Abstract
This study applies an action research to investigate the possibility of unsettling management education and the entrepreneurial self from neoliberal logic. The reflection takes as its case an action research diploma seminar in a Polish management school based on collaboration among students, employers from public and nongovernmental sectors, and academic teachers in the preparation of master’s theses. The main goal of this article is to illustrate the struggles involved in resisting neoliberal demands, including the ethical reorientation of the entrepreneurial self, in the management classroom. We conclude with a discussion of the emancipatory value of our project and its limitations.
Highlights
This study applies an action research to investigate the possibility of unsettling management education and the entrepreneurial self from neoliberal logic
To better understand the process of unrooting management education and the entrepreneurial self from neoliberal demands, this article poses the following research question: What are the challenges of unrooting management education and the entrepreneurial self from neoliberal demands through a diploma seminar based on action research (AR)?
To illustrate the research problem—unrooting management education and entrepreneurial self from neoliberal demands through AR—we describe a case of cooperation between a student and a supervisor during one of our seminars
Summary
This study applies an action research to investigate the possibility of unsettling management education and the entrepreneurial self from neoliberal logic. The goal of becoming independently responsible for the creation of a successful future, understood in economic terms (employability, profit maximization), has become a naturalized imperative in contemporary management education (Berglund & Verduijn, 2018b) This goal stems from the neoliberal assumption of autonomous and economically rational individuals ready to constantly reinforce their competitive entrepreneurial competencies to perform instrumental actions (Bragg, 2007). This study attempts to join the debate surrounding the negative outcomes of neoliberal rationality in the business schools and to respond to the growing demands for the reinvention of management education (Steyaert et al, 2016) It focuses on action research (AR) as a process of reorienting students’ and teachers’ thinking and actions to nurture more meaningful and ethically aware entrepreneurial selves. The article illustrates the difficulties and limitations related to struggling with neoliberalism in management education based on the AR approach
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