Comments on: 5 Reasons why Management Professors should be reading blogs

By: John Austin

John Austin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 16:41:36 +0000

CV,

I am enjoying the dialog you’ve started here.

I agree with your five points. I think points 1, 3, and 4 can be easily seen as advantages of reading blogs while points 2 and 5 are best captured by commenting or writing blogs.

Interesting thought about linking with tenure. I see blogging as outreach for the university. When I was actively blogging (2004-2006), I was attracting media attention from WSJ, CNN, and a number of online outlets. This can potentially be a benefit to your university.

Engaging with people beside students can be a valuable personal development experience. In my case, the biggest benefit of blogging was finding my own voice. I rediscovered how to communicate with practicing managers and I had great fun in doing so. Academic writing all too often neuters our personal voice. Finding my voice was the first step in helping me find my ideal professional work…at the nexus of the academic and the practicing manager. Blogging and engaging with other bloggers helped me discover a new path that was not the traditional choice between being an academic and being a consultant.

As I write this I realize my experience may not be a good message for your session…blogging led me on a path away from the academic world *grin*

By: Bret L Simmons

Bret L Simmons — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:51:55 +0000

Wish I could make the workshop but I won’t be at AOM this year. Will you let me know how it goes? Bret

By: CV Harquail

CV Harquail — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 05:53:27 +0000

Bret, I think that we who blog already ‘get’ lots of the intrinsic benefits… but I find myself struggling to respond to those who ask how it can help their ‘career’ or help them with tenure. i have this fantasy that at the workshop we can come up with 5-7 reasons blogging could count for tenure, and some qual & quant ways to measure ROI, and then use these to educate & advocate. Can you come to the workshop yourself? We could put you into the panel… cv

By: CV Harquail

CV Harquail — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 05:41:21 +0000

Hi Wally! Tickled to see you here!

I personally want to confine the term ‘blog’ only to webpages where readers can contribute. If the comments are off, then you’re simply publishing, not blogging. I ranted on this a bit to a BSchool dean-buddy of mine, who was ‘blogging’ with no facility for accepting/listening to replies. Finally, recently, he changed his page format and now is entertaining comments- and enjoying the process. It hasn’t been what he feared (i.e., overwhelming), tho maybe some folks are too intimidated by his dean-ness to comment….

I’m hoping that by positioning comments/replies as a chance to learn and teach, I can get more colleagues interested. I do see blogging as a BIG opportunity for management faculty to take some leadership in the conversation linking research (even just their/our own) to practice. I’ll be taking notes at the workshop and will report back in a post. cv

By: Wally Bock

Wally Bock — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 21:50:25 +0000

Yes, they should be reading, for all the reasons enumerated. And yes, as Bret says, they should be writing. And they should be responding to the comments on their blogs.

There are several of the academics who have blogs, but who don’t respond to comments. That’s a straight-up message that their time is far too valuable to waste on the comments of the uninformed.

By: Bret L Simmons

Bret L Simmons — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:36:41 +0000

Great post! I totally concur that Mgt professors should be reading blogs, and more should also be writing them. When I tell my colleagues I write a blog, I almost always get a negative reaction. Most see it as a cost, but I see it as an investment. Really like you reason #2. Thanks! Bret

By: Anne Marie McEwan

Anne Marie McEwan — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:31:53 +0000

Hi CV

You are kind. Thank you! And more power to your elbow in your quest

By: CV Harquail

CV Harquail — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:03:43 +0000

Hi Anne Marie-
I completely agree with you! I’m on a little (maybe not so little) mission to get more management scholars online .. The possibility of relevance (since, when you’re not online, you’re not relevant online) and the possibility of reputational capital should be compelling, I think.
I suspect that one reason more mgmt scholars are not blogging (or reading blogs) is that they don’t even know that blogs like yours at TheSmartWorkCompany even exist, much less that they influence so many thoughtful managers.
Thanks so much for commenting… I continue to love, learn from and enjoy what you’re writing and doing at TSWC!

By: Mahananda

Mahananda — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:48:19 +0000

Management Professors should read blogs to sharpen their literature usage and application of ornamental language in deleviring class lecturers.

By: Anne Marie McEwan

Anne Marie McEwan — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 05:37:49 +0000

CV, I agree with your five reasons. I would respectfully suggest that management professors who want to stay in the game ought to consider blogging.

The world is changing rapidly and simultaneously on many fronts. New knowledge about these trends is developing outside of academic institutions. It seems to me that management professors risk being seen as irrelevant if they do not join in the conversations taking place in blogs, outside of and across institutional confines.

Oh, and their more junior academic colleagues most certainly are engaging in blog conversations, rapidly establishing significant reputational capital for themselves.