Williams College of Business

WCB Mission Statement

The College educates students of business, enabling them to improve organizations and society, consistent with the Jesuit tradition.

The mission of the College is in keeping with the university’s mission, articulated by President Michael Graham, S.J. as “Xavier's mission is to serve society by forming students intellectually, morally and spiritually, with rigor and compassion, towards lives of solidarity, service and success.”

Teaching

The primary purpose of the faculty is to promote learning by business students—in accordance with the Jesuit tradition - that will improve organizations and society. Consequently, student learning is focused on developing the following competencies for our undergraduate students:

• Critical Thinking
• Ethics and Social Responsibility
• Effective Written and Oral Communication
• Global Perspective and Cultural Diversity
• Understanding and application of knowledge across business disciplines
• Personal and Professional Development.

and the following competencies for our MBA students:

• Strategic Thinking and Leadership
• Global Perspective and Cultural Diversity
• Ethics and Social Responsibility
• Critical Thinking
• Effective Written and Oral Communication

Our goal is for all our graduates to achieve their career goals and improve society. For undergraduates, the College builds on Xavier’s strong liberal arts program to provide each student with proficiency in each of the core competencies, with excellent technical skills in his or her specific major, and with a successful transition to business. For MBAs, the College strengthens student proficiencies in the core competencies and enhances students’ business acumen.

The effectiveness of the faculty in promoting student learning requires that faculty employ a variety of teaching methods, continuously develop their own expertise in pedagogy, and continuously assess and enhance their classes, in terms of both coverage and pedagogy.

Intellectual Contributions

The effectiveness and vitality of the faculty requires that they make regular contributions to the intellectual life of their respective disciplines. Such intellectual contributions are expected to be available for public scrutiny by their academic peers and professionals. Basic research, applied research, and instructional development are all valued. However, because all students in the Williams College of Business are enrolled in either undergraduate or applied Master's programs, our intellectual contributions are predominantly in the areas of applied research and instructional development.

• Applied Scholarship: The application, transfer, and interpretation of knowledge, which focus on the author's discipline, or related disciplines. Generally, the intended audience consists of academics and/or practitioners.
• Instructional Development: The enhancement of the educational value of instructional efforts, either in a particular discipline, or across disciplinary boundaries. Generally, the target audience is academics with a focus on pedagogical enhancement through the advancement and refinement of instructional methods, instructional materials, or addressing other significant issues of importance in business education.
• Basic Scholarship: The advancement of knowledge through the development of new constructs, new models, and/or theories. Generally, the intended audience consists of academics.

Internal Service

Faculty and staff contributions to internal service help ensure that the University and College successfully fulfill their missions and achieve their visions. Consequently, the faculty actively participates in the governance of the university and all College personnel serve as resources for the operation and development of the university by providing expertise and perspective.

External Service

Faculty work with external constituencies enhances

• Economic development and the quality of life, especially in the Cincinnati region; and
• The effectiveness and currency of the faculty.
• Such work includes interactions with alumni, the business community, and advisory groups; as well as providing our expertise and perspective to professional, civic, and academic organizations.

WCB Vision Statement

In 2012, the Williams College of Business is recognized—as a preeminent business school nationally—for transforming students into successful, ethical business leaders who achieve their fullest potential for the betterment of themselves, their colleagues, and society.

The College’s vision statement is consistent with that of academic affairs, which can be summarized as: Xavier University, a comprehensive university in the Jesuit tradition, excels at educating students intellectually, morally and spiritually by challenging them to become men and women of integrity and compassion. We inspire one another to achieve our full potential and to engage in society as competent, thoughtful, and responsible global citizens. We value academic rigor, research, reflection, and the integration of knowledge and action that works toward the betterment of society."

WCB Measures of Success

Progress toward fulfilling the College’s vision can be evaluated in terms of the following measures:

• Being more highly regarded than peer institutions by graduating students and alumni as providing an exceptional value in business education.
• Being more highly regarded than peer institutions by graduating students and alumni as for equipping them to address the ethical and social responsibility issues confronted in business.
• Being rated the best business school in the region by strategically targeted regional corporations and business organizations.
• The percentage of graduates who achieve employment in their desired areas of expertise within six months of graduation.

WCB Priorities

The duties of the principal faculty are in the areas of teaching, scholarship, and service; for department chairs and center directors, the duties are in administration, teaching, scholarship, and service.

The College’s first priority is to provide a high-quality learning environment for our students, with primary emphasis placed on undergraduate education. In accord with the teaching mission, instructional responsibilities are given a weight of 35-45% in annual faculty evaluations, with 25% for department chairs.

Intellectual contributions that provide (1) practical applications of theory through applied research, (2) enhance the effectiveness of teaching, and (3) advance knowledge are valued and encouraged by the College. In accord with our mission statement, our goal is for the majority of our intellectual contributions to be applied or instructional. We especially value high quality intellectual contributions. Intellectual contributions have a weight of 35-45% in annual faculty evaluations; for department chairs the weight is 15-25%.

The College is committed to providing superior service to our students and the community. We value student advising, work that facilitates and improves the programs of the College and University, and efforts that contribute to the economic development of the region. Consequently, service is given a 20% weight in annual faculty evaluations - 15% for department chairs (for whom service as chair is also weighted 35%).