I observed that the ONE small snack in a six hour period (I include here the pre-boarding wait, the flight and the expected delay in Moscow for visa clearance) was rather poor service for a flag carrier with a clear dominance in the UK to Moscow direct  scheduled route (other carriers include a delightful stop in either Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Paris or Schipol airports).  My advice to the airline was to nurse a dominant market position rather than milk it.

My advice to UK Universities fearing the approval of competitors in their most lucrative markets is just the same. Nurse the Business and Management sector, don't continue to milk it.

However well intentioned and focused History professors may be they sure aren't going to get the funding from commercial sources that becoming a private University or "alternative provider" requires.

So what should that mean in practice?

1. Universities need to reconsider the fee levels for undergraduate programmes. Why continue to charge a flat fee when the clear evidence persists that Businees Schools subsidise other subject areas?  Why should Business students pay for say, Drama students, to enjoy subsidised studies?

2. Staff Student ratios also need to be re-considered to be able to deliver the level of service and meet the expectations of Business students that relatively higher fees suggest.

3. Research Professors should be paid well in excess of standard Professorial rates of pay, regardless of their contribution to Business School revenues*

4. Business Schools should change their traditional model and actually deliver teaching that reflects what matters to business today - and in a way that responds to the needs of today's students.

Now, that's not too much to ask is it?

* point 3. excluded as this already appears to be happening.