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New Study by Heriot and Thomson Explores the Pedagogical Benefits and Costs of Field-Based Consulting Projects

A new study appearing in the current issue of the Small Business Institute Journal by Turner College management professors Kirk Heriot and Neal Thomson describes the use of field-based students consulting projects in sections of the Turner College's Small Business Management course. Although previous studies have observed field-based consulting over shorter periods of time, Heriot and Thomson opt for a longitudinal approach by examining course sections taught from 2006 to 2021. Additionally, Heriot and Thomson employ a case research design in order to observe the evolution of the small business institute program and to explore the program in much greater detail than other research designs.  According to Thomson, "qualitative research designs [like that in our study] have previously been used to describe field-based student consulting programs." The study explains that requiring students to work with a small business is experiential and represents one of the few chances that college students have to put into practice the many things they have learned in their academic program. On the other hand, from the instructor’s point of view, supervising student teams can be viewed as a daunting challenge. For example, between 2006 and 2021, 780 students were enrolled in the sections of small business management that included that included the project. The projects were set up by student teams and were limited to a single functional area in the business. Thus, students did not assist with writing a business or marketing plan but instead work ed on what Heriot and Thomson describe as a micro project. "This work was done before the semester began and was very time-consuming as it is often a hit-or-miss process to identify and recruit small businesses," added Heriot. The paper concludes with lessons learned that might inform other professors seeking to use field-based student consulting in an era of online courses, increased publishing expectations, and monumental obstacles such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

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