FT Awards: Catalysts for Business Change

The Financial Times Responsible Business Education Awards have emerged as a significant catalyst for change in business education, providing winners with increased visibility, credibility, and opportunities to expand their impact. Now in their fourth year, these awards showcase and encourage innovative approaches to addressing global challenges including sustainability, climate change, discrimination, and poverty.

Impact on Teaching Innovation

The awards have spurred innovative teaching methods that go beyond traditional classroom instruction. For example, UNSW Sydney Business School’s “Diverse Horizons” project uses virtual reality to immerse students in the experiences of marginalized groups, particularly those with disabilities. This approach represents a fundamental shift from conventional case studies to experiential learning.

Similarly, Cranfield School of Management’s “Exploring Sustainable Futures” board game, which has engaged over 2,500 players since 2018, demonstrates how gamification can enhance learning about sustainability. The game helps students develop agency and understanding of the connections between society and business through role-playing different scenarios for Europe’s sustainable future.

Research with Real-World Impact

Winners in the academic research category have shown how scholarly work can drive tangible change. Fiona Marshall from the University of Sussex Business School, a 2022 winner, saw her research on waste management in India gain broader recognition through the award. This led to new collaborations across academic disciplines and with external stakeholders, resulting in additional projects such as exploring urban agriculture’s role in food security.

The award has also helped researchers bridge the gap between academic publishing and practical implementation. Enrico Biffis and Erik Chavez from Imperial College Business School used their recognition to influence financial institutions in Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, leading to improved loan underwriting practices for smallholder farmers.

Entrepreneurial Success Stories

For student and alumni entrepreneurs, the awards have provided crucial momentum for their ventures. David Even’s Primal Soles, which produces recyclable insoles using Mediterranean cork, leveraged his 2023 student prize win at the World Economic Forum in Davos to secure valuable connections. This resulted in new advisory board members and a significant expansion into hotel slippers, with a 60,000-pair order from Amsterdam’s Hotel Jakarta.

Similarly, Gaetano Lapenta’s Fybra, which creates air quality monitoring devices, expanded from serving 40,000 people primarily in schools to reaching over 300,000 people across various settings after winning the “alumni change makers” award in 2022. The recognition led to unexpected partnerships with large corporations and collaborations with public authorities, facilitating international expansion into Germany and other European markets.

Institutional Benefits

For business schools, winning an award can significantly enhance their reputation and attract students. Colorado State University College of Business, a winner of the best overall school award, attributes its 35% increase in student enrollment since 2020 partly to its sustainability credentials and FT award recognition. Dean Beth Walker notes that students are specifically choosing the school for its commitment to responsible business education.

Kedge Business School found that winning a teaching award helped raise its profile in the competitive French business school market, providing valuable external validation for its ecological macroeconomics course and broader sustainability initiatives.

Challenges and Future Development

Despite these successes, award winners face various challenges in scaling their impact. Many winners note that implementing sustainable solutions takes time and requires persistent effort to overcome institutional inertia, cultural barriers, and market skepticism. Fybra’s Lapenta acknowledges that building credibility internationally remains challenging, even with strong customer numbers and patents.

The awards program itself continues to evolve, with the FT seeking to expand participation beyond North America and Western Europe. While there are currently some projects focused on other regions, there’s a push for more direct entries from Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

Looking Forward

The awards continue to serve as an important platform for showcasing and encouraging responsible business education initiatives. Winners consistently report that the recognition helps them:

• Attract funding and resources
• Build credibility with stakeholders
• Expand their networks
• Scale their impact
• Influence policy and practice

As sustainability and social responsibility become increasingly central to business education and practice, these awards play a crucial role in identifying and promoting innovative approaches to addressing global challenges. They demonstrate that combining academic rigor with practical impact can create meaningful change while encouraging collaboration between academia, business, government, and non-profit sectors.

The success stories of past winners suggest that the awards serve not just as recognition of achievement, but as a springboard for further impact and innovation in responsible business education. As the program enters its fourth year, it continues to evolve and adapt, seeking to identify and promote the most effective approaches to creating a more sustainable and equitable business world.