The Curious Case of Construction of Quality in Nordic Business Schools – The Symbolic Role of Branding

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Titel: The Curious Case of Construction of Quality in Nordic Business Schools – The Symbolic Role of Branding
Autoren: Kallio, Tomi, Kallio, Kirsi-Mari, Suomi, Kati, Funck, Elin
Weitere Verfasser: Lund University, Lund University School of Economics and Management, LUSEM, Department of Business Administration, Accounting and Corporate Finance, Lunds universitet, Ekonomihögskolan, Företagsekonomiska institutionen, Redovisning och finans, Originator, Lund University, Lund University School of Economics and Management, LUSEM, Department of Business Administration, Lunds universitet, Ekonomihögskolan, Företagsekonomiska institutionen, Originator
Quelle: Scandinavian Journal of Public Administration. 29(3):50-70
Schlagwörter: Social Sciences, Economics and Business, Business Administration, Samhällsvetenskap, Ekonomi och näringsliv, Företagsekonomi
Beschreibung: Universities worldwide have increased their competition for the best students and employees. Consequently, business schools are pressured to demonstrate excellence and differentiate themselves through brand building. One essential part of branding is the quality narratives that universities present to the public. We study the presentation of quality in Nordic business schools. Data concerning the presentation and manifestation of quality by the Nordic business schools was collected from 41 business schools’ public web pages. We used content analysis to gather 12 quality narratives and interpret them. We identify 12 items applied in the quality narratives by the studied business schools. Our results show homogeneity in communication stemming from the pursuit of legitimacy and conformity to expectations. We demonstrate that the visible manifest content of the quality manifestos of Nordic universities functions as artifacts similar to tangible and visual representations, heavily laden with market-oriented neoliberal values. We highlight how Nordic business schools have predominantly adopted a uniform approach to branding in higher education, as the universities align with their institutional settings.
Zugangs-URL: https://doi.org/10.58235/sjpa.32092
Datenbank: SwePub
Beschreibung
Abstract:Universities worldwide have increased their competition for the best students and employees. Consequently, business schools are pressured to demonstrate excellence and differentiate themselves through brand building. One essential part of branding is the quality narratives that universities present to the public. We study the presentation of quality in Nordic business schools. Data concerning the presentation and manifestation of quality by the Nordic business schools was collected from 41 business schools’ public web pages. We used content analysis to gather 12 quality narratives and interpret them. We identify 12 items applied in the quality narratives by the studied business schools. Our results show homogeneity in communication stemming from the pursuit of legitimacy and conformity to expectations. We demonstrate that the visible manifest content of the quality manifestos of Nordic universities functions as artifacts similar to tangible and visual representations, heavily laden with market-oriented neoliberal values. We highlight how Nordic business schools have predominantly adopted a uniform approach to branding in higher education, as the universities align with their institutional settings.
ISSN:20017405
20017413
DOI:10.58235/sjpa.32092