Using Twitter at Business School

Using Twitter (the social medium of concise 140 character messages) isn’t just about entertainment and keep tracking of one’s favorite celebrities. In recent years it has emerged as a significant arena for breaking news, as well as facilitating interactions with those with similar interests.

This now increasingly includes those in the business school world. Not only are schools running their own accounts in a nod to Twitter’s growing influence, but individual business school professors are also getting in on the act, allowing MBA students to follow their updates and even to connect and interact with them.

So, why use Twitter? Here, TopMBA.com takes a look at why the benefits of using Twitter are encouraging schools, professors and MBA students to sign up, as well as pointing interested newcomers in the right direction of who to follow on Twitter should they want to follow suit.

Why business schools are keen to know how to use Twitter effectively

More and more business schools are discovering the benefits of learning how to use twitter effectively.

Dr. Betsy Page Sigman is a distinguished teaching professor at the McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University (pictured below). She says, “Business schools need to be concerned about how they are perceived by their students.  [Twitter] helps business schools stay in closer touch with their students.”

Dr. Sigman admits to having initially had misgivings about the format but says, “I was wrong and am now a convert to Twitter. I like it because it allows you to get information on all kinds of interests in an easy, quick way.  It doesn't waste your time”, she says. 

In addition, Dr. Sigman points out that Twitter, “helps to keep businesses on their toes, as a disgruntled customer can quickly create a negative tweet that can go viral, hurting a business' image.”

Twitter is now embraced by the McDonough School of Business to the point where it is to begin asking MBA applicants to respond to the following admissions question: ‘Why do you want to attend the Georgetown McDonough Full-time MBA Program? Tell us in tweet format, (140 characters or fewer.)’

"Our Twitter essay is about the applicant being succinct and pithy in explaining what's really appealing to them about Georgetown. It's an opportunity for candidates to stand out and showcase their initiative and creativity. It is meant to be fun", said Shari Hubert, Associate Dean for MBA Admissions at the school.

Why use Twitter at business school – for MBA students

If familiarizing yourself with what looks like a growing trend amongst business schools isn’t enough of an answer to ‘why use Twitter?’, then there are several other benefits for MBA students.

Twitter allows them to connect with faculty members not only at their school of study but also at leading business schools across the globe.

Business school professors who are active tweeters could give MBA students invaluable access to a whole new set of resources, which may otherwise have completely passed them by. Better still, this information is available outside of classroom hours.  

An MBA student using Twitter effectively can really enhance what they take from their course of study – in terms both of the academic experience and that all-important end-result.

Plus, it’s not just MBA students who stand to gain. For MBA alumni, it’s a perfectly convenient way to stay in touch with the business school world, especially given the inevitably busy working life that follows soon-after graduation.

Why use Twitter - for business school faculty

Business school professors themselves can also reap the benefits from using Twitter

Dr. Tim Kastelle is a senior lecturer in innovation management at the University of Queensland (UQ) Business School. He said, “I signed up for an account as far back as 2008 but had never quite figured out to how to use Twitter effectively.”

However, after starting a blog entitled ‘The Discipline of Innovation’, Dr. Kastelle was looking for a better way to share the site’s breaking research and thoughts on innovation. He then rapidly developed into a Twitter aficionado and couldn’t have been more impressed with the results. “When I look at the return I’ve got from doing this, it’s been astonishing”, he says.

“An average academic paper gets read by just a handful of people”, Dr. Kastelle continues, “and it’s only a few that get cited or take-off, often years after the original research. So, the idea that I can write something, post it and then overnight wake up and see that it’s been re-tweeted or shared on social media by 50 different people and read by hundreds or thousands is kind of mind-boggling.”

It’s allowed him to connect with people all across the world, aiding him in his own research as well as greatly enhancing its potential audience upon publication. His next research trip, for instance, is to Silicon Valley in the US where he will work with people, “Many of whom I met on Twitter or through my blog”, he says.

Who to follow on Twitter in the business school world

Dr. Kastelle is also a contributor for LDRLB (pronounced ‘leader lab’.) Its founder, David Burkus, recently compiled a list which should prove very handy for any MBA applicant or student looking for ideas about who to follow on Twitter.

On it, LDRLB ranks 2013’s top 50 professors on Twitter, split into categories entitled ‘leadership’, ‘innovation’ and ‘strategy’ – most of whom are business school faculty members. Dr. Kastelle himself features in the innovation category. Dean at the McDonough School of Business, Professor David Thomas, also features in separate section reserved for what is termed ‘at-large’ professors. 

Dr. Sigman says, “Our Dean, David Thomas, is well-known as a regular ‘tweeter’ and, as of this writing, has almost 3,000 followers. I know that many of those are students at the McDonough School of Business. He conveys information about all kinds of topics--from what is going on with the school to what restaurant he ate at recently to his latest thoughts about life. It helps students to feel like they know him on a more personal level.”

Dr. Sigman’s own account is less widespread in its approach to topics. She says it provides her with, “a way to make people aware of recent articles I've come across or ideas I've had.”

Evidently, the content on tweeting business school professors’ accounts understandably varies from individual to individual. It’s a good idea therefore, to have a look through accounts of interest when considering who to follow on Twitter to see what might best suit your purposes before taking the plunge.  

Benefits of using Twitter likely to increase

An increasing number of business schools and individual professors are now actively enjoying what they use Twitter for as well as what they receive from it. Whatever their approach the benefits of using Twitter for MBA students appear clear-cut. 

Plus, an even greater potential for all those using Twitter certainly lies ahead. As Dr. Kastelle explains, “The percentage of current students or alumni that are actually on Twitter and actively follow these types of things is still really small.”

If the portion of MBA students who are already engaging with their schools and professors can see the obvious benefits of getting to know how to use Twitter effectively and take advantage, isn’t it time you did the same?