Work

Executive Education Tradition: Mechanisms of Business Elite Formation

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Executive education affects business leaders, corporate practices, and, by extension, broader society. Yet research on executive education programs—and particularly the traditions embedded within them—remains limited. To examine how educational tradition can function as a gateway into the business elite, we conducted a historical case study of the Finnish Institute of Management (LIFIM) and its executive education program from the 1950s to the early 2000s. During this period, LIFIM emerged as a pioneer of executive education in Finland and became the country’s dominant provider. Our study contributes to research on executive education and business elites by identifying four interdependent mechanisms—honoring, educating, networking, and socializing—through which executive education traditions operate as gateways into the business elite. Furthermore, our historical approach extends existing research by revealing how educational traditions are dynamically developed, stabilized, and may eventually erode over time.

Source: Academy of Management Learning and Education

DOI: 10.5465/amle.2024.0416

Authors: Virpi Sorsa, Pasi Nevalainen, Aleksi Korhonen, Juha Kansikas

Institutions: University of Eastern Finland, University of Jyväskylä, Aalto University

Language: English

Topic: Management and Marketing Education

Subfield: Management of Technology and Innovation

Field: Business, Management and Accounting

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Quality education

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W7147561725

FWCI:

Cites: 54

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