Advancing technology management education focused on industry demand

Abstract

To manage technological innovations successfully in todays high-tech industries, science and engineering students are often expected to have management skills to deal with multidisciplinary problems that occur during research and development. However, a majority of employers feel that the supply of education to enhance the business and management competencies of engineering students and their employees is lacking. This illustrates the mismatch between the demand and supply sides of technology management education. To narrow the gap, this paper first conducts a survey of the industry demand and reviews several major technology management education programmes abroad and in Korea. This paper then proposes a curriculum structure based on the technology management subjects that are most required of science and engineering students at the workplace. The results and lessons learned from technology management education at Yonsei University are also presented and the implications for global collaboration are discussed. Overall, this is a historical research paper on the development of Korean technology management education with examples in other countries, together with industry survey data. This will provide insights for educators in the technology management field when they first establish programmes in developing countries, in particular. Copyright © 2009 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.