Teaching Business Management Concepts To Professionals In Care Sectors In Singapore

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Keywords: Teaching pedagogy, adult learners, management education and development

Abstract: Teaching business management concepts poses an unique challenge when the participants come from a non-business-oriented work environment (i.e., non-profit, not-for profit, public sector, charity sector). The care sector in Singapore is currently going through a sector-wide transformation. By care sector, we mean institutions belonging to healthcare, community care, grassroots, social and family services, and volunteer welfare organizations. Currently, the care sector in Singapore is grappling with various forces that require organizations to undergo changes. One of these is the increasing ageing population in Singapore where the island-state will reach the super-aged society status defined by OECD by 2026. The demographic shifts are compounded by the increasing healthcare costs and shortage of manpower, which means that organizations need to work harder with less public funding. As care organizations are under pressure to transform, many have responded with diverse strategies, such as developing fundraising capabilities, pivoting into a social enterprise, undergoing digital transformation, and many more. In the management of care organizations, talent management and leadership development become a strategic priority in the management of care organizations. Professionals within the care sectors- counsellors and therapists, social workers, community workers as well as managers and directors- are encouraged to enrol in courses, with sponsorship from the government or their employers. However, tacit knowledge is sticky and hard to transfer unless there is deliberate and collective social construction of experiences and internalization that transforms knowing into knowledge and then from knowledge into practice (Nonaka et al., 1996). The transfer of knowledge from academia to industry is challenging, not to mention the transfer of knowledge across professional boundaries and disciplines (Agrawal, 2001). Since 2020, we have been teaching care professionals various management-related topics, such as strategy, stakeholder management, social impact measurement, organizational change, and sustainability. This workshop aims to share our experiences and insights in designing and delivering management courses tailored for non-management professionals. Sample topics we plan to cover include course design, teaching pedagogy and delivery, and content curation. Why this workshop will be of interest to the EAM participants With the growing popularity in continuing education for professionals, management faculty face increasing demand to teach audiences from a wide range of backgrounds and profiles, such as engineers, healthcare, and, in this case care professionals. Management concepts, such as change management, stakeholder management, strategy, sustainability and social impact are versatile and relevant across different sectors. Acquiring knowledge and exposure in these areas is pivotal for participants to elevate their management thinking and practices, ultimately enhancing organizational efficiency. We hope to use this workshop to stimulate discussion and facilitate the exchange of ideas to improve teaching methods tailored for learners without a management background. Our goal is to ensure that the knowledge and skills imparted in the classroom seamlessly translate into practice applicable within their workplace.